Monochrome - Monochrome (2020)

This is some story. Once upon a time, there was a shoegaze band called Monochrome who managed to perform only ones at the The Spiral rock club for around 20 people. Then they split up but we can now witness what we lost because of that as the live gig's recording has been found and released as this short EP.

And quite frankly, it's a sad story too. Monochrome's music seems to have been a top quality shoegaze music that could stand out even in its time - it was the early 90s, the peak of the first wave of shoegaze, now legendary, bands. Its slow waves generate such an intensive, nostalgic and immersive atmosphere that it makes me jealous of those 20 people who could experience it live. Not to mention that it is first of all thanks to the violins adding up to the overwhelming feeling of nostalgia. Especially that the vocals here sound like the male version of Slowdive's Rachel Goswell, helped from time to time by female backing vocals (that eventually take the lead) and it's such a good combo. The one track that really stands out is definitely Never Ending Eyes, one I'm going go back to often.

Monochrome costs whatever you want to pay.

Check: Never Ending Eyes

Country: New York, US

Genre: original shoegaze

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Escuelas Pías - Plantas de exterior (2020)

Another dream pop duo this week. This time it's Sevilla-based band consisting of Cristian Bohórquez and Davis Rodríguez with their short but juicy ethereal material on the EP called Plantas de exterior.

As said, the EP is only 4-track-long but still catches the ear of the listener. It is, however, meant to be a preview of four EPs planned to release the following months that will eventually make up an LP. Sounds complicated but the point is that Plantas... works as an album too. It is built on a significant amount of synth keys and electronic sounds. With some industrial flavours in the background while the foreground is dominated by catchy indie pop with very dreamy atmosphere. The vocals change at point as the band invited Erica Pender, the vocalist of Terry vs Tori to join them in La gran revelación but in general the band traverse between denser, more atmospheric parts and light, melodic indie pop (as in the closing Mutismo). Now we have to wait for the EPs.

Plantas de exterior costs 3.5 EUR.

Check: Regeneración

Country: Spain

Genre: synth dream pop

Label: El Genio Equivocado

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Choux - Super Moon (2020)

Canadians Lizzie Carolan and Jordan Gatesmith make up a duo making some good quality dream pop music. Choux, as they called themselves, released their debut album at the end of 2020 on which they follow some traditional, airy pattern while adding up some their own uniqueness.

The thing that stand out the most is Carolan's vocals that, while still being exceptionally airy, evoke some interesting themes of cabaret and opera in Super Moon or carelessness of indie pop in Thirteen only to settle on some very dream pop vibes. The vocals are surrounded by subtle, bedroom pop music that's never too loud or too focused on itself. Though there are chaotic guitars sometimes, they are always in the backgrounds, adding up to the atmosphere.

Probably the most interesting track, except for the opening one, is Samhain, with its interesting composition and backing vocals is able to generate quite an extraordinarily dreamy atmosphere. And this is what the band's really good at.

Super Moon costs 7 USD.

Check: Super Moon

Country: Canada

Genre: bedroom dream pop

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Kegaal - Pillars: Seeds of Ares (2020) EN

Already on his debut album NERATERRÆ surprised me with his love for collab with other great ambient artists. This time he became a member of a real ambient supergroup together with Gabriele Panci (New Risen Throne) and Ketil Søraker who also recently gave us a treat in the form of Taphephobia's new album. This enterprise couldn't go wrong.

As a result, Pillars: Seeds of Ares gives us a huge dose of dark ambient soundscape in the darkness of which you can easily get lost. As could have been guessed, the music here is made of a whole range of whispers, horror movies' mysterious crackling and, first of all, the pitch black soundscapes. And if for someone there's not enough of famous names here, the album hosts also the vocalist Treha Sektori and another artist I adore - Visions from Berlin. Wonderful combo.

Pillars: Seeds of Ares costs 5 EUR.

NERATERRÆ - The Substance of Perception (2019) EN

NERATERRÆ - Scenes from the Sublime (2020) EN

Taphephobia - Blue Hour (2020) EN

Check: Light Devourer

Country: Italy/Norway

Genre: dark ambient

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Dagmar Gertot - Os Lacrimale (2020) EN

First time I heard about Dagmar Gertot while posting about Darja Kazimira's album last year. It quickly turned out that the two artists are a perfect fit and their fascinating approach to the art in general inspires me all the time. The Russian released a new album and it has to be said that Os Lacrimale fits so well to their unique style.

It's difficult to describe the artist's music. For sure there's something from the Balkan and Roma people folklore there, certainly a lot of dark ambient and folk the liveliness of which is washed out so only the extremely strong atmosphere prevails. A lot of experiments with vocals too because the compositions here are as minimalist as can be, except of various forms of vocals, there's only single instruments playing in the backgrounds. But those are widely represented, from accordion to Bosnian folk batalo.

Gertot's music is not a simple one - there's tons of improvisation here with this very theatre-like mood with grotesque, unsettling and art in general. The artist's experiments, just like it is in her visual art works, is well though through and extremely unique. This atmosphere of the higher artism is her characteristic trait.

Os Lacrimale costs 8 EUR.

Darja Kazimira & Dagmar Gertot - Ο θάνατος του Ταύρου (Death of The Bull) (2019) EN

Check: Nude Metamorph

Country: Russia

Genre: experimental dark folk

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Show Me a Dinosaur - Plantgazer (2020) EN

For the first time I posted about the Russian band quite a while ago - four years to be specific, when they released their album Show Me a Dinosaur. Now the 4-piece post-metal-blackgaze band from Petersburg showed their fourth album and brought some heavy taste to the last days of this difficult year.

The album makes another release that's a direct response to the lockdown and pandemics situation in the world. And this also explains the mysterious title as according to the musicians, gazing at plants is the only thing people locked inside their houses during quarantine can do even during beautiful, sunny days. This and "trying to figure out answers to the many questions this new world has given rise to". Blackgaze on this album is very guitar-saturated and catchy, in many places more post-rock-like than metal if this can even be so easily said. The band with no problem generates the waves of sounds that sweeps the audience off and carry them to the most energetic worlds (Red River!).

The post-metal here is made mostly of the screaming vocals, but the artists also use more normal, choir-like chanting as in the great Marsh. The most important though is that the band is not about making the music strictly within a genre but they go wherever their heavy and guitar0filled hearts tell them to. I like it very much.

Plantgazer costs 7 USD.

Show Me A Dinosaur - Show Me A Dinosaur (2016) EN

Check: Red River

Country: Russia

Genre: metallic post-rock

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NATT - The Way You Were Made (2020) EN

NATT is a Polish producer and musician, although some sources say it's actually a duo. Anyway, his/their second album, and the first long play, has recently been released by the irreplaceable Amek Collective and this means it's a quality piece of music.

The Way You Were Made is an album that's "simultaneously bleak and beautiful", with ambient that's very electronica-based as well as super experimental but also rooted into the reality that surrounds us, though more "interested in exploring the shadows rather than exposing itself to the sunlight". The music on the album on one hand makes a minimalist electronica, on the other, you can hardly find anywhere else such a diversity of sounds that are crunchy, whistling or attention-drawing in other ways. And really dark becomes when the musician reaches for gothic sounds that could safely fit a horror movie and that make your skin crawl, just like in Rare Words.

The Way You Were Made costs 2 EUR.

Check: Tell Me What You See

Country: Poland

Genre: experimental ambient

Label: Amek Collective

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WatchCamp November-December'20 with Ashkan Beheshti, IMKORPO & DEATH TRASHER, Mr. Lazy, Obelia Waxwing, Pelts EN

Ashkan Beheshti - The Message

What a beautiful music! On one hand, quite a handful of ingredients: dark ambient mixed with samples, sacral choirs and neoclassical keys, on the other, the whole thing is put together so tastefully you can't say it's chaotic, quite the contrary: dark and minimal. The two tracks cost whatever you want to pay.

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IMKORPO & DEATH TRASHER - TIRO

IMKORPO is a multimedia artist out of California, known for cooperation with Pussy Riots, DEATH TRASHER is a producer from Argentina. Together they created a single that makes me think one thing: good trap with Ghostemane and Scarlxrd's vibes is always welcome. The single costs 1 USD.

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Mr. Lazy - The Savichevs Are Dead

Project from a Korean artist Jimi Kim and this post-rock track inspired by Tanya Savicheva, the author of a diary depicting the horror of the siege of Stalingrad. The atmosphere and the gloomy music together with a similar topics make me think of this year's album from Besides.The single costs whatever you want to pay.

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Obelia Waxwing - Morae Rally / Island on Fire

Project created as a response to "discrimination, inequality and the continuation of failing systems"w in Australia. The Rebecca Williams - Dermot Seller duo creates an uneasy experimental pop filled with deformed, spine-thrilling sounds but also industrial, mesmerizing atmosphere. Two songs cost 4 USD.

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Pelts - London Runner

Indie rock band from Glasgow and their lively though not super loud music. Very engaging single, mesmerizing and slightly unnerving. The band that you should have on your radars. Two tracks cost 1 GBP.

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Star Shaped Chimney - The Lab Above the Clouds (2020) EN

Star Shaped Chimney, known also as O'Mons, is an artists who creates his music for the Hungarian label NGC Prod. His or her dark ambient was released on the new album called The Lab Above the Clouds.

Not only the album's title is mysterious here, the artist shows the music as an artifact of the ancient times and in some way it may be true. After all, in a simple way it makes the audience to release some basic, primordial feelings like fear and sadness. The albums consists of two long tracks filled with melancholic and homogeneous soundscapes in which the sea of drones stretches far to the horizon. Or maybe the sea of clouds as this is what the album is about.

The Lab Above the Clouds costs 4 EUR.

Check: Water

Country: Hungary

Genre: dark ambient

Label: NGC Prod

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The Bows - Seeking Hope, Finding Peace Vol​.​1 (2020) EN

The Bows is Benoit Pelletier's solo project, although in some places he mentions also another artist known only as ELO. Nevertheless, the French project is made of dark ambient and, first of all, beautiful, though poignant neoclassicism having its roots in "contemplating nature, its power, its grandeur and its calm".

The albums consists of tracks composed throughout many years, in different moments of the artist's life, moments that have one common thing: they were the times of challenge for him. And although he swears he didn't let the anger and sadness dominate the music, those not easy emotions can clearly be felt in every second of the album. It's audible in the project title's bows and in the calm, though not entirely free of the darkness, piano keys. But not in Variation No. 1 in which they are simply melancholically beautiful.

Seeking Hope, Finding Peace Vol​.​1 costs 6 EUR.

Check: Variation No. 1

Country: France

Genre: dark neoclassical

Label: Creative Studio Records

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Junk Love - Silence (2020) EN

The Italian trio Junk Love five years ago released their debut album but since then they've shown only singles which fortunately changed now with this year's EP called Silence. With some great post-punk and energetic songs on it.

This is what the band's music sound like: on one hand it's post-punk cold and flat with the minimalist arrangements and dark ambiance. On the other, it's super catchy. Especially the album's second song, Silence, is like that, who would have thought that silence can be so catchy and a chorus made of one word so memorable. Equally good, although I have to say, a bit disturbing, is the following track Lucy. Indeed, the artists are able to write so catchy and engaging songs with, apparently, such an easy it's absolutely compliment-worthy. Not every post-punk artists can do that.

Silence costs 5 EUR.

Check: Silence

Country: Italy

Genre: indie post-punk

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A Burial at Sea - A Burial at Sea (2020) EN

I posted about the Liverpool-based A Burial at Sea when they showed their debut EP ​..​.​And the Sum of Its Parts two years ago. Then there was a gig at the Bergmal Festival last autumn and now I can safely say that the band's unique post-rock has finally an LP form on A Burial at Sea.

There's only a few post-rock bands that use the trumpet's sounds in their music, actually, I can think only of the Norwegian crazy guys of the brilliant Spurv. That being said, for the English band this is essentially the basis of their work, they even call their music "trumpet rock" on their FB account. Of course, this is understatement, there's so much more in it, but a fact is a fact. In the band's music the trumpet sounds add on to the madness of the already math-rock-like chaotic post-rock in which the moods, paces and melodies change every second.

But the artists feel good also when it's the time to finish a song in a very post-rock, monumental and loud way (Lest We Remember) or when they want to combine a very tension-filled guitar composition with some chanting about home sickness (Lightning Blanket). And the sounds of the trumpet are always there and always add to the colourfullness of the music.

A Burial at Sea costs 8 EUR.

Check: Lightning Blanket

Country: UK

Genre: trumpet math-rock

Label: Moment Of Collapse Records

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Bungalow Depression - Blank Slate (2020) EN

Bungalow Depression is a trio out of Normandy in the works of which the ethereal atmosphere mixes with electronica with perfect ratio. At least it's what it's like on their debut album, November's Blank State z listopada.

The albums is opened by the single track The Whirl that is characterized by very nervous and pulsating electronic sounds in the backgrounds on which the whole composition is built. After a while it evolves in a very industrial direction while it's being ornamented by especially interesting vocals by Anne-Laure Labaste. It's a filled with dream pop vibes while also indie pop-like catching. What can't be denied are also trip-hop inspirations, especially Sad Day proves that the musicians have to be fans of Massive Attack.

Dense, dream pop haze is reached especially in Silent Voice in which the air gets stifling from the vocals and electronic mist. This ethereal-electronic-industrial atmosphere lasts throughout the whole album, one so unique in the way it sounds being a marriage between the oldschool dream pop and modern electronic music.

Blank Slate costs 7 EUR.

Check: Silent Voice

Country: France

Genre: industrial dream pop

Label: SOZA

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Soraku - In My Head (2020) EN

Nikola Sorak makes his music as Soraku and although he started just a year ago, he managed to create quite a series of releases already. In My Head makes already his sixth album this year. And it's a good thing I stumbled upon his music as his guitar noise seems to match my tastes.

The album is supposed to be for the author a "result of a year long journey of self reflection, and trying to reach further depths of creativity" and it's filled with drones and coarse ambient created by working with synth keys and guitar pedals, cassette loops and other experiments with piano, guitar and other instruments. Sometimes within those soundscapes some irregular, tearing sounds appear and they make it even more unnerving than the homogeneous noise. But the most important thing is that it's "all done with love, and no settling" and it's clear.

In My Head costs whatever you want to pay.

Check: In My Head

Country: Iowa, US

Genre: experimental noise

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meadowlake - Wait for Me (2020) EN

The Dutch meadowlake have a debut album from 2018 in their portfolio and now they added a new position there, a new release called Wait for Me. And this dreamy to the core dream pop is the best that could happen during so autumny a December like this now.

The album check every item on the best dream pop album checklist. First of all, the ethereal vocals on a similar level that those of RiLF or Hanging Valley so those that for me establish the uberairy vocals on the verge of whispering. Second thing, delicate melodies that melt in the airy atmosphere but before they do, make the listener swing a lot. Third, the artists don't shy away from using some louder, clearer guitars where it's needed. Up to the point where we can easily talk about dream rock here. But never mind the labels, medowlake makes such a dose of dream pop haze that yuo can hardly find anything like it.

Especially when the final notes of Under Your Spell sound, this dense atmosphere of a love ballad is something I haven't heard for a while.

Wait For Me costs 10 EUR.

Check: Under Your Spell

Country: The Netherlands

Genre: ethereal dream rock

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The Echelon Effect - Drift Static (2020) EN

David Walters releases his music as The Echelon Effect for over a decade now and he's got really quite a lot already in his portfolio. This time, it's, the second one already this year, album called Drift Static.

His music makes a material for peaceful experiencing and meditating made of a mix of everything from ambient and neoclassicism to soft post-rock. We're taking off with piano beauty in One Day We'll Have a Fireplace of Our Own only to quickly come closer to droning ambient and further, into the stories of instrumental ambient and neoclassical keys. This creates an effect of drowning into dreamy atmosphere not so different from the cover art's mist, one the spell of which is broken only with the monumental sounds of The Year Is Done, which, on the other hand, depicts the mountains - breathtaking and gargantuan.

Drift Static costs whatever you want to pay.

Check: The Year Is Done

Country: UK

Genre: ambient post-rock

Label: Glidescope Recordings

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Tender Tones - Youth Retirement Club (2020) EN

Manon Deruytere and Maxime Pargaud make up the Tender Tones duo. The Paris-based artists, a new item in Shore Dive Records' portfolio, are into exceptionally atmospheric combination of dream pop and a lot of synth sounds. How good it turned out to be can be checked on their new EP called Youth Retirement Club.

The Frenchmen's band doesn't sound like energetic synthpop, quite the contrary, talking about synths and flat, synthetic beats it's closer to minimalist vibes of coldwave. Then there are also some mysterious, darkwavish whispers in Red Lovers. On the other hand, both the engaging melodies and distorted, airy vocals are surely something that came from dream pop. This cold etheric atmosphere sounds great, especially when the two opposites - the darkness of wave and the dreaminess of dream pop closely work together as it is in the great Still White Noise. 

No wonder then that the album is co-released by the shoegazey Shore Dive Records and wave Somewherecold. An ideal marriage..

Youth Retirement Club costs 3 EUR.

Check: Still White Noise

Country: France

Genre: ethereal wave

Label: Shore Dive Records / Somewherecold

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Lavender Blush - The Garden of Inescapable Pleasure (2020) EN

The Californian band Lavender Blush since its beginning in 2016 managed to release some material but the new album, The Garden of Inescapable Pleasure, is what they call their long play debut.

As they are accustomed to, the album was produced by them at home and this is one of the pillars of their music. After all, they describe their own music as "noise pop group devoted to home recording, atmospherics, and analog warmth". The DIY factor clearly adds to the overall atmosphere of this noise pop release that draws from everything that's situated between bedroom pop and shoegaze. And the dominant slowcore pace makes the guitar sound in a monumental way.

The album is opened by the catchiest track I'm in Love, but this is being catchy in a Slowdive or Spiritualized way - more likely an atmospheric music than pop enthusiasm    . And it works. Sometimes the artists can get louder and so the final of Piper is made of very rock guitars in post-rocking climate. But it's always balanced by the vocals - dispersed and  heavenly. As a good dream pop should.

The Garden of Inescapable Pleasure costs 7 USD.

Check: I'm in Love

Country: California, US

Genre: bedroom noise pop

Label: Shelflife

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Joni Void + N NAO - Nature Morte (2020) EN

Joni Void is Jean Cousin of Canada, N NAO is Naomie De Lorimier - a member of the Canadian band Monako. Together they recorded an album filled with experimental psychedelia released by the LAAPS label and called Nature Morte.

The album is actually one big experiment that at the same time is served in such an attractive way that there's absolutely no problems with digesting it whatsoever. It's full of mesmerizing industrial passages that are treated as backgrounds for weird and chaotic electronic sounds and N NAO's vocals filled with this special ethereal nonchalance. The melodies here are not so important but at the same time, I bet live they make a good dance material. Still, the most beautiful moments are those with the more airy versions of the vocals that are being surrounded by delicate and experimental ambient, yes, I'm talking here about Géométrie Sacrée.

Nature Morte costs 6 EUR.

Check: Géométrie Sacrée

Country: Canada

Genre: experimental electronics

Label: LAAPS

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cursetheknife - Thank You for Being Here Pt I & II (2020) EN

A great discovery, debuts like this one really inspire me. Cursetheknife is a trio out of Oklahoma who just released their two-parts album Thank You for Being Here and with it, a great deal of fresh and very well done shoegaze.

Everything begins with an introduction played on violins but it's a trap, the whole albums is very guitar-oriented and in its noise rock soul, quite traditional. It's expressed already in Feeling Real - with everything we love about the genre: seducing melodies dirtied up by the loud and noisy guitars and sang by the more or less ethereal vocals. What is unbelievable is the quality of this music - both the ideas and the execution that put them very close to bands like Nothing (this guitar chorus in Feeling Real!). Tracks with similarly high potential to become hits include also Low and Filter with its very shoegazy noise with My Bloody Valentine's vibes.

The second part is a tiny bit weaker but songs like In Dreams, in which shoegaze meets lively electronics, or the title track Thank You for Being Here would be a big deal on albums by some more famous artists. Great debut and I'm instantly a fan of the Americans now.

Thank You for Being Here Pt I & II together cost 10 USD.

Check: Feeling Real

Country: Oklahoma, US

Genre: psychedelic nugaze

Label: New Morality Zine

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