OutControlJoys – “Paribartan”

There’s been a lot of Asian shoegaze hereabouts. Lots of Japanese, obviously, some Thai, Korean, and reasonable representation from China, Taiwan, Hong Kong. Maybe some others. But what about Nepal? Dost they ‘gaze in Nepal? Yes, they do. OutControlJoys are a trio from Pokhara, Nepal’s second city, who have been crafting uptempo washes of sound […]

Pale Blue Eyes – “The Dreamer”

English trio Pale Blue Eyes having been honing their balance post-punk asceticism, indie jangle, New Wave synthesis, krautrock propulsiveness, and dreampop lushness over three records, most lately on New Place, released back in March. It’s a recipe that’s immediately familiar to those of a certain age or streaming service algorithm, but nudges on each genre […]

Pasteboard – “Freesoul”

If there’s a trend in Japanese shoegaze, it’s that the bands and records that are most hallowed are inevitably the ones that dropped one record a decade or more ago that everyone name-checks and adores, then disappeared off the face of the earth. Okay, this is probably quantifiably not true but is most definitely the […]

Jay Som – “Baybee”

I’ve been meaning to represent Jay Som on these pages since I started up, but just hadn’t gotten around to it – kind of like how I like all of her records, but just haven’t gotten around to adding any of their physical copies to my collection because, well, I dunno. So with news that […]

Mojave 3 – “Any Day Will Be Fine”

Every now and again, I’ll be reminded how much I loved Mojave 3 – as much as Slowdive, probably – and while this particular episode probably won’t be a full deep dive rabbit hole, it has yielded a video from 2000’s Excuses For Travelers that I’ve never seen. It’s studio footage interspersed with handycam footage […]

KILDREN – “Fluid”

I was pretty keen on Tokyo’s KILDREN last year based on a handful – or fingerful, really – of songs released last April that carried the torch of For Tracy Hyde-influenced J-gaze-pop high and proud. Well perhaps the band weren’t quite so proud after all. They returned almost a year later this past April with […]