BEST OF
DARK
SHOEGAZE & DREAMPOP
2025

The fourth album from Finnish solo artist Shedfromthebody.

Shedfromthebody is the solo project of Finland-based artist Suvi Savikko. With roots in visual art, Savikko operates as a fully self-contained DIY creator, handling not only the music itself but also the artwork and music videos. Since debuting in 2018, she has developed a distinctive style that blends gothic, darkwave, shoegaze, and doom metal with melodies drawn from Nordic folk traditions, forming a sound that feels both deeply shadowed and quietly mystical.

This album places particular emphasis on Nordic folk and drone / doom metal influences. Built on slow, unhurried rhythms, the music unfolds in a heavy yet hypnotic manner, while Savikko’s vocals shift fluidly between fairy-like fragility and a more witch-like, seductive presence. The result suggests a carefully balanced tension between weight and enchantment, grounding its darkness in ritualistic calm rather than sheer aggression.

A standout moment arrives on #4 “Sungazer.” Beginning with a gentle, lullaby-like introduction, the track gradually accumulates layers of heavy guitar before locking into a more animated rhythm that leads toward a trance-like state. The song carries the atmosphere of an ancient rite, and its accompanying music video—featuring Savikko dancing with shamanic intensity—further reinforces that impression.

While crossovers between Nordic folk and blackgaze are not uncommon, such a fusion remains far rarer within a doomgaze framework, positioning this album as a notably distinctive work. Fans of Dead Can Dance, Chelsea Wolfe, or Sylvaine will find much to engage with here.

The fourth album from Battle Ground, Washington–based singer-songwriter Echos.

Released via Outlast Records, an imprint under Sumerian Records, this album marks a notable turning point for the project led by vocalist and songwriter Alexandra Norton. Echos was launched when Norton was just 19 years old, with the project name drawn from a lyric in Paramore’s “Misguided Ghosts.” Until now, Echos has been widely recognized for a more electronic-driven sound that foregrounded Norton’s delicate vocal delivery.

Here, however, the palette shifts decisively darker. Heavier guitars rooted in alternative rock and nu-metal are introduced, expanding the project’s emotional and sonic range. This evolution appears to reflect not only Paramore’s longstanding influence, but also Norton’s more recent affinity for artists such as Ethel Cain and Spiritbox, both of whom explore weight, vulnerability, and atmosphere in distinct ways.

The centerpiece is #3 “QUIET, IN YOUR SERVICE.” The track feels as though it bridges alternative gothic metal and modern Nu-Gaze sensibilities, pairing dense, shadowy instrumentation with a vocal performance steeped in quiet devastation. Norton’s voice carries a profound sense of grief, cutting through the darkness with an intimacy that makes the song’s emotional weight almost overwhelming.

Elsewhere, #5 “OVER & OVER” pushes further into intensity, unveiling especially aggressive guitar work that signals just how far Echos has moved from its earlier electronic foundations. While this shift may surprise longtime listeners, it reinforces the album’s commitment to a heavier, more confrontational emotional language.

Despite the persistent darkness that follows, the closing track #9 “TOLERANCE” offers a carefully measured release. Cascading, almost mystical choral layers emerge, evoking the catharsis of dawn breaking after a long and exhausting night. Norton has spoken about how the album helped her reclaim herself while overcoming depression, and that sense of hard-won healing permeates the final moments.

Echos may invite comparison to artists such as Amira Elfeky, yet the project leans more decisively toward dreamlike atmospheres and floating textures, making it particularly accessible to listeners rooted in dream pop and shoegaze. Notably, the frequent use of the hashtag #twilightcore across Echos’ social media points toward an aesthetic shaped by the romantic, gothic sensibilities of the Twilight films—another subtle indication of how deeply Paramore’s emotional lineage continues to inform the project’s identity.

The second album from Philadelphia-based solo shoegaze project Nostalgiaisfun.

Departing sharply from the dreamier tone of its predecessor, this release embraces a far more decadent strain of shoegaze. Vast layers of reverb create a hollowed-out soundscape where vacant, whispered vocals linger like echoes in an empty room. Clean guitar tones fall like steady rainfall, guiding the listener at a slow, deliberate pace into deep melancholy rather than overwhelming them with sheer volume.

Particular attention is drawn to #4 “Decolate Circuit” and #6 “Existential Crisis,” both of which feature elegantly flowing string arrangements. Rather than relying on violins, the project incorporates viola and cello—an uncommon choice within shoegaze, where dense guitar distortion often leaves little room for such instrumentation. As a result, strings are rarely employed in the genre, yet these tracks demonstrate how, with careful arrangement, they can become a remarkably potent expressive tool.

The debut album from Tokyo-based post-black metal / blackgaze band Pale.

This release marks their first full-length in nearly seven years, following the EP they issued in 2018. While guitarist Hirofusa Watanabe remains from the earlier lineup, the band has otherwise reformed for this album, which was recorded by a four-piece configuration: NiiK (vocals, noise), Hirofusa Watanabe (guitar), Takahiro Watanabe (bass), and Kou Nakagawa (drums).

Pale distinguish themselves by pursuing a far darker trajectory than the ethereal romanticism often associated with Alcest or the radiant uplift of Deafheaven. Their sound amplifies black metal’s inherent madness through hardcore-like propulsion, detonating desolate melodies with relentless force. The result evokes the image of a steam locomotive tearing across a snow-covered wasteland in the dead of night—unyielding, mechanical, and merciless.

The album’s most defining element, however, is the noise manipulation wielded by vocalist NiiK. Its impact is felt immediately on #1 “Euphoria,” where the sound design hits with the intensity of electrodes driven straight into the brain, leaving the listener scorched by raw current. The experience recalls the disorienting psychological pressure of Pi, as if momentarily inhabiting the film’s protagonist. Against this barrage, NiiK alternates between deranged screams and filth-laden death vocals, projecting a presence that suggests a human embodiment of noise itself. With abrasive guitars and blisteringly fast blast beats layered on top, the effect is overwhelming—in the most rewarding sense for devotees of extreme music.

Just as the album threatens to become unrelentingly punishing, #4 “Almost Transparent Blue” introduces a sudden shift. Clear, shimmering guitar lines emerge, accompanied by clean vocals that momentarily soften the atmosphere. Subtle shades of new wave and gothic mood surface here, giving the track an almost Amesoeurs-like resonance. The reprieve is brief, however; the band soon accelerates again, surging forward with a catharsis akin to breaking through storm clouds and racing skyward. The track stands as a notable stylistic expansion for Pale and functions as a crucial pivot point in the album’s pacing.

That momentum is quickly overturned on #5 “Dakhme,” which plunges back into berserker mode, flattening everything in its path like a bulldozer hurtling forward at impossible speed. #6 “Lament” gradually fades out amid sorrow-laden tremolo picking, setting the stage for the closer. On #7 “Shringavera,” the image of a man screaming into a frozen plain slowly dissolves into a whiteout blizzard, bringing the album to an ending rich in lingering resonance.

The carefully contoured dynamics and narrative-like flow across the tracklist underscore Pale’s compositional control. At a time when post-black metal continues to edge toward accessibility, this album feels almost like a counterstatement—an evolution that pushes further into underground extremity rather than smoothing its edges. It serves as a reminder that both post-black metal and blackgaze remain rooted in black metal itself, and that madness and darkness lie at their core.

With a Southeast Asia tour scheduled from April 25 onward, Pale appear poised to confront overseas audiences with the full force of their aesthetic—one that is uncompromising, abrasive, and resolutely visceral.