Various Artists: Cherry Stars Collide)

Jan 26, 2024

Various Artists: Cherry Stars Collide (Dream Pop, Shoegaze & Ethereal Rock 1986-1995)

(Cherry Red Records)

4 CD box set

Out 31 March 2023

Dream Pop developed as a sub-genre in the period between the end of the indie C86 DIY movement and the brash explosion of Britpop. Along the way, it spawned the much-derided Shoegazing movement and the more obscure Ethereal Rock.

It's hard to describe the sub-genres, but Dream Pop came out of the sophisticated West Coast arrangements of the Beach Boys and The Byrds, with elements of Spector's Wall of Sound. Shoegazing is essentially slowed-down indie, and Ethereal Rock melds both those sounds, plus more than a dash of Goth. This well-curated box set demonstrates a high level of sophistication on most of the tracks that make those broad descriptions more of a guide than any rock-solid definition.

Dream pop might have died on its arse as an idea until Ivo Watts-Russell formed 4AD, which offered many of the leading lights of this genre – like the Cocteau Twins and Dead Can Dance – a safe haven to create dreamy, intelligent pop. Other well-curated labels like Cherry Red, who commissioned this authoritative box set, and Sarah Records offered similar space for artists keen to push the sonic barriers to do their own thing. And this emerging genre didn't go unnoticed in the US where labels like Project Records and Independent Project Records found their own homegrown dream poppers and shoegazers.

In many ways, this intellectual and thoughtful sound can be seen as a reaction to the white heat of punk and the angular sounds of new wave and post-punk. It's probably difficult for younger music fans to really appreciate how intense the period was since the Pistols had kicked over the statues had been, so the seemingly softer sounds of these genres allowed people some much need breathing space

It would be a mistake to think Dream Pop or shoegazing were somehow an easy option as all the bands across four discs demand you pay attention to what they’re doing since there is a lot going on. The only thing that unites what is still a pretty opaque movement is each in all their own way was trying out very different ways to make you think.

The other plus point was that many of the bands had female vocalists and/or members of the band, which challenged the boy's club nature of indie around this period. No one batted an eyelid if the singer was a woman, or that she's also written the songs, so there was a degree of gender equality that was very welcome as Britpop was only just around the corner.

Fittingly A.R. Kane open CD One with their 1987 4AD single Lolita as they are credited with coming up with the name Dream Pop. It's a timeless song full of chiming guitars and dreamy vocals that helped set the standards for the genre. There's a touch of Pulp on Sloppy Heart from Brighton's Frazier Chorus, and Louis Phillipe is probably the only sports journalist to make music as When I’m An Astronaut melds Europop with dream pop.

Middleton's The Chameleons should have been huge judging by the chugging guitars and bass on the instrumental I’ll Remember, and Australian scene leaders Dead Can Dance prove their pedigree In The Kingdom Of The Blind. 4Ad are over all this box set, and Drugs is a good example of how a floating group of labelmates came together as This Mortal Coil to collaborate to great effect. It's not clear if Julee Cruise's Falling – which was the theme to surreal TV show Twin Peaks – is really Dream Pop, but it remains a thing of great beauty.

Lush open Disc Two with B-side Breeze, which shows how good they were in 1990, and they’re probably more Shoegaze than Dream Pop. In contrast, The Wake's English Rain should be on another box set. Another 4AD act His Name Is Alive hailed from Detroit, and Karin Oliver's vocal is glorious on As We Could Ever. Ethereal Rock begins to creep in with Penelope's Web's arch Low Sun, which has echoes of Bauhaus. Less successful are the childlike vocals of the Cranes.

Jim Beattie left Primal Scream to form Spirea X, determined to outdo them, but whilst Signed D.C. is decent, he failed in his aim. Oddly enough, The Cranberries pop up with the Shoegazing Them which has no hint of how big they would become.

Spiritualized were big players in this scene and on Disc Three opener Feel So Sad Glides And Chimes they manage to cover all three subgenres in one song. Hershey is most famous for producing America's favourite chocolate bar, but it was also home to The Ocean Blue who were signed to Sire for the Dream Pop of Ballerina Out of Control.

Arizona's Lycia were decent ethereal rockers with the electro-tinged Ionia hinting at where Nine Inch Nails would go later on. Ace indie guitarist Terry Bickers fled House of Love to form Levitation who contribute the solid Rosemary Jones, and Red House Painters, featuring the mercurial Mark Kozelek, were the underrated stars of 4AD. All About Eve are perhaps most famous for an epic miming fail on Top of the Pops, but Julianne Regan had arguably the best voice on this scene as demonstrated on Some Fine Day.

There's no reason The Darling Buds should be included on this box set as they are bog-standard indie, but there is absolutely a place for The Sundays whose Shoegazing tendencies managed to break into the mainstream with tracks like God Made Me, from their second album Blind.

Hope Sandoval was another sensational vocalist and Mazzy Star's She's My Baby is perfect dream pop. The final CD is probably the most varied as Swallow's Cheery Stars Collide is classic Shoegazing, but The Ecstasy of St Theresa from Czechoslovakia are pure Ethereal Rock. The undisputed leaders of Shoegaze were Slowdive and were much derided at the time by the music press, but their Creation single In Mind stands the test of time.

St Etienne and Dubstar are bands that seem to have wandered in from another box set. Thankfully Low's Stay rescues this disc effortlessly fusing Dream Pop and Shoegazing with dashes of Slowcore threaded throughout.

All the big players in all three sub-genres are represented, proving that making intelligent music doesn't mean it has to be boring. In fact, the opposite is true as being smart is almost always more interesting than just knocking out hackneyed cliches. If you loved the Cocteaus back in the day, or are into Spiritualized who are still going today, then this set is a guided tour of some of the highlights of a short-lived but important scene.

You can follow Cherry Red on Facebook and Twitter.

~

Words by Paul Clarke, you can see his author profile here.

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