REVIEW

The soundtrack to A24’s coming-of-age thriller I Saw The TV Glow is a must-hear compilation, bringing together an exceptional lineup from both the indie and mainstream scenes. The roster reads like a major festival bill: Sloppy Jane feat. Phoebe Bridgers, Snail Mail, Alex G, King Woman, Caroline Polachek, yeule, Florist, Bartees Strange, Drab Majesty, Frances Quinlan, Jay Som, L’Rain, Maria BC, Proper, Sadurn, and The Weather Station. On top of that, the film’s original score is composed by Alex G.

Here, we spotlight four artists especially familiar to shoegaze and dream pop fans: yeule, Jay Som, Drab Majesty, and King Woman.

yeule contributes a striking reinterpretation of Broken Social Scene’s “Anthems For A Seventeen Year Old Girl”, which also appears in the film’s teaser. The track perfectly encapsulates the movie’s mysterious, otherworldly atmosphere and serves as one of the soundtrack’s emotional anchors.

‍Jay Som’s “If I Could” delivers exactly what fans expect: a radiant blend of dream pop and indie rock, bursting with her signature warmth. It’s the kind of song that feels like it carries the sound of ocean waves just beyond the mix.

The white-painted, spellbinding duo Drab Majesty offer “Photograph,” a shimmering trip back to the dance floors of the 1980s. Gleaming guitars and synths dominate, making this one of their most accessible tracks to date—leaning unapologetically into The Cure-inspired territory.

The biggest highlight, however, is King Woman. Led by Kris Esfandiari, formerly of Whirr, the post-metal / doomgaze outfit delivers two tracks steeped in their trademark blend of haunting melody and crushing heaviness—an unusually bold inclusion for a film soundtrack. Notably, Kris Esfandiari herself appears in the film as King Woman, featured in a striking scene that plays a pivotal role in the story’s emotional core.

Another detail worth noting: the name of the fictional TV show within the film is taken from Cocteau Twins’ compilation album The Pink Opaque. Visually, the film’s retro TV-inspired gadgets invite comparisons to Persona 4’s Midnight Channel, while a surreal scene in which a character literally pushes their head into a television strongly recalls imagery from the game adaptation of Serial Experiments Lain. For gaming and media obsessives alike, these references are hard to resist.

^{Note: The accompanying graph focuses on the two tracks by King Woman.}