Slowdive – Everything Is Alive: If I’m chained to a cloud, you can throw away the key.

Artist: Slowdive
Album: Everything Is Alive
Year: 2023
Grade: B+

In Brief: I went from never having heard of Slowdive to falling in love with the sound of their latest record in almost no time. Even knowing that they were one of a few pioneers of the shoegaze/dream pop sound back in the 90s and that they had a pretty successful revival going on in more recent years, I was still intimidated by how their music was described to me. Turns out I had nothing to fear – it’s just the right blend of diffuse, hazy, nostalgic abstraction and pop-adjacent electronic wizardry. The result is a record that, while I’m not sure I could ever fully understand it, is an absolute delight to listen to over and over again.

Wye Oak – Every Day Like the Last: I say it’s worth it for the view.

Artist: Wye Oak
Album: Every Day Like the Last: Collected Singles 2019-2023
Year: 2023
Grade: B+

In Brief: Calling this an “album” would be incredibly generous considering its short length and inconsistent pacing. But as a summary of what the incredibly prolific Jenn Wasner and her bandmate Andy Stack have been up to over the past four years, it turns out to be more satisfying than most stopgap releases of this nature, turning my attention back toward some intriguing gems I’d forgotten about while adding a couple of new compositions to the mix as well. Most of this is more on the cerebral/reflective side – not a lot of guitar freakouts or dizzying time signature madness here. But it’s still a portrait of two restlessly inventive individuals who don’t seem to have let the events of the early 2020s slow down their creative process one bit.

Cocteau Twins – Treasure: One band’s trash is another fan’s Treasure.

Artist: Cocteau Twins
Album: Treasure
Year: 1984
Grade: A-

In Brief: For my money, Treasure is the most enduring of an altogether solid run of albums that the Cocteaus put out in the 80s. It’s a polarizing pick, for sure – the reverb-heavy sound and gibberish lyrics can be overbearing for some listeners, and even the band had some misgivings about it in retrospect. But if you’re looking for a good mix of surreal experimentalism and solid hooks and melodies, of ambiguous, foreboding darkness and ethereal lightness, then I think Treasure might be up your alley. It’s still hard for me to believe that something this strange and wonderful actually came out all the way back in 1984.

The Flaming Lips – The Soft Bulletin: The sound they made was LOVE.

Artist: The Flaming Lips
Album: The Soft Bulletin
Year: 1999
Grade: B+

In Brief: Nine albums into a career full of bizarre, abrasive, psychedelic experimentation, The Flaming Lips came up with a game-changing dream pop masterpiece that many consider to be their magnum opus. It’s loud, brash, and startling one moment, yet disarmingly beautiful the next, and the existential crisis and heartfelt response at its core still have a profound emotional effect on me to this day.

The Sundays – Reading, Writing and Arithmetic: It’s that little souvenir of an overlooked year.

Artist: The Sundays
Album: Reading, Writing and Arithmetic
Year: 1990
Grade: A

In Brief: An absolute gem of an early 90s indie record. Even though I was completely unfamiliar with The Sundays while they were active, the band was doing a lot to influence the styles of other bands that I’d get into later in the 90s, and listening to their debut album now brings to mind pretty much everything I love about college rock and dream pop. It’s like crossing paths with someone at a college reunion who you never actually hung out with when you were in school, but you find them to be so smart and imaginative and compelling that you immediately regret that missed opportunity.

Japanese Breakfast – Jubilee: How’s it feel to stand at the height of your powers, to captivate every heart?

Artist: Japanese Breakfast
Album: Jubilee
Year: 2021
Grade: B+

In Brief: Third time’s the charm for Japanese Breakfast, who has hit it big with a charming little indie pop record that is sure to brighten your summer. I’m taken aback in the best possible way by how effectively she’s emphasized the poppier aspects of her sound without losing the hazy, dreamy, and slightly psychedelic aspects of it from the old days. She wanted to write a happier record after two gloomier ones, and a superficial listen would tell you she succeeded.. right up until you start paying closer attention to the lyrics, at least.

Jónsi – Shiver: My Scandinavian Pain (and Pleasure)

Artist: Jónsi
Album: Shiver
Year: 2020
Grade: B

In Brief: The Sigur Rós frontman takes some bold steps forward on his second solo album… and some deliberate steps back into the shadows as well. A lot of electronic sounds come to the forefront this time around, and the mood is definitely darker and moodier than Go was ten years ago, but it’s interesting how this record can switch unpredictably from calming, to exuberant, to downright harsh and terrifying. Combine that with Jónsi’s angelic, otherworldly voice and you’ve got a surprisingly engaging album for one so experimental. But if you’re not in the right mood for it, it could just as easily give you a massive headache.

Wye Oak – Shriek: I can’t remember what came before.

Artist: Wye Oak
Album: Shriek
Year: 2014
Grade: B+

In Brief: Setting the guitar aside for an album when it was previously the most important element of your band’s sound is a risky proposition. But Shriek, which found Jenn Wasner trading her electric riffs for addictive bass lines, turned out to be a real game-changer for Wye Oak in the best way possible. This is exactly the sort of idiosyncratic indie-tronica that I had a thirst for throughout much of the 2010s.

Polychrome: Hear the colors. See the sound. (Taste the rainbow?)

Artist: Polychrome
Album: Polychrome
Year: 2018
Grade: B

In Brief: A strong start for a promising synthpop act, in a genre where it’s becoming increasingly difficult to stand out. Their reliance on vocal samples, bright pop hooks, and occasional more eerie/atmospheric passages to serve as a contrast, showcases diversity across this playful set of songs. But it also becomes apparent toward the end that there’s a bit of filler here – all pleasant ambient and instrumental stuff, but a bit lighter on the big, bright pop songs than I might have preferred.

Beach House – 7: You try to hide it, so I dive to find it.

Artist: Beach House
Album: 7
Year: 2018
Grade: B

In Brief: Removing some of the self-imposed limitations on their hazy, intentionally un-commercial dream pop sound works wonders for Beach House on several of these new tracks, especially the singles. Even though they fall back on old habits by record’s end, this is still a more diverse and dynamic record than anything I’ve heard from them thus far, and I’m finally starting to feel like it’s worth peeling back the obscuring layers of sound to get in touch with the mood and meaning of their songs.