Shoegaze was the 90s’ best music secret
You missed this while binging Grunge
Any music aficionado who dares mention shoegazer as a favorite subgenre is accustomed to the same response—over and over again.
“What—is ‘shoegaze’ music?” is the usual quip. Sometimes it’s just a “Huh?” followed by an incredulous look and one that makes us feel like we have some explaining to do.
When I say that word shoegazer I am talking about the sound: the raging guitars, the muddled ambient tunes, the slow pace, the psychedelic vibe.
But I am also talking about beloved bands like My Bloody Valentine, Lush, Ride, known for their noisy, blurry sound. Others like the Cocteau Twins, Chapterhouse or MTV heavy rotation favorite The Catherine Wheel offer a more radio-friendly serving of shoegazer and a feel that may be more accessible to the beginner.
Shoegazer: Destined to be forgotten?
It’s true, most of the shoegazer subgenre’s artists were British, and that may be part of the “Huh?” comment I get from other 90s music lovers. Especially those who were more squarely focused on grunge, fem folk, or even late-term old school hip-hop like A Tribe Called Quest and Mobb Deep.
Also, true: many of these shoegazer bands we’re not known either for their engaging on-stage prowess or for their consistency as rockstars.
Some followed in the great British indie rock tradition of the Stone Roses, namely in being quiet and shy, very bad interviewees and/or not touring in the U.S. Then again, such non-commercial and un-business-like tendencies are part of the subgenre’s culture; as most hailed from smaller independent labels like 4AD, Creation, and Dedicated Records.
Read Ninety Days In the 90s: The ultimate book about 90s music
Others, like Lush, took to America, grinding out great performances and long summers upon the stages of Lollapalooza, picking up lifelong fans (like me) along the way. But there were also great American bands from the indie rock scene—such as Madder Rose, the Drop Nineteens and Bardo Pond—that played local small clubs from New York City and Philly to L.A.; giving respite to those of us who loved the music but couldn’t afford flights to the U.K. just to hear more.
Yet, while fuzzy guitars and sometimes-inaudible vocals might have been a defining characteristic of the shoegaze sound, there were a handful of artists in America and elsewhere that got the same memo, that grunge, Britpop and punk weren’t the only sounds people needed to hear.
Take Mazzy Star and their wonderful vocalist, Hope Sandoval who showed music lovers and the industry alike that the lead vocalist of a great band in the 1990s need not be like Chili Peppers’ mouthpiece Anthony Keidis, stomping around on stage in loud clothes (or half naked). Or a big persona doubling as both frontman and generation poet, like Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam.
If you are (or later find yourself) on a 1990s music kick, it’s definitely worth taking a spin through some of the ‘90s more sedate and thoughtful rock music. Even if you don’t get it at first, the music of shoegazer bands MBV, Lush, Ride or Mazzy Star—should you have the temperament for it—will fill a music void you’d forgotten or never knew you had.
Andy Frye has written for Forbes, ESPN and Rolling Stone, and his time travel novel Ninety Days In The 90s is out now at Amazon.
