SLOWDIVE HYPNOTIZES FANS AT TWO SOLD-OUT SHOWS AT THE BELLWETHER
WORDS BY JOJO MARTINEZ. PHOTOS BY JAMES ALVAREZ
Slowdive’s 1994 album ‘Souvlaki’ changed the trajectory of my life when I first discovered their music in high school thanks to a Shoegaze playlist on Spotify. Imagine 16-year-old me listening to “Alison” and “When the Sun Hits”, wishing and imagining a life in the 90s where I would have been able to see them perform live. Almost 30 years after their album, at now age 24, I had the honor of covering them for their sold-out show at The Bellwether in Los Angeles.
This was my first show at the venue, and it was beautiful, modern, organized, and spacious. There was an outside roof patio and more than three bars in the venue, as well as the merchandise booth that I happened to splurge my money on.
The eerie, futuristic, melancholic synth pop group Drab Majesty opened up and loosed the crowd’s bodies as the music moved through them. The psychedelic visuals reeled the audience into the atmosphere of the room, and the crowd submerged themselves in the '80s-inspired darkwave sound. Drab Majesty took the audience on a journey through space and time. I had never heard of this band before but became an automatic fan as it reminded me of some of my favorite ‘80s artists like Depeche Mode, Yazoo, and Siouxsie and the Banshees. They played roughly an hour or so of their music, which included their new single "Vanity,” which features Rachel Goswell, who joined the stage with them.
After the set, the crowd was starting to settle into their permanent spots for the night, and Slowdive hit the stage around 9:15 p.m. The band started with one of their new songs, "Shanty,” from their newly released album, ‘everything is alive’. For the next hour, Slowdive once again changed my life and healed the inner child inside of me that wished they could one day see Slowdive live.
The strobe lights during their music put me into a psychedelic trance. During their song “Catch the Breeze” from their 1991 album, the audience swayed almost in unison, and the room felt like it was underwater. We were all swimming and were being transported far away from The Bellwether. The hypnotic strobe lights warmed up my skin and were comforting me on this journey of what is Slowdive. The band played their song "Slowdive,” and Rachel Goswell began to hum in a siren-like harmony that blended so magically with the sound of her tambourine.
Neil Halstead and Rachel Goswell’s harmonies and powerful vocals were life-changing to hear. The audience felt the same, as there were very few phones even recording since people were so focused on embracing the music in the moment. The band performed more of their new songs like “Kisses” but also surprisingly played most of their older ones like “Souvlaki Space Station”, “Sugar for the Pill”, “The Slab”, “Alison”, and “When the Sun Hits.” Life-changing is my final comment on the show. Wow.