SHOEGAZE began as a sniffy term for a cluster of indie guitar bands too busy looking at their feet from beneath a closed curtain of hair.
Where psychedelia, its forerunner and not-too-distant guitar-playing uncle, took a trip to the stars in the Sixties, Shoegazers stared intently at the floor, all consumed in the effects pedal, or so the story of this alternative sole music originally went.
However, just as Nuggets: Original Artyfacts from the First Psychedelic Era, 1965–1968, led to a glorious reappraisal of that golden time, so Still In A Dream seeks to do so for "The Scene That Celebrated Itself". Well, maybe it had to celebrate itself amid much mockery, but a celebratory compendium could not be better timed, coinciding with the revival of Ride, the Oxford advance party for the movement, now riding the crest of a new wave.
Still In A Dream covers the years 1988 to 1995, seeking to give a context to Shoegazing and to paint a broader canvas, opening with a trio of acts that were influences rather than partial to a good pair of shoes: The Jesus & Mary Chain, 4AD's Cocteau Twins and The House Of Love, to be truthful all better than what would follow.
Slowdive
However, Cherry Red's five-disc box set still makes a strong case for the likes of Slowdive, Pale Saints, Moose, Lush, Chapterhouse and Curve, and why not celebrate Spaceman 3, Spiritualized, Kitchens Of Distinction, Catherine Wheel and Whipping Boy too.
Cult favourites, rarities and tracks new to CD also feature, giving a second life to Adorable's adorable Sunshine Smile and band names as obscure as Coaltar Of The Deepers, The Ecstasy Of Saint Theresa and Smashing Orange. Disc 5 turns the spotlight on American invaders and other outsiders, and everything you need to know and more besides can be found in Neil Taylor's forensic notes and band profiles.
My Bloody Valentine are the one notable absentee, but if you really want to celebrate this scene beyond Still In A Dream, invest in all Slowdive's albums, now packaged in a trim little box.
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