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shoegaze
Sign in to saveAlso known as shoegazing, shoegazer, shoegaze music, wombadelia
Shoegaze (originally shoegazing) is a subgenre of indie and alternative rock characterised by ethereal soundscapes, obscured vocals, and extensive use of guitar effects and distortion. Rooted in Phil Spector's Wall of Sound and psychedelic pop of the 1960s, the style originated in the UK, particularly in London and the greater Thames Valley region, in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The term was coined by music executive Andy Ross and was later used by the British music press to describe shoegaze bands' motionless stage presence, during which musicians directed their look down toward their eff
Key facts
- Music genre.name
- Shoegaze
- Music genre.other_names
- Shoegazing
- Music genre.image
- Pleasure Centre.jpg
- Music genre.caption
- Guitarist performing with an array of effects units
- Music genre.etymology
- 1991, referencing guitarists in the genre who stared downwards at their guitar pedals
- Music genre.stylistic_origins
- Indie rock alternative rock neo-psychedelia psychedelia noise pop dream pop post-punk ethereal wave punk rock garage rock space rock
- Music genre.subgenres
- Christian shoegaze Zoomergaze
- Music genre.fusiongenres
- Blackgaze
- Music genre.regional_scenes
- Philadelphia, United States
- Music genre.other_topics
- Nu gaze ambient post-rock post-metal grunge Britpop chillwave shitgaze wall of sound soft grunge
- Music genre.cultural_origins
- Late 1980s–early 1990s, United Kingdom
- Music genre.derivatives
- Witch house cloud rock grungegaze
via Wikipedia infobox
~42 min read
Encyclopedic overview
29 sectionsContents
- Etymology
- Origins
- Criticism
- Characteristics
- Sound
- Visual style
- History
- 1960–early 1980s: Roots and early influences
- 1982–1988: Origins
- 1989–1996: Prominence and decline
- Rise of the scene
- The Scene That Celebrates Itself
- The arrival of grunge
- Decline
- Christian shoegaze and Tooth & Nail Records
- 2000s: Nu gaze
- Band reunions
- Spreading influence
- 2010s
- Developments in the hardcore scene
- Heavy shoegaze
- Grungegaze
- Philly shit
- 2020s
- Zoomergaze: TikTok and Gen Z resurgence
- See also
- References
- Bibliography
- External links
Shoegaze (originally shoegazing) is a subgenre of indie and alternative rock characterised by ethereal soundscapes, obscured vocals, and extensive use of guitar effects and distortion. Rooted in Phil Spector's Wall of Sound and psychedelic pop of the 1960s, the style originated in the UK, particularly in London and the greater Thames Valley region, in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The term was coined by music executive Andy Ross and was later used by the British music press to describe shoegaze bands' motionless stage presence, during which musicians directed their look down toward their effects pedals.
A British music-press label applied to shoegaze bands and affiliated artists in the early-1990s London club scene was "The Scene That Celebrates Itself". Artists that were associated with the Scene drew primarily from dream pop band Cocteau Twins, as well as from the sonic template established by Irish band, My Bloody Valentine on their 1988 EP You Made Me Realise and their debut album ''Isn't Anything''.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “shoegaze” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.