| LC control no. | sh2015002489 |
|---|---|
| Topical heading | Shoegaze (Music) |
| Variant(s) | Dream pop (Music) Shoegazing (Music) |
| See also | Alternative rock music |
| Found in | Work cat.: Birds of Passage (Musician). Highwaymen in midnight masks, 2011 (Note: Lo-fi minimalistic shoegaze) My Bloody Valentine (Musical group). Loveless, p1991. Smith, K.L. Encyclopedia of indie rock, 2008 (Shoegazing: Taking its name from the stance singer-songwriters took while performing it, this subgenre of indie rock emerged in England in the early 1990s. One album, however, is credited with capturing the essence of the signature "shoegaze" sound--1991's Loveless by the Irish/British rock quartet group My Bloody Valentine. Other bands that are often categorized under the shoegazing umbrella include Ride, Curve, Lush, and The Jesus and Mary Chain. The shoegazing sound incorporates a generous heaping of distortion, clouded by noisy guitars, detailed drum fills, and vocals and melody that were seamlessly mixed into this overwhelming wall of sound in which it was difficult to distinguish one sound or instrument from another; the subgenre's signature qualities--subdued or passive-sounding vocals, introspective lyrics, and fuzzy guitars; Several spin-offs of shoegazing have emerged within the indie rock spectrum--among them electrogazing (created by groups like Shockwave), emogazing (made popular by groups like Garbage) and even Viking Death Metal Shoegazing (which was reportedly created by ex-Cocteau Twin Elizabeth Frazer)) Stanley, B. Yeah! yeah! yeah! : the story of pop music from Bill Haley to Beyoncé, 2014: p. 506 (shoegazing) index ("shoegazing" music) AllMusic website, Oct. 14, 2015 (Shoegaze; genre of late '80s and early '90s British indie rock, named after the bands' motionless performing style, where they stood on stage and stared at the floor while they played; the sound of the music was overwhelmingly loud, with long, droning riffs, waves of distortion, and cascades of feedback. Vocals and melodies disappeared into the walls of guitars, creating a wash of sound where no instrument was distinguishable from the other; almost none of the shoegazers were dynamic performers or interesting interviews, which prevented them from breaking through into the crucial U.S. market. In 1992 -- after the groups had dominated the British music press and indie charts for about three years -- the shoegaze groups were swept aside by the twin tides of American grunge and Suede, the band to initiate the wave of Britpop that ruled British music during the mid-'90s) Wikipedia, Oct. 14, 2015 (Shoegazing (also known as shoegaze) is a subgenre of alternative rock that emerged from the United Kingdom in the late 1980s and reached peak popularity in the early 1990s; the shoegazing sound is typified by significant use of distortion, feedback, obscured vocals, and the blurring of component musical parts into indistinguishable "walls of sound". The term was often used contemporaneously with "dream pop." The style is often affiliated with bands such as My Bloody Valentine, Lush, Slowdive, Chapterhouse, and Ride; common musical elements of shoegazing consist of distortion, droning riffs and a "wall of sound" from noisy guitars. 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. Vocals are typically subdued in volume and tone, but a strong sense of melody generally exists underneath the layers of guitars. However, lyrics are not emphasized, nor are vocals. While the genres that influenced shoegazing often used drum machines, shoegazing more often features live drumming) Music index, via EBSCOhost, Oct. 14, 2015 ("shoegaze": 11 results; "shoegazing": 9 results) Academic search complete, via EBSCOhost, Oct. 14, 2015 ("shoegaze": 9 results; "shoegazing": 2 results) Google search, Oct. 14, 2015 ("shoegaze": 1,270,000 results; "shoegazing": 394,000 results) |
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