The Veldt
The Shocking Fuzz of Your Electric Fur: The Drake Equation
Reviewed by: Ziggy Merritt
Tracing the lineage of shoegaze is a difficult task in as much as tracing the lineage of any other well-established genre would be. But a good place to establish an origin might very well be The Veldt whose brand of ambient soul has come to define many of the conventions genre as much as the typical callouts of My Bloody Valentine and Slowdive have. Formed in 1986 the band, consisting of twin brothers Daniel and Danny Chavis along with bassist Hayato Nakao and drummer Marvin Levi, never set out to do anything more than create a space for the music they wanted to record and listen to without compromising their integrity. Their latest EP, The Shocking Fuzz of Your Electric Fur, follows an extended hiatus – and a few name changes- that funnels the chaos, melancholy, and hope of their decades long journey into a satisfying rebuff against an industry that have continuously disavowed them of the recognition they deserve.
If the name of their latest sounds similar to a b-side Cocteau Twins rarity that wouldn’t be entirely coincidental. Robin Guthrie himself produced their first though disappointingly unreleased album as they were starting out. Touching closer toward the present, The Shocking Fuzz falls somewhere between the trippy R&B stylings of Miguel as well as the dreamy, downtempo pop of Keep Shelly in Athens. It’s a true and deserved return to form that cements their relevance and importance amongst the shoegaze movement they gave life to if that was indeed ever questioned.
“In A Quiet Room” is the carefully constructed keystone of the five tracks making up this EP. The downtempo distortion and sorrowful drone of the Chavis brothers’ vocals is backed against minimal percussion to wring out a wave of introspection and desolation. This acts as the ideal middle-ground between the livelier trip-hop bookends of “Sanctified” and “And It’s You” and the hazier edge of “Token” and “One Day Out of Life.” Each of these tracks feel purposeful and present but also comfortable to return to on repeated listens. With more to look forward to as they return to the name that started them on a journey replete with obstacles, The Veldt share an album that doesn’t compromise, pushing instead past the borders of convention into something soulful and brand new.
Rating: Iconic
