After the release of their latest album everything is alive, Slowdive, initially formed 1989, draw a cross- generational audience at CardiffUniversity Student Union with an enchanting performance.
The Shoegaze genre emerged in the 1980s, pioneered by bands like My Bloody Valentine and Cocteau Twins, was known for its dreamy sound with layered, whimsical vocals and its drone-like guitars. To avoid the cliche of re-telling the origins of the genres name (hit up Google or have it mansplained to you at a party), we’ll quickly move on to Slowdive. Their come up was followed quickly by the huge wave that was Britpop relegating the Shoegaze genre to the shadows. Slowdive initially had mixed reviews, famously for their sophomore album, Souvlaki, which is now regarded as an essential classic by critics and indie-heads alike. Despite this they maintained a dedicated following until their disbandment after their third album; leading to various projects by the band members.
Nowadays, the much-discussed 'revival of Shoegaze' is often lazily characterized as a TikTok phenomenon, despite its existence since the 2010s. Slowdive themselves reformed back in 2014 and have existed longer reformed than they did when they initially were formed.
The excitement brought on by openers Whiteland's serve as a reminder not to treat the revival as a fleeting trend. The quartet instantly had the crowd swaying with approval. The song Setting Sun stood out as instantaneously gratifying. They created a soaring sound that was backed by jangly rhythm somewhere deep in the guitars and grooving bass and drums. This contrasted with lead guitarist and vocalist Etienne's elegantly soft and hazy voice and wistful lyrics expressing the confusion and disappointment in those around him, yearning not to be let down further in a politically turbulent Britain rife with racial injustice. Their sound almost let you choose how to enjoy the music, serving a meditative purpose as well as having plenty of rhythm and textures to stimulate you. Slowdive’s set was fittingly interposed between recordings of Brian Eno’s Deep Blue Day and An Ending (Ascent), a nice lead in and out fade into Slowdive’s impressive wall of sound as well as a nod to his work on Souvlaki.
Despite the amount of layers, distortion and pure volume coming from the stage the sound wasn’t at all muddy or blurry. Creating such a sound live can sometimes create a lack of distinction in the anatomy of sounds. Slowdive on the other hand sounded crisp and fresh but this didn’t take away the visceral feeling the band are known for generating.
The band began with the swelling song that is shanty, producing a sense of release when they transitioned into Star Roving, the increase in tempo feeling and crunchy guitar strums in the opening riffin live form gave the feeling of ascending. Then there was the setlists first older song was Catch the Breeze, the outro was simply heavenly. Intentional or not it was a nice touch how one of their more Brian Eno sounding tracks, Crazy for You found itself in the middle of the setlist, connecting the intro and outro.
The song Souvlaki Space Station was a sonically transcending highlight, but also showed offthe beauty of Slowdive's classic vocals with Rachel Goswell and Neil Halsted voices weaving in and out of each other forming a cosmic experience. Shoegazer bands aren’t known for their stage presence (I won’t say why), but Goswell was celestial not only in her singing but also in her infectious genuineness while waving her arms drooped with these capelike silky sleeves that were like wings as she extended them. This along with the stunning sometimes strobe visuals and lights enhanced the overall experience and added even more weigh to every crescendo.
Goswell shined again with Kisses, and the atmosphere of the classics Alison, When the Sun Hits and 40 Days were celebratory, both among the band and the audience. The encore was perfect, during the simply devastating song, Dagger, the way in which Neil Halstead’s voice has matured over the years enhances the rustic and raw feel of the song even more. They ended with their ethereal cover of Syd Barretts Golden Hair.
Many of the lights flashed directly at the audience during the performance, most of which were either swaying or in trance (or both). There has been much discourse lately about lack of concert etiquette by young people, especially at concerts of bands popular on TikTok. The patronising branding of younger Shoegaze fans as if they're only posing for a trend at these gigs proved to be a tired one as the concert went on.
Many of the younger crowd were as engaged as the older generation with those desperate to video the hits popular on social media such as Alison and When the Sun Hits were mostly a minority towards the front. The audience enjoyed a mostly screenless concert, and the mix of ages just proved Slowdive’s timeless appeal and that the Shoegaze comeback is here to stay, at least for a while.