Sleep is another standout Slowdive tune from the early 90s. When I listen, I hear Psychocandy turned into something other than Psycho, strong rooting in shoe-gazer protocols, but other things, unexpectedly, too. Like Alex Chilton: something of the madcap primitivism of Third/Sister Lovers is just, as they say, around here. And, Rachel Goswell: did I really see you, standing outside a cafe near Trafalgar Square, in 1990?
The weird, slow-burn emergence of Slowdive from the general rock morass is one of the bigger rock stories of 2021; including the magnetic appeal of Rachel Goswell, lead singer, songwriter, and guitarist, as a rock goddess or icon. In this number, Rachel shares the lead vocals. So: during their heyday in the UK in the late 80s to early-to-mid 90s, Slowdive did the useful task and performed the useful function of adding melodic richness, and solid song structures, to what was then sweeping England as "shoe-gazer." Ride and the rest didn't find a wide audience in the States (nor did the bands born from Ride and the rest, like Spiritualized), but they were dominant where they were. Rachel Goswell and Slowdive became a cult band within the movement, but got lost in the shuffle somehow, and never made it to the States. Now, they have: and the shoe-gazer with sharply written, catchy tunes approach is set to resonate with those looking for something new and exciting, or, as is the case here, something they missed.
2020 Mix: Pop N' Acid (Limpid Biscuit) is about synergistic energy, also mutative energy, arising from a new kind of context: acid-jazz cut with pop, and vice versa, and both hijacked by spoken word. So, here they are: Speck, Vince El Mejor, The Gin Blossoms, Dido, Pink, Deb Stewart, MalreDeszik, The Cranberries, and me. You decide if this speaks with authority for you about your moment, your 2020.
Viaje Entre Las Luces, acid-jazz by Vince El Mejor, and featuring a spoken word sample from Opera Bufa (#38), appeared on CC Mixter in 2020, and was a Top 20 hit (#18, Jazz overall) on Soundclick.
Stone the Devil, avant-jazz by Speck, and featuring spoken word by Adam Fieled, appeared on CC Mixter, and was a top 15 hit (#12, Jazz Overall) and a top 5 hit (#2, Acid-Jazz, sub-generic) on Soundclick, in 2022. Also featured on the track: Martijn de Boer, Stefan Kartenberg, J. Lang, coruscate, and Javolenus.
Spoken word segment taken from a This Charming Lab reading at Kelly Writers House, West Philadelphia, 3-27-04. Reading preserved on Adam Fieled's PennSound author page. Stated theme of the reading: Stoning the Devil.
