Southend born five piece Skinny Dream only formed at the start of 2013, and in short order, this week they release their debut EP ‘Crushing’. Carving a niche for themselves with their widescreen gaze sound rippling with epic, longing melodies that pierce these majestic smoke covered soundscapes that burn in the sun of the mid-distance reminding one favourably of the Catherine wheels of emotion characterized by Ride or the emotive layers of mid-period My Bloody Valentine.
Opener ‘Bliss’ guitars crash, serve and entwine with soundtrack like beauty, while the tender vocal refrains whisper dreamily before collapsing to their knees in devotion with their heart on their sleeve. ‘Crush’ has more than a nod to the serrating buzz saw gaze of one Kevin Shields, but it’s the twitching breakdowns and ghostly yearning couplets that vividly paint pictures of heartbreak. Perhaps the biggest stand-out is ‘Alloa’ a weaving earworm, possessing a lullaby quality that rides squalling waves of picked apart distortion and tumbling drum patterns, when the noise clears the solitary echoed lines open up to reveal a introspective gem. With the craft and humanity to back up their undoubted ear for a noisy melody this could just be the start of special things to come from Skinny Dream.
