BEST OF
DARK
SHOEGAZE & DREAMPOP
2023

The third album from FVNERALS, a doomgaze duo originating from Leipzig, Germany.

Formed in 2013 in the UK south coast town of Brighton by Tiffany Ström (vocals/bass) and Syd Scarlet (guitars/songwriting), FVNERALS represent an absolute convergence of shoegaze and funeral doom at their darkest extreme. This is pitch-black shoegaze pushed to its furthest limits—music that feels as though it might be echoing at the very end of the world.

One can only hope it won’t be long before we see a shared stage with Presence of Soul.

Debut album from San Diego-based shoegaze band Distressor.

Their chilly, melancholic sound is clearly in the lineage of Whirr, and the band name itself likely nods to Whirr’s 1st EP.

Compared to their predecessor, Distressor emphasizes a more reverb-heavy, floating atmosphere, giving tracks a heftier take reminiscent of a heavier The Daysleepers. The quality on a debut album is impressive, promising much for the future.

Guitarist/vocalist Cory Kurkierewicz’s YouTube channel is full of heavy shoegaze covers—my personal highlight is their rendition of Holy Fawn’s “Dark Stone” which is absolutely thrilling.

The debut album from Tyrkouaz, a Japanese mixture rock duo formed by twin brothers: elder brother Souta (vocals/guitar) and younger brother Rent (drums/choirs).

Rooted in drum and bass yet branching out into a wide spectrum of musical styles, the album presents a distinctly new-generation sound. Among its highlights is “ethergaze,” featuring Ryuta Ueda of Kuyuru on guitar and vocalist Hana Miketa. Tornado-like walls of guitar noise collide with fragile twin vocals, melting together into a drum’n’gaze masterpiece of rare impact.

The track was reportedly performed live for the first time only recently—those who experienced it in person were truly lucky.

Fifth album from Swedish cosmic drone duo ISON.

Blending shoegaze, post-rock, and ambient drone, the album unfolds as a grand spectacle that explores the mysteries of the cosmos. The decision to feature Mikael Stanne of Dark Tranquillity exclusively on clean vocals is a particularly tasteful touch.

That said, the overall darkness feels somewhat restrained this time around. With Lisa Cuthbert—who appeared as a guest on the previous release—now taking on main vocal duties, the shadowy intensity has softened slightly.

It is hard not to miss the deep, dark beauty of Heike Langhans’ vocals from earlier eras, whose absence is keenly felt here.

The debut album from Mareux, the solo project of Iranian American musician Aryan Ashtiani, arrives as a long-overdue full-length statement from an artist with more than a decade of experience behind him. While this marks Mareux’s first album, it builds upon years of releases that have steadily shaped his self-described “romantic darkwave” sound.

Drawing heavily from 1980s new wave, gothic rock, and synth-pop, Mareux channels these influences through a contemporary sensibility, resulting in a melancholic style that feels nostalgic without being bound to revivalism. His wider breakthrough came in 2022, when the single “The Perfect Girl” went viral on TikTok, inspiring a wave of remixes and reinterpretations by users across the platform.

Although the track takes inspiration from The Cure’s “The Perfect Girl” from Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Mareux’s version functions less as a cover and more as a reimagining. Beyond its lyrical reference point, the song diverges significantly from the original, and listening to the two side by side only underscores the clarity of Mareux’s own artistic voice.

That momentum continued into 2023 with an appearance at Coachella, and Mareux’s popularity has shown little sign of slowing since. As of September 2024, his Spotify monthly listeners stood at approximately 5.29 million—numbers that place him among the most widely heard artists within the modern darkwave revival. In that context, Mareux can reasonably be cited as one of the genre’s most important contemporary figures.

Musically, the album’s most notable development lies in its incorporation of dream pop elements alongside Mareux’s established darkwave foundation. Tracks such as “Night Vision” and “Hurt” weave delicate guitar arpeggios into mellow arrangements, paired with hushed, almost vacant whispers. The resulting atmosphere evokes a deep sense of isolation—like staring at a flickering candle in a completely dark room, moments before it disappears. One might imagine this as a gothic reinterpretation of Cigarettes After Sex.

Another standout arrives with “Glass,” which features a guest appearance from Kris Esfandiari of King Woman. Her ethereal whisper is layered over a drained, four-on-the-floor rhythm, offering a striking contrast to the crushing doomgaze textures she is typically associated with. The song’s stripped-back minimalism recalls the emotional directness of Billie Eilish’s debut album, and may help explain Mareux’s appeal beyond strictly goth-oriented audiences.

By expanding his palette to include dream pop while retaining his romantic darkwave core, Mareux delivers an album that feels both fully realized and unusually accessible. For listeners drawn to melancholy atmospheres—dream pop fans included—this debut offers a compelling entry point into one of darkwave’s most visible modern figures.

2023 EP from Los Angeles–based post-metal / doomgaze band Iress.

Their blend of slowcore, shoegaze, and doom metal remains heavy and melancholic. Standout track #3 "Ricochet" delivers a heartrending waltz that escorts the listener from cradle to grave in just over four minutes.

The EP closes beautifully with #4 "Soft", a lullaby-like melody that follows the emotional devastation of the previous track. Four tracks totaling roughly 16 minutes may be brief, but the impact is substantial.

A debut album from Greek post-punk / shoegaze band Youth Valley. The band has openly cited DIIV as a key influence, and it shows—in the best possible way. Nearly every track pushes shimmering, hyper-luminous guitar tones to a level that, at times, feels worthy of comparison with DIIV’s classic Oshin. The difference is that Youth Valley pair that sparkle with immediately gripping vocal melodies, drawing in equal measure from post-punk gloom and the romanticism of goth and new wave. It’s the kind of record that wins you over fast.

My personal highlight is track #4, “Godheads,” which races forward in a blaze of glittering guitars before detonating into a late-stage wall of noise. It feels like one possible future that DIIV never chose—a parallel path where the shine was never dimmed.

If you’ve been listening to DIIV’s more recent output and thinking, “This could really use more sparkle,” this album is an easy recommendation. And while you’re at it, be sure to check out their cover of The Cure’s “Pictures of You” drenched in reverb and perfectly suited to their aesthetic.

Third album from the enigmatic shoegaze artist kuragari.

The music fuses intensely noisy guitars—approaching the emotional weight of Sadness—with whispered, delicate vocals, creating a transcendent euphoria. It’s a paradoxical experience: ear-straining yet strangely soothing, and highly addictive. While the lyrics are largely unintelligible, it seems the songs repeatedly echo the wishes embedded in their titles, adding a touching sense of earnestness.

kuragari initially leaned toward acoustic styles, but this release marks a full embrace of their current sound. Their 2024 release "niconico" is also highly recommended.

Second EP from Indonesian alternative rock/shoegaze band Sunlotus.

The release captivates with the pleasurable tension between melancholic, sweet melodies and crushingly heavy, noise-laden guitars. “Skin Graft” stands out as a near-perfect example of heavy shoegaze.

The band seems to have a close relationship with Thailand’s Death of Heather, and seeing their playful X (Twitter) exchanges about wanting to tour Japan together had me grinning from ear to ear. Can’t wait for them to finally make it here.

This marks the first full-length album since the project’s rebranding from Infinite Vacation to Central Pacific State Beach.

Built on the weightless drift of ambient drones and infused with a psychedelic sense of intoxication, the sound evokes a hermit’s waking hallucination—spending their final moments on a deserted island, lost in a haze of forbidden substances.