Gen Z flooding to ‘lost’ music genre shoegaze to cope during lockdown

How does the genre help to soothe during lockdowns?

Shoegaze’s minimalist lyrics and repetitive structure offer a relaxing and positive mood setter for a period of intense distress, what with anxiety-inducing lockdowns and seemingly ever-changing social distancing rules.

As 16 year-old fan Jude Atkins says, ‘the atmosphere of shoegaze really fits with the bleak, post-COVID, world we’re in. Everyone’s trapped inside and shoegaze has a very dreamy quality to it.’

That aptness has translated into new playlists and hand curated video streams, which are available in abundance on both Spotify and YouTube. Check this one out, for example, which focuses on Japanese shoegaze tracks that feel ‘other worldly’.

Dev Lemons, an adamant TikToker who unpacks song meanings, says that shoegaze’s ‘blend of softness and chaos sonically feels like the experience of growing up’.

Older, original artists of the genre have gotten involved too. Slowdive is still going strong, having released an album as late as 2017, and prominent shoegaze band Cocteau Twins even have their own meme-filled Instagram page.

Experiencing shoegaze in a post pandemic world

Will Shoegaze’s resurgence cause a tidal wave on the pop music scene as a whole?

The answer is probably no, considering the eye-watering numbers that tracks like Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallions ‘WAP’ can generate online, particularly when they’re tied to specific dances or tailor-made social media challenges.

For context, the ‘WAP Challenge’ has more than 1.5 billion accumulative views on TikTok. Producers are now utilising maximalist approaches that capitalise on the 30 second retention rates of social media platforms, taking things to loud, hip-hop focused extremes – that’s a far cry away from the mellowed out nature of shoegaze.

With that being said, it’s still gained enough momentum to take its seat on the table of niche musical sub-genres and it may well have a prosperous future ahead, especially as our need for ambient and relaxed vibes becomes ever more obvious.

Even if it doesn’t, we can just be the trendy musical buffs who keep in the loop outside of the mainstream, right? That’s what really counts, after all.

This article was originally written by Robert Collins. ‘I’m Rob, a post-grad from City, University of London where I studied Magazine Journalism. I have a life-long interest in politics, having studied it at BA level, and am fascinated by the times we live in. Other subjects I love writing about are social change, the climate crisis, and music’. Visit his LinkedIn, his Twitter, and check out his site here.