Slowdive

• Genre: Shoegazer
• Hometown: Reading

About

Slowdive's first few EPs in the early 1990s were the culmination of two disparate yet equally dreamy guitar bands. Their songs held the reverb-laden, swirling beauty of the Cocteau Twins, yet turned the guitars up so loud that it sounded like outtakes from the Jesus and Mary Chain's Psychocandy -- only slowed down to something barely faster than a heartbeat. Tracks such as "Morningrise" and "Catch the Breeze" showed that Neil Halstead and Rachael Gowell could write songs just as easily as they could harmonize. Capable of inducing shudders in their rippling, burnt-orange glow, these early tracks, alongside others like "Shine" and "Brighter," still stand as high-water marks for lovers of blissed-out guitar pop. They progressed through the Gothic-tinged sensibilities of their debut Just for a Day when they released Souvlaki in 1994. Combining elements of Dub and folk amongst their typically stunning harmonies, the record also contained a bona fide pop song in the finery that is "Alison." Perhaps feeling the need to branch out further, the band dabbled in Eno-esque minimalism with their final record Pygmalion. Although this record contained moments of clarity in tracks like "Rutti" and "Blue Skied N' Clear," it would be the final chapter as Rachel and Neil would go on to pursue more traditional avenues with the pastoral Mojave 3.

- Jon Pruett