The name was coined by the New Musical Express, noting the tendency of the bands' guitarists to stare at their feet (or their effects pedals), seemingly deep in concentration, while playing. Some fans will argue another story, that shoegazing music was originally made with the intention of being listened to while taking heroin, and that the name refers to a passage from the book Naked Lunch.Excerpt from Wikipedia's entry on shoegazer
Its highpoint for me being sometime in August 1991 at the Chapterhouse/Slowdive gig one sunny Saturday evening in the Town & Country Club, Kentish Town. It seemed at that precise moment almost every indie head in London was walking past the pub nearby with either a Ride, Lush, Slowdive or Chapterhouse t-shirt. The gig itself was a vacent swish of noise hampered by the bad sound in the venue. Didn't matter though -- it was that zeitgeisty feeling that counted, a "this is our time" mood filtered through the on stage feedback swirl. In fairness, there was a certain focus and purity to the whole scene that sorely lacking with Britpop. It felt cool to be into all this gorgeous noise. When Ride appeared babyfaced on Snub TV early in 1990 singing "Drive Blind" and Lush released the amazing Mad Love EP everything seemed possible for a short time. A new psychedelia was in the air!
Post by user David Gunnip on ILM
I'm crazy, but I'm not mentally ill.
Kevin Shields, My Bloody Valentine
If it inspires greatness in as many bands that inspired us at that time, I think that’s fantastic. I think there is still somewhere that it can go.
Mark Gardener, Ride
At the time, the shoegazer . . . bands were big, and they all just kind of stood there and didn't move. I always felt cheated going to see them; it's like I could've just bought the CD and saved about 15 bucks on the ticket.
Bob Vennum, The Bellrays
Shoegazer dorks are starting to annoy me.
Matt Wobensmith, publisher of Outpunk and head of Outpunk Records
I always thought of shoegazer stuff as like being inside an aquarium with reverberating sound.
Harman Jordan, Shipwreck
The legacy of shoegazing? For a few years, music got "all swirly." Then it stopped being swirly.
Post by user Curt on ILM
Hear them for yourself. Download:
CRE 055: My Bloody Valentine - "You Made Me Realise," (7"+12"+CD5), Aug. 8, 1988
CRE 072: Ride - "Chelsea Girl," (12"), 1990
CRE 092: The Telescopes - "Everso," (12")
