SEATTLE, WA - As good as the initial wave of shoegaze bands was in the late 80s and early to mid 90s, I always felt bands of that genre in the years following, although decent enough, never reached the same kind of greatness. More copycats than developers of their own original take on the sound and style. However in the past 10 years there have been some good ones, who in turn seemed to inspire their inspirations to reform, with alumni such as Ride, Slowdive and My Bloody Valentine all reforming, recording and touring. Another one of these was Lush. Today I learned - yes, from Pitchfork - about this Australian artist who goes by the name of Hatchie. Within a few seconds of this track, ‘Sugar & Spice,’ I was sold. It reminds me of Lush not because of the “chiming” guitars or whatever hyperbole is generally used for these “ethereal” bands, and it’s not the lovely, “angelic,” female vocals. It’s more how FULL it sounds, while being so featherlight. It’s dense, yet fragile, and something you don’t hear often in the shoegaze genre: vocals that feel confident, and ready to take center stage. Personally, I prefer the kind of vocals you have with bands like Slowdive, but there’s something special going on here with Hatchie. Can’t wait to hear what’s next.
Sugar & Spice is released May 25
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