Some music just takes you to another planet. If you close your eyes, then you may just feel like you're in another place. There can be several different types of music that evokes this unearthly feeling, and one of them is shoegaze. Shoegaze is not the type of music that sells out stadiums packed with fans--in fact, it is quite the opposite. The name of the genre itself tells us this; bands who play shoegaze just stay at their feet during concerts. These bands are not known for their showmanship, but their music itself. My Bloody Valentine doesn't need to play in front of thousands of fans while they chant the lyrics.
My Bloody Valentine's frontman, Kevin Shields was worried that Loveless would be panned by critics and a commercial failure. However it continues to receive rave reviews, and now has sold a considerable amount of copies. At the time, though, Loveless wasn't exactly the most popular album. This is most likely because of the stream of noise that attacks the ears on almost every song. The album is all the better for this, though. Kevin Shields was extremely meticulous about the sound he was trying to create on the album, and it has clearly payed off.
The music on their opus,
Loveless, is intimate, atmospheric, and drowned in fuzz. Each track is layered with seemingly hundreds of, thick, thick guitars very high in the mix compared to the vocals. Each track is not so much focused on singing as the heavy guitars and drums. The album plays like a continuous stream of distortion. I have listened to this album countless times, but if you gave me the name of some songs on the album i wouldn't recall the tune until you played it for me. For most other albums, as soon as I hear the name i'll know what the song sounds like. This album is not centered on single songs, but on the album as a whole.
The most immediate and memorable track is the album opener, "Only Shallow." This song shows off their trademark sound of dense guitars and quite vocals. It is perhaps the most poppish and catchy song along with the fifth track, "When You Sleep," despite not having a clear verse-chorus structure. The fourth track, "To Here Knows When," however, focuses on the shoegaze sound. It is one of my favorite tracks on the album because it simply never lets up the wall of sound created by the guitars. The song is over before you know it, and it's hard to recall exactly what went on during its five minute run time. It simply walks around in circles, playing with the sound Kevin Shields has created on this album, and never really goes anywhere, but the song is all the better for it. Another monster track is the closer, "Soon." The repetitive hook is the most catchy part of it. It continues with My Bloody Valentine's trademark sound. It's surprising how good this song is, with it's wandering vocal melody and odd chord progression, but every part of this track clicks and is a perfect way to end the album.
If
Loveless was stripped of its wall of sound and whirling guitars, the album would be much less interesting. Most of the songs would drone on without any purpose and not grab anyone's attention. But My Bloody Valentine's weapon is their use of distortion to create an original sound. that makes this album a fantastic listen.
