FRICTION NYC

I completely missed shoegaze, ten going on eleven at the time when the genre was at its height and I had more important things to do and listen to. Growing up in middle of nowhere Pennsylvania and like most kids my age, grunge had the largest musical impact on me, thanks in large part to MTV. I still remember in sixth grade we had “bring a song” to music class day. Nearly everyone in class had the same cassettes; Nirvana’s Nevermind, Soundgarden’s Badmotorfinger, or Pearl Jam’s Ten. Sure, not everyone had a grunge album; the metal kids brought Pantera and Metallica, while others brought classics like The Beatles. I was one of the kids toting Pearl Jam.

At the same time as Nevermind, Badmotorfinger, and Ten were influencing the youth here in America, a four piece from Dublin, dropped a landmark album sparking an entire genre that I would (years down the road) come to adore.

Looking back, I find it hard to believe that there was this whole other genre out there that sat dormant (to me) for years. I cannot remember when the last time I put on a grunge record, but on average, I listen to one song that would be classified as shoegaze or dreampop everyday. The funny thing is that I realized that I’ve only scratched the surface of the genre and there are so many great records still to be discovered.

Sway’s 2003 EP, The Millia Pink and Green is one of those great shoegaze records that I discovered for the first time earlier this year. The Ventura, CA group has become somewhat of an mystery in the music world. After years of silence, ambiguity, and name change to Keepee (only to be quickly be changed back to Sway), a vinyl-only limited edition EP titled Winter Heart bearing Sway’s name appeared on March 1st of this year via Claire’s Echo. It’s not even known if the group is still together as some of the members have moved on to forming a new band called The Northern Two. Additionally, it is unknown when Winter Heart was actually recorded - the Discogs page simply states that it was recorded at Blenginsound, whatever that means. Anyway, not that any of this really matters, as it was the short but sweet Winter Heart EP that eventually turned me onto the band.

In addition to The Millia Pink and Green and Winter Heart EP’s, Sway has one other work under their belt, a 500-copy self-titled EP. The gem of the three releases is the gorgeous Millia Pink and Green EP, on which the band paints expansive landscapes of sound. Layers of blissed-out and entrancing guitars glide over ethereal and echoed male vocals making for a lazy and relaxed listen.

Fans of Slowdive, Lush, and Chapterhouse will find that Sway’s three EP’s fit nicely in their collections. I’m not sure if the Winter Heart EP is still in print, only 300 vinyl copies made, but if you do a little digging, you shouldn’t have any trouble finding the mp3’s online. If anyone has any information on the band or if they are still together let me know in the comments.

[MP3]: Sway  ”Sullust”