The difference, by ear
Neo-psychedelia shares the effects and keeps psychedelia's structural strangeness. Dream pop's songs are conventional underneath the treatment.
Both are sung cleanly, but neo-psychedelia is a little faster: 90 to 140 bpm against 70 to 110. To hear the difference, play Cocteau Twins next to The Flaming Lips. They share a root in rock, and neo-psychedelia came first, by five years. United Kingdom appears in the origins of both.
In figures
Dream pop
Where it sits
Rock › Alternative rock › Shoegaze › Dream pop
In short
The same reverb haze, but with the melody left on the surface and the tempo slower.
How it sounds
- Long reverb and delay, with guitars treated like synthesizers.
- Slow tempos and a discreet rhythm section, often a drum machine.
- Ethereal vocals, sometimes with no intelligible words at all.
Key acts
- Cocteau Twins
- Mazzy Star
- Beach House
Start here
The pickCocteau Twins - Heaven or Las Vegas. You won't follow the words, and it doesn't matter.
Full page →Neo-psychedelia
Where it sits
Rock › Psychedelic rock › Neo-psychedelia
In short
Psychedelia retold by every new generation, with digital studios and rather less mysticism.
How it sounds
- Abundant reverb and delay, with the voice treated as an instrument.
- Modern studio production carrying 1960s sonic references.
- Pop melody under a thick layer of effects.
Key acts
- The Flaming Lips
- Tame Impala
- King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard
Start here
The pickTame Impala - Lonerism. One man, a bedroom studio, a stadium sound.
Full page →