Search - Daysleepers :: Hide Your Eyes Ep

Dreamy Naval-Gazing at Its Best

M. JEFFREY MCMAHON | Torrance, CA USA | 07/26/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Evoking the sounds of Slowdive, the Daysleepers have gorgeous melodic dream pop made popular by Robin Guthrie, Lush, and the aforementioned Slowdive. Shoe-gazer or naval-gazer music is a small subgenre with few bands that I like. Too much of the music sounds heavy-handed, redundant (songs that drone on for almost ten minutes), but these pieces are real songs, not just ambient sound. If you like this type of music, you might want to check out Silver Screen, Coastal, and July Skies."

Continental Breakfast; volumes 1 & 2

olofpalme63 | auf der flucht! | 03/08/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

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The Daysleepers "Hide Your Eyes" extended play is what Robin Guthrie's (Cocteau Twins) Imperial or Continental would sound like had he written some words for it. Although Jeffrey Kandefer's lyrics get lost in the bands sonic textures at times, I'm not really convinced thats a bad thing here. Even though you can't always make out what he's singing, his vocal blends quite nicely into the fray, ie; the same results that Liz Fraser accomplished with the "Twins", thus making Kandefer's vocal sound like an additional instrument. "Threnody" (an absolute tear extractor) is a clear example of this approach and confirms the influence that 80's brit-pop has on this band. The only flaw here is that you're left wanting so much more (seconds perhaps).



"The Soft Attack" ep's shimmering guitar treatments (early "Edge" or dare i say; "Just Like Heaven" from The Cure?) also reminds you of The Stone Roses' "I Wanna Be Adored" throughout...and again, thats not a bad thing. Also, not to be missed is Elizabeth Gimbrone's haunting vocal on "Lightforms (a space)", Kandefer's icy lyrical content coupled with Mario Gimbrone's cymbal induced percussives grips you like a cold sweat and compliments Elizabeth's powerful (how could your eyes not well-up?) hypnotic voice. "Mother Ocean" (Kandefer's whale song) is another highlight from this release. The Soft Attack ep also contains an unlisted bonus track. Which is quite a treat considering how painfully short (hence; extended play) this masterpiece really is.



olofpalme63"