Dreampop
Dreampop first originated in England in the mid-1980s. It is a sub-genre of “Alternative Rock”. Bands such as Lowlife and A R Kane (to whom the term has been attributed) began fusing post-punk and ethereal sounds to create bittersweet pop melodies and dreamy soundscapes. The term was used almost exclusively in the United States and was allegedly first used by Melody Maker journalists Simon Reynolds and Chris Roberts. A group of “all stars” known collectively as This Mortal Coil were known for covering more obscure pop songs from the 1960s to the 1980s.
The Dreampop sound essentially consisted of ethereal textures and moods rather than hard rock riffs. The lyrics were almost whispered by male artists, whilst female artists delivered more breathy vocals. The lyrics were more introspective in nature mainly concentrating on a person’s thoughts, moods, actions and responsibilities and the belief that a person was responsible for giving his or her own life meaning and living their life passionately.
The covers of the Dreampop albums mainly consisted of blurry pastel images and/or stark minimalist images. The record label most associated with Dreampop is the 4AD, but other labels such as Creation and Projekt also released Dreampop records.
History of Dreampop
Early examples of songs that influenced the genre of Dreampop were “Sunday Morning” by The Velvet Underground and “*9 Dream” by John Lennon released in 1975. These songs both contained the two main ingredients of Dreampop – breathy vocals and atmospheric dreamy soundscapes. Other artists who have been associated with Dreampop include The Cure, Sonic Youth and the Cocteau Twins.
In the 1980s and early 1990s several bands such as early-period Verve, Kitchens Distinction, The Church and The Flaming Lips were known as Dreampop bands. All these bands had limited commercial success with the exception of the The Verve who had their first chart hit in June 1997 with “Bitter Sweet Symphony” followed by the “The Drugs Don’t Work” which was a UK number 1 in September of the same year.
In the United States more guitar-led Dreampop bands emerged including For Against, Alison’s Halo, Low, Mazzy Star and Fine China. In Europe the genre was represented by groups such as The Legendary Pink Dots and Hooverphonic. These bands mixed the Dreampop sound with more folk and electronic elements.
Dreampop in the 1990s and 21st Century
In the 1990s and early part of the 21st Century, bands such as Deftones, Dubstar, Broken Social Scene and Readymade became representatives of the Dreampop/Shoegazing genre. Other bands in this genre include Laika, Mira, Air Formation, Physic Ills and Charlene. These groups were sometimes known as (albeit dismissively) as “new gaze” or “nu-gaze” bands. The term “Ambient Pop” has also been used to describe these groups.
In recent years there has been a resurgence in the Dreampop scene. Bands such as Silversun Pickups, The Hushsound, The Beachouse, Holly Miranda and Wildbeasts have enjoyed considerable success. These bands were mainly promoted by the Pitchfork Media website. Established acts such as Goldfrapp have moved their sound from a dance sound to a more Dreampop style and had commercial success.
Shoegazing
Shoegazing was a louder more aggressive strain of Dreampop. It arose out of Dreampop’s dreamy and sometimes sensual tendencies, but at the same time rejecting its passive moods and textures. Examples of bands that influenced Shoegazing are Lush, Slowdrive and My Bloody Valentine. They used the atmospheric tendencies of Dreampop and combined it with post-punk sounds used by Sonic Youth and The Chameleons.
