If you love the Deftones as much as I do, you’ve undoubtedly passionately defended them to a nu-metal naysayer. “They’re not really nu-metal,” you might argue. “Sure, they had some rap parts on their first record, but they’ve actually spent most of their career leaning into dream-pop and shoegaze influences.” (I can’t be the only […]
Tag: dream pop
Chicago singer-songwriter Claude makes dream pop for the youth, young and old
“I’m a twentysomething / Don’t you think it’s about time?” Chicago singer-songwriter Claudia Ferme, aka Claude, sighs on “Twenty Something,” which opens her debut full-length, A Lot’s Gonna Change (American Dreams). The track breathes and pulses through dream-pop heaven with swirling, chiming guitars and distant, mellow horns. It’s meant to be redolent of a certain […]
Deftones merge metal and dream pop to remain one of rock’s most enduring heavy acts
Even though the ongoing reappraisal of nu metal has recognized that era as a significant cultural moment, Sacramento band Deftones still manage to catch a bad rap. Sure, they came up as part of the same movement as Korn and Limp Bizkit, and they toyed with some dated, aggro rap-rock on a couple songs in […]
Gentle Heat make compact indie rock that feels huge
Chicago band Gentle Heat play no-nonsense indie rock that captures the allure of a towering blaze in the space of a single spark. On their new full-length, Sheer (Flesh & Bone), they pack dream-pop’s gauzy atmosphere into tidy, loud-quiet-loud tracks. The songs hit hard and move briskly, driven by sprocket-wheel rhythms, while retaining shoegaze’s heavenly […]
Chasms make dream pop with a difference
Chasms, the Los Angeles duo of Jess Labrador and Shannon Madden, is essentially a dream-pop outfit. But while the ethereal voice sighs and meanders breathily toward nirvana—in the tradition of artists such as the Cocteau Twins, Ivy, and Damon & Naomi—the atmospheric instrumentals draw from more disparate influences, notably electronic dance music. Their new record, […]
Tiaras, a bunch of Bay Area garage-rock dudes, go pop on ‘Thought I Could Know’
A gorgeous, dreamy pop tune from the band’s forthcoming self-titled LP
12 O’Clock Track: Camera Shy’s ‘Spin Me’ is simple, pretty pop that’s perfect for the summer
The Whirr and Nothing side project steers away from volume and into simplicity.
12 O’Clock Track: “Ken,” well-executed, cozy dream pop by Brooklyn’s Ex Cops
Today’s 12 O’Clock Track is “Ken” from Ex Cops debut, True Hallucinations.