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Two genres, side by side. The ratings are editorial judgements on a ten-point scale, not measurements. Where they come out level, the difference is in the prose underneath them.

First genre

Blackgaze / post-black2007

Second genre

Shoegaze1989

Head to headBlackgaze / post-black vs Shoegaze
Blackgaze / post-black: heaviness 7, melody 9, speed 7. Shoegaze: heaviness 4, melody 8, speed 4.Heaviness7 / 4Melody9 / 8Speed7 / 4
Each corner is a ten-point rating. The further out, the higher.

The difference, by ear

The same wall of guitars, with a blast beat and a shriek inside it. Both genres already wanted a buried voice, which is why the graft took.

Shoegaze is sung cleanly where blackgaze / post-black is growled or screamed, and slower: 100 to 140 bpm against 120 to 200. To hear the difference, play Alcest next to My Bloody Valentine. Blackgaze / post-black comes from the metal side of the tree and shoegaze from the rock side, and shoegaze came first, by eighteen years.

Put together from each genre's vocals, tempo, song length, key acts and place in the tree.

In figures

Heaviness
Blackgaze / post-black7
Shoegaze4
−3
Speed
Blackgaze / post-black7
Shoegaze4
−3
Melody
Blackgaze / post-black9
Shoegaze8
−1

Blackgaze / post-black

2007 · France / USA

Where it sits

Heavy metal › Black metal › Blackgaze / post-black

In short

Black metal tremolo over shoegaze harmony: the same density, but the result comes out luminous instead of frozen.

How it sounds

  • Black metal tremolo picking over major or modal, luminous harmony.
  • Walls of guitar with reverb and delay, in the shoegaze tradition.
  • Screamed vocals mixed under the instruments, as texture.

Key acts

  • Alcest
  • Deafheaven
  • Lantlôs

Start here

The pickDeafheaven - Sunbather. It opens with nine minutes that justify the whole genre.

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Shoegaze

1989 · United Kingdom · 1 subgenre

Where it sits

Rock › Alternative rock › Shoegaze

In short

Walls of cascading guitar effects with the vocals buried in the mix. Named after the habit of staring at the pedalboard on stage.

How it sounds

  • Dozens of stacked guitar tracks through long chains of pedals.
  • Kevin Shields' 'glide guitar' - the tremolo arm used continuously, so the tuning never settles.
  • Vocals mixed level with the instruments, as another texture.

Key acts

  • My Bloody Valentine
  • Slowdive
  • Ride
  • Lush

Start here

The pickMy Bloody Valentine - Loveless. Nobody has yet reproduced the sound exactly.

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