Anton, Oleksandr, Sergiy and Dmitriy come from Ukraine and form mandarinaduck. After a digital album release in 2011 and a single release in 2013, they came back earlier this month with the digital release of 'GARDENSOULS', an EP full of dream pop and shoegazey sounds. We particularly liked 'Other Suns', a song that is so fresh and full of energy that will take you to other musical dimensions. All you have to do is turn on thelight and let their music carry you away...
By The Sea come from Wirral/Liverpool, UK and describe their music as 'escape pop'. Last year they released one of our favorite albums Endless Days Crystal Sky and they've just shared a new video for one of the album tracks. Enjoy the beautiful visuals of 'At Your Window' created by Dom Foster and head over to their Soundcloud to download it for free for a limited time. Or better yet, buy the album. It's totally worth it.
Morels are a 5-piece band from Baltimore, Maryland featuring current and former members of The Flying Eyes, Bad Liquor Pond, The Warlocks and Hollywood Blanks. It was a rainy day in late June 2014 that they recorded their debut album, which will be released later this year. Though nothing more is yet known about the release, the band has shared the first single off the upcoming album, entitled 'Raygun', earlier this month. No, it has nothing to do with science-fiction, but everything to do with dream pop and shoegaze. Mesmerizing vocals enveloped in melodic guitars that become dazed transport you out of this world. You can have a listen to (and buy) 'Raygun' on their Bandcamp.
Hailing from Malmö, Sweden Marble Heads are a four piece indie band who've just released their debut EP. It's full of energy, melody and dirtiness all together with apparent influences of pop, punk and psych. An EP of three songs that speak of attention, wanting to be seen and heard with attitude and credibility that shines through the music. You can check the EP on their Soundcloud and watch the video for 'Alley Dogs' here.
Finnish quartet I Was a Teenage Satan Worshipper shared news on an upcoming album release. The album will be called 'GTTHRGH' and will be out in April 2015 on GAEA Records. 'They Don't Hear' is the first powerful track off the album. Trust me; you DO want to hear it!
Funeral Advantage is Tyler Kershaw's brainchild and was formed as a lo-fi bedroom pop project in Boston, Massachusetts in 2013. Having since grown into a full band including live/touring members, they have just embarked on a series of releases scheduled for this year, including that of their debut album. First one is a double A-side single available both digitally, and as a limited edition hand-numbered 7" flexi disc, titled 'Not In My House / That's That' via The Native Sound. The video for 'Not In My House', directed by Justin Ziebell, will give you a good idea of what to expect from them. Dreamy landscapes serve as the background to a heart-felt fusion of enchanting vocals and reverb-drenched pop. Don't waste any more of your time. Watch the video here.
We already posted about Bobby Wratten's new project Lightning in a Twilight Hour and his mini album that was just out on Elefant Records. 'The Death Of Silence' is the first official video off 'Slow Changes' and it's a visual experiment by 25Liespersecond. Enjoy the excellent track and the beautifulvisuals.
After their debut 7" release almost two years ago, Chicago's dream-poppers Star Tropics have just dropped two new songs out of their upcoming album. 'Summer Rain' and 'Swept Away' sound fresh and jangly and summery and essentially pop and you can download them for free at their bandcamp. Let's hope they will release some more music soon!
News about the compilation 'Revolution - The Shoegaze Revival' hit us a few weeks ago accompanied by a teaser video made by DKFM Shoegaze Radio and we had been looking forward to today's release date ever since. 'Revolution - The Shoegaze Revival' is an epic 30-track compilation comprised of outstanding original material. It was curated by UK Label Ear to Ear Records and Indonesian Gerpfast Kolektif and features 30 bands from 16 countries, covering 5 of the 6 inhabited continents, thus highlighting its universal profile. With respect to shoegaze pioneers like Slowdive and MBV, this compilation aims to bring forward bands that have been sustaining and/or enriching the shoegaze and dream pop scene all over the world with their own material. Listening to the bands, it was a chance to rediscover some of our last year's favorites among them (Sounds of Sputnik, Ummagma, CLUSTERSUN, Stella Diana, Hideous Towns) and discover some promising new ones. The compilation is free to download so don't hesitate to share it if you like it. We're hoping that this was just a start to promoting quality new music by people who love and work hard to keep this genre alive. Thank you for this awesome work!
If you loved Trembling Blue Stars then you will love Bobby Wratten's latest solo project Lightning in a Twilight Hour. His mini-LP 'Slow Changes' came out today on Elefant Records and I fell in love with 'Ancient Fiction', third track off the album. It sounds fresh and pop-pish and it surely isn't a track you can easily get tired of. Check out for yourself.
Swedish indie pop quartet The Electric Pop Group appeared in 2006 and have already released two albums receiving very favorable reviews. Their third album 'Integration' is expected to be released in the next few weeks on Matinée Recordings and it will contain 10 songs, 8 of which are previously unreleased. Yesterday they unveiled 'I Could Be Wrong', the fourth song off the album, which is another gem of shimmering pop that fans of The Field Mice and Brighter will surely love. With jangly guitars and chiming keyboards like that, you could not be wrong!
Russia's dream pop/shoegaze band Pinkshinyultrablast have just released their debut album 'Everything Else Matters' on Club AC30 and Shelflife and it has already made our Best of 2015 list. 'Holy Forest' is the second single to have been released in late 2014 and it is utterly fresh and melodic. The music video for it was influenced by 'Enter The Dragon' and 'Bloodsport' movies and it is a tribute to martial arts.
"The song itself is likely to compare with emotional and spiritual release that comes while having or afterwards combat. Turning the video on remember what Bruce Lee once said 'Don't think. Feel'."
Cotillon is L.A. based singer/songwriter Jordan Corso and a few days ago he released his debut self-titled album (out on cassette via Burger Records) along with a video for the track 'Before'. Romantic, hazy and lulling tunes transfuse an air of nostalgia to the song. Directed by Laura-Lynn Petrick, the video carries the song's reminiscent atmosphere of past relationships. Watch it and discover how "she woke up perfect every morning".
