Dream Pop
Noah’s Barks pages relating to the dream pop music genre.
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My Bloody Valentine – “m b v” (2013)
I just want to be the first to call m b v the “indie Chinese Democracy” before Pitchfork says it 10 times in their review. I don’t actually view this as another Chinese Democracy at all, I just wanted to be the first to say it. After all, I was one of the first people… (read more)
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Cranes – “Self-Non-Self”
It’s hard to tell whether or not I’m judging Self-Non-Self poorly because it’s different from the Cranes sound I love, or because I don’t think they’re good at this style. Let’s go with a little of both. The EP is primarily ’80s gothic rock, so the keyword is “dreary,” a monotony so powerful that I… (read more)
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Boris – “Attention Please”
Minimal shoegaze Attention Please is as far away as you can get from shoegaze while still being shoegaze. It’s actually a pretty unique-sounding album for the genre and I never gave it enough credit for that before. I have to say though: Wata may be a good guitarist, but she is a terrible vocalist, and I’m not… (read more)
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Cocteau Twins – “Blue Bell Knoll”
Blue Bell Knoll is the same Cocteau Twins with a different sound. Monotone, atmospheric, midtempo dream pop with Robin Guthrie‘s guitar chords bending around Liz Fraser’s omnipresent multi-tracked indecipherable wails and chants. Also there’s a bass guitar in there somewhere, but you could’ve fooled me. The tone of the day is: ice. And what a… (read more)
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The xx – “Coexist” (2012)
Come on, did The xx run out of album covers already? Anyway, Coexist isn’t much of a departure from their first album—I don’t know how you could have expected it to be. Likewise, it’s just as inoffensive, overly self-conscious indie-pandering with token “chill” minimalist beats and lyrics about Sad Things that express genuine emotion just… (read more)
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My Bloody Valentine – “Loveless” (1991)
2/5/2026: Man, I should probably have something written for my favorite album of all time. But hopefully you can empathize with having to write about something you connect to on such a deeply emotional level. Sure, I could go through Loveless track-by-track and describe why I think every composition choice works using adjectives yanked out… (read more)
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Cocteau Twins – “Heaven or Las Vegas”
Not sure what it is about this album, but Heaven or Las Vegas is my second favorite Cocteau Twins release, after Head Over Heels. One of my favorite aspects of Head Over Heels is the unusual dark, mystical songs. My favorite songs on Treasure carry that tradition. Here we are with the Cocteau Twins’s brightest… (read more)
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My Bloody Valentine – “Lost Tracks and Rare Cuts” (2010)
Lost Tracks and Rare Cuts is an unauthorized collection of My Bloody Valentine (MBV) rarities. Among these are “Sugar,” one of the B-sides to the Only Shallow single and a longer version of the track “Glider” from the Glider EP. “Cowboy Song,” “Good for You,” “Just Like Us” (more commonly known as “Kevin Song”) and… (read more)
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My Bloody Valentine – “Tremolo” (1991)
Tremolo by My Bloody Valentine (MBV) is the precursor EP to Loveless, and it shows. “To Here Knows When” is the lead track here and is well-known due to its inclusion on Loveless, though this version features a different instrumental coda from that release, so I recommend keeping both. Otherwise, the sexual and sensual tone… (read more)
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My Bloody Valentine – “Only Shallow” (1992)
Only Shallow is My Bloody Valentine‘s (MBV) sole single release from Loveless, unless you count earlier versions of some album tracks on predating EPs. Slightly baffling when considering the incredibly consistent, high quality of every song on Loveless. Perhaps it’s a magnanimous move, as no one should be discouraged from purchasing the entire album. Truly… (read more)