Shoegazing
Stylistic origins	Post-punk Dream pop Space rock Noise pop Noise rock Psychedelic rock Drone
Cultural origins	Early 1980s, England
Typical instruments	guitar, vocals, bass guitar, drums
Mainstream popularity	Small to medium
Fusion genres
Nu-Gaze, Post-rock
Regional scenes
The Scene That Celebrates Itself
Other topics
Notable artists

Shoegazing was a generalized tag given to some alternative rock bands that emerged from the United Kingdom in the late 1980s. Post-punk was a popular musical movement in the mid to late 1970s following on the heels of the initial Punk rock explosion of the early 1970s Dream pop is a type of Alternative rock that originated in Britain in the early 1980s when bands like Cocteau Twins, The Chameleons, The Passions Space rock is a subgenre of Rock music; the term originally referred to a group of early mostly British 1970s Progressive rock and psychedelic Noise pop is a term used to loosely describe a number of Alternative rock bands that fuse Punk rock 's attitude and anger with the Atonal noise feedback Noise rock (also known as noise punk) describes one variety of Post-punk Rock music that became prominent in the 1980s Psychedelic rock is a style of Rock music that attempts to replicate the mind-altering experiences of hallucinogenic drugs. Drone music, also known as drone-based music, drone ambient or ambient drone, dronescape or dronology, and sometimes simply The guitar is a Musical instrument with ancient roots that is used in a wide variety of musical styles The electric bass guitar (also called electric bass, or simply bass; ˈbeɪs as in "base" is a Stringed instrument played primarily with the A drum kit (also drum set or trap set) is a collection of Drums Cymbals and sometimes other Percussion instruments such as cowbells Post-rock is a genre of Alternative rock characterized by the use of Musical instruments commonly associated with Rock music, but using Rhythms The Scene That Celebrates Itself was a term used to describe a social and musical scene in the early 1990s within London and the Thames Valley area The following is a list of shoegazing musicians, ie musicians who play in the Shoegazing style A Alcest Amusement Alternative rock (also called alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative; known primarily in the UK as indie) is a genre of The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located It lasted until the mid 1990s, peaking circa 1990 to 1991. One could argue that it was simply a label for a generation of sullen bands using distortion and buried melodies already seen in previous years among bands like The Velvet Underground and The Jesus and Mary Chain. This article is about the band For their self-titled album see The Velvet Underground (album; for the book see The Velvet Underground (book The Jesus and Mary Chain are an Alternative rock band formed in East Kilbride, Scotland in 1984 Momentum for yet another musical category was driven primarily by My Bloody Valentine's genuinely innovative otherworldly guitar textures utilizing reverse reverb. My Bloody Valentine are an Alternative rock band formed in Dublin Ireland in 1984 and predominantly based in London. The "shoegaze" label would quickly encompass so many disparate bands and studio techniques as to be meaningless. The "shoegaze" label ended up having more to do with what label a band was on and country they were from than any particular sound or idea.

The British music press (notably NME and Melody Maker) called this genre "shoegazing" because the musicians in these bands often maintained a motionless performing style, standing on stage and staring at the floor while playing their instruments; hence, the idea that they were gazing at their shoes. The New Musical Express (better known as the NME) is a Popular music Magazine in the United Kingdom which has been Melody Maker, published in the United Kingdom, was according to its publisher IPC Media, the world's oldest weekly Music Newspaper ^[1] The shoegazing sound featured extensive use of guitar effects, and indistinguishable vocal melodies that blended into the creative noise of the guitars. Few shoegazers were dynamic performers or interesting interviewees, which prevented them from breaking through into markets in the United States. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the ^[1] A lump description given to shoegaze bands in London in the early 1990s was "The Scene That Celebrates Itself. The Scene That Celebrates Itself was a term used to describe a social and musical scene in the early 1990s within London and the Thames Valley area "^[2] In the 1990s, shoegaze groups were pushed aside by the likes of American grunge and Britpop, forcing bands to breakup or evolve into a different style. ^[1] Recent times have seen a renewed interest in the genre, among so-called "nu-gaze" bands. ^[3]

Contents 1 Definitions 2 Influences 3 Heyday: "The Scene That Celebrates Itself" 3.1 Dream pop 4 Decline 5 Post-movement directions 6 Use of electronic manipulation 7 Song Sample 8 Shoegaze timeline 9 References 10 External links 11 See also

Definitions

Common musical elements in shoegaze are distortion (aka "fuzzbox"), droning riffs and a "wall of sound" from noisy guitars. The Wall of Sound is a music production technique for pop and rock music recordings developed by Record producer Phil Spector at Gold Star Studios Typically, two distorted rhythm guitars are played together to give an amorphous quality to the sound. Although lead guitar riffs were often present, they were not the central focus of most shoegazing songs. Some, including Kevin Shields of My Bloody Valentine, have argued that the shoegaze tag is a meaningless label that puts disparate bands together who happen to come out around the same time. Overeager journalists looking to create a theme lumped any band that used any kind of distortion or blurring effects into this category making the category utterly meaningless. Young passionate fans picked up on faux movement and pretty much any English band who put out an album after 1989 has been called "shoegazers" by one person or another despite no common musical beliefs or techniques among the various bands.

Vocals are typically subdued in volume and tone, but underneath the layers of guitars is generally a strong sense of melody. In Music, a melody (from Greek μελῳδία - melōidía, "singing chanting" also tune, voice, or While the genres which influenced shoegazing often used drum machines, shoegazing more often features live drumming. Chapterhouse and Seefeel utilised both samples and live drumming. Chapterhouse were a British Shoegazing band of the early 1990s originally from Reading, Berkshire, England. Seefeel are a British Alternative rock group primarily active in the early to mid 1990s

The name was coined in a review in Sounds of a concert by the newly-formed Moose in which singer Russell Yates read lyrics taped to the floor throughout the gig. Sounds was a British Music paper, published weekly from October 10, 1970 &ndash April 6, 1991 Lincoln Fong ( Bass guitars Russell Fong ( Guitars | Past_members = | Notable_instruments = }} Moose were a British Indie rock band ^[4] The term was picked up by the New Musical Express, who used it as a reference to the tendency of the bands' guitarists to stare at their feet (or their effects pedals), seemingly deep in concentration, while playing. The New Musical Express (better known as the NME) is a Popular music Magazine in the United Kingdom which has been An effects pedal (or a " Stomp Box " is an electronic Effects unit housed in a small metal or plastic chassis used by musicians usually Electric Melody Maker preferred the more staid term The Scene That Celebrates Itself, referring to the habit which the bands had of attending gigs of other shoegazing bands, often in Camden, and often moonlighting in each other's bands. Melody Maker, published in the United Kingdom, was according to its publisher IPC Media, the world's oldest weekly Music Newspaper Camden Town is the district of London, England around Camden High Street, in the London Borough of Camden.

The shatteringly loud, droning neo-psychedelia the band performed was dubbed shoegazing by the British press because the bandmembers stared at the stage while they performed. [1]

Influences

The bands first labelled as "shoegaze" were largely influenced by My Bloody Valentine, and emerged in the wake of their breakthrough in 1988 with the "You Made Me Realise" single and the album Isn't Anything,^[5][6] and the "shoegaze" label has more recently been applied to My Bloody Valentine themselves. My Bloody Valentine are an Alternative rock band formed in Dublin Ireland in 1984 and predominantly based in London. You Made Me Realise is the lead track of an otherwise untitled EP by My Bloody Valentine, released in August 1988 Isn't Anything is the official debut full-length album by My Bloody Valentine, released in November 1988 after three years of issuing EPs and mini- ^[7] Other artists that have been identified as influences on shoegazing include Dinosaur Jr, The Jesus and Mary Chain, the Cocteau Twins,^[6][8] The Cure, Bauhaus, ^[7] and Galaxie 500. The Jesus and Mary Chain are an Alternative rock band formed in East Kilbride, Scotland in 1984 Cocteau Twins were a Scottish Alternative rock band active from 1979 to 1997 The Cure are an English rock band that formed in Crawley, West Sussex in 1976 Bauhaus were an English rock band formed in Northampton in 1978 Galaxie 500 was an American Alternative rock trio that formed in 1986 and split up in 1991 after releasing three albums ^[9]

Michael Azerrad's book Our Band Could Be Your Life cites an early 1990s Dinosaur Jr tour of the United Kingdom as a key influence. Our Band Could Be Your Life Scenes from the American Indie Underground 1981-1991 is a book by Michael Azerrad (ISBN 0-316-78753-1 While not classified as a shoegazing band, Dinosaur Jr did share a tendency to blend poppy melody with loud guitars and laconic vocals. A lengthy summer 1992 U. S. tour featuring MBV, Dinosaur Jr. and Yo La Tengo raised the genre's profile in the States considerably. Yo La Tengo is an American Indie rock band based in Hoboken, New Jersey.

Heyday: "The Scene That Celebrates Itself"

The first stirrings of recognition came when indie writer Steve Lamacq referred to Ride in a review for the NME as "The House of Love with chainsaws". Steve Lamacq (born 16 October 1965) sometimes known by his Nicknames Lammo (given to him by John Peel) or " The Cat Ride were a British Shoegazing band The band formed in 1988 in Oxford, England, and officially broke up in 1996 The House of Love are an English rock band initially active between 1986 and 1993 The genre label was quite often misapplied. Key bands such as Ride, Chapterhouse and Slowdive emerged from the Thames Valley and as such Swervedriver found themselves labelled shoegazers on account of their own (coincidental) Thames Valley origins - despite their more pronounced Hüsker Dü-meets-Stooges stylings. Chapterhouse were a British Shoegazing band of the early 1990s originally from Reading, Berkshire, England. Slowdive were a Shoegazing band formed in 1989 lasting until 1995 The Thames Valley generally implies the region that drains into the River Thames (the Thames catchment) from west of Cirencester to London Swervedriver is an English Alternative rock band from Oxford. For other uses see Husker Du. Hüsker Dü was an American Alternative rock band formed in Minneapolis-St The Stooges are an American rock band that was active from 1967 to 1974 then reformed in 2003

The BBC's John Peel was a relentless supporter of the shoegaze scene; most U. John Robert Parker Ravenscroft, OBE (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004 known professionally as John Peel, was an English Disc jockey, radio K. bands of the genre recorded "Peel Sessions" before even releasing an album.

Dream pop

Main article: Dream pop

The shoegaze style is related to a genre that had existed since the mid 1980s, known as dream pop. Dream pop is a type of Alternative rock that originated in Britain in the early 1980s when bands like Cocteau Twins, The Chameleons, The Passions Dream pop is a type of Alternative rock that originated in Britain in the early 1980s when bands like Cocteau Twins, The Chameleons, The Passions Dream pop was a more ambient and abstract take on folk and pop music. It was pioneered by 4AD acts, such as Cocteau Twins and This Mortal Coil, who took advantages of the improvements in studio technology in the previous decades to create a new strain of pop music with a hazy, ethereal sound. 4AD is a British Independent record label that was started in 1979 by Ivo Watts-Russell and Peter Kent funded by Beggars Banquet Records, and is still Cocteau Twins were a Scottish Alternative rock band active from 1979 to 1997 This Mortal Coil was a musical Dream pop project of Ivo Watts-Russell, founder of the British 4AD Records label Highly respected ambient artists like Harold Budd and Brian Eno (who went on to co-author a track on an emblematic shoegaze record, Slowdive's Souvlaki LP) have collaborated with dream pop acts, which serves to highlight the genre's connection with ambient music. Harold Budd ( May 24 1936) is an American ambient / Avant-garde composer Brian Peter George St John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno (born 15 May 1948 commonly known as Brian Eno (ˈiːnoʊ is an English Musician, producer Slowdive were a Shoegazing band formed in 1989 lasting until 1995 The genre proved to be highly influential on the shoegazing scene that emerged in the early nineties, and certain acts straddle the two styles, though shoegaze can be distinguished by its noisier, psychedelic sound.

Decline

The coining of the term "The Scene That Celebrates Itself" was in many ways the beginning of the end for the first wave of shoegazers. The bands became perceived by critics as over-privileged, self-indulgent and middle-class. This perception was in sharp contrast with those bands who formed the wave of newly-commercialised grunge music which was making its way across the Atlantic, and those bands who formed the foundation of Britpop, such as Blur, Suede, Oasis and Pulp. Britpop is a subgenre of Alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom. Blur are an English Alternative rock band that formed in London in 1989 Suede (or The London Suede in the United States) were an English rock band of the 1990s and the early 2000s that helped start the Britpop musical Oasis are an English rock band that formed in Manchester in 1991 Pulp were an English Alternative rock band formed in Sheffield in 1978 by Jarvis Cocker ( vocals Guitar) ^[10] Britpop also offered intelligible lyrics, often about the trials and tribulations of working-class life; this was a stark contrast to the "vocals as an instrument" approach of the shoegazers, which often prized the melodic contribution of vocals over their lyrical depth. Lush's final album was an abrupt shift from shoegazing to Britpop, alienating many fans; the 1996 suicide of their drummer led to Lush's dissolution and served as a symbolic nail in the coffin of what was the shoegazing genre's original era. Lush were an English Shoegazing band formed in 1988 and disbanded in 1996 Nothing has surfaced from My Bloody Valentine since Loveless, although recently a reunion and plans for a new album have been confirmed, with frontman Kevin Shields explaining the band's silence with "I never could be bothered to make another record unless I was really excited by it". Kevin Patrick Shields (born Queens New York City, US on May 21, 1963) is a singer guitarist and producer who fronted the London ^[11] As recent as 2007 publications have began to announce the "rebirth of shoegazer" with bands like Apollo Heights, Atlas Sound, Spindrift, Xu Xu Fang, Silversun Pickups, Autolux and Giant Drag at the forefront along with the reunions of other bands associated with shoegazing such as Swervedriver, Dinosaur Jr and My Bloody Valentine. Atlas Sound is the name of a musical solo project of Bradford James Cox, the lead singer of Atlanta five-piece Deerhunter. " Spindrift " is the second single of Rush 's 2007 album Snakes & Arrows. Silversun Pickups (also simply known as SSPU) is an American Indie rock band from Los Angeles California, signed to Dangerbird Records Autolux is a Los Angeles -based trio comprising Eugene Goreshter (lead vocals bass Greg Edwards (guitar vocals and Carla Azar (drums vocals Giant Drag is a band currently consisting of singer/guitarist/composer Annie Hardy. Swervedriver is an English Alternative rock band from Oxford. My Bloody Valentine are an Alternative rock band formed in Dublin Ireland in 1984 and predominantly based in London.

Post-movement directions

Slowdive eventually morphed into the country-infused Mojave 3, while other shoegaze bands either split or moved in other directions. Mojave 3 are a British band, consisting of Neil Halstead, Rachel Goswell, Simon Rowe Alan Forrester and Ian McCutcheon The Verve (at the time known simply as "Verve") went more towards mainstream rock on their 1997 album Urban Hymns, before singer Richard Ashcroft went solo. The Verve (originally Verve) are an English rock band formed in Wigan, Greater Manchester in 1989 at Winstanley Sixth Richard Paul Ashcroft (born September 11 1971 in Billinge Higher End Lancashire) is an English Singer-songwriter. Mark Gardener and Loz Colbert of Ride released an album as The Animalhouse; in 2006, Gardener's first solo album was released. Mark Gardener (born Mark Stephen Gardener 6 December 1969, in Oxford, England) is an English rock Musician, Ride were a British Shoegazing band The band formed in 1988 in Oxford, England, and officially broke up in 1996 Several former members of shoegazing bands later moved towards post-rock and the more electronica-based trip hop. Post-rock is a genre of Alternative rock characterized by the use of Musical instruments commonly associated with Rock music, but using Rhythms Trip hop is a music Genre also known as the Bristol sound or Bristol acid rap. Adam Franklin of Swervedriver released lo-fi albums under the moniker Toshack Highway. Adam Franklin is a guitarist singer and songwriter who has played in Swervedriver (1989-99 2007- Shake Appeal (1984-89 and currently Toshack Highway Swervedriver is an English Alternative rock band from Oxford. Lo-fi is an aesthetic in music production which uses Low fidelity recording practices Toshack Highway is the musical group formed by the lead singer and guitarist from Swervedriver, Adam Franklin.

Going "unplugged" has become a popular route to take for former lead singers of shoegaze bands: Gardener, Franklin, Ashcroft, Rob Dickinson of Catherine Wheel, and Slowdive/Mojave 3, have all reinvented themselves as acoustic troubadours. Rob Dickinson (born July 23, 1965) is a guitarist singer and songwriter previously of the band Catherine Wheel.

Lately new acts such as Air Formation, Alcian Blue, Airiel, Astral, The Daysleepers, Douglas Heart, Hartfield, Highspire, Sonicflyer, Tears Run Rings revived the genre. Also early recordings of Televise (a band by former Slowdive member Simon Scott) can be subsumed under these bands. Jesu^[12], Asobi Seksu,^[10], Maps^[10] Amusement Parks on Fire, Silversun Pickups^[13][14][15], Van She^[16] and M83^[17] also borrow heavily from the shoegaze movement. Jesu is an Experimental rock band formed in 2003 by Justin Broadrick following the breakup of Godflesh. Asobi Seksu (colloquial Japanese for "playful sex" is a rock band based in New York City. Maps is the recording name used by Northampton -based musician James Chapman. Amusement Parks on Fire are a band from Nottingham UK. The band was formed by Michael Feerick in 2004 who wrote and performed all the instruments for the self-titled Silversun Pickups (also simply known as SSPU) is an American Indie rock band from Los Angeles California, signed to Dangerbird Records Van She is a band from Sydney, Australia. Their label Modular Recordings, describes Van She as a "new band from Sydney fresh on ideas fresher M83 is an Electronic music group consisting of Anthony Gonzalez (and formerly Nicolas Fromageau and was formed in Antibes, France in 2001.

Use of electronic manipulation

There is another thread of shoegaze-influenced music which maintains the emphasis of texture (through the use of guitar effects pedals and digital signal processing) but departs, to some degree, from the rock structures and full-band instrumentation of shoegaze music. Digital signal processing ( DSP) is concerned with the representation of the signals by a sequence of numbers or symbols and the processing of these signals Also, there are little to no vocal elements. This “post-shoegaze” glitch and experimental electronic music has achieved some critical praise, especially releases Televise, Fennesz and Tim Hecker. Glitch is a term used to describe a genre of experimental Electronic music that emerged in the mid to late 1990s Televise is an electronic Shoegazing band formed by ex- Slowdive member Simon Scott ( Drummer / Vocalist) in 2004 Christian Fennesz (born December 25, 1962) is an Austrian Electronic musician often credited on albums simply as Fennesz. Tim Hecker is an electronic musician and sound artist based in Montreal, Canada. Also aspects of Seefeel, late-era Flying Saucer Attack, Main, lovesliescrushing, The Third Eye Foundation, Pacific UV, Oppressed by the Line, and M83 have explored this territory as well in the mid-'90s and beyond. Flying Saucer Attack was an experimental Space rock band that formed in Bristol England in 1992 Main, was formed in 1991 by Robert Hampson and Scott Dawson, former members of Loop. Lovesliescrushing (often misspelled Loveliescrushing is a Dream pop, lo-fi, ambient, noise band that formed in the fall of 1991 in East Lansing Matt Elliott is a musician from Bristol, who initially recorded as The Third Eye Foundation, and since 2001 has used his own name Pacific UV is an Indie-rock band currently residing in Portland Oregon. Oppressed by the Line is the recording moniker of Shoegaze / Indietronica artist Jon Thompson M83 is an Electronic music group consisting of Anthony Gonzalez (and formerly Nicolas Fromageau and was formed in Antibes, France in 2001.

Often using the digital studio of a computer, these artists focus much attention on creating spacious atmosphere. The outcome tends to be compositions ranging from ambient stretches of droning tones, distorted walls of sound, and reverb-laden atmospherics. Ambient music is a Musical genre in which sound is more important than notes Reverberation is the persistence of Sound in a particular space after the original sound is removed What separates this from other strands of glitch or noise compositions and places it in the realm of shoegaze, are the inclusion of melodies that call to mind pop and rock music.

Song Sample

Shoegaze timeline

Selected bands and events in the genre:

References

External links

• All Music Guide genre entry
• musicOMH.com Shoegaze revival feature
• Interesting article on genre

See also

• List of shoegazing musicians

The following is a list of shoegazing musicians, ie musicians who play in the Shoegazing style A Alcest Amusement

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