Implodes creates a sound that is less about the notes played and more about the space they occupy as they decay. It is a thick, humid wall of sound that manages to feel both heavy and weightless, like being underwater while watching a storm on the surface. The guitars are washed in so much reverb and delay that they lose their sharp edges, becoming a singular, pulsing organism of tone.
What truly sets them apart is the 'sly sunshine' mentioned in their history. Beneath the layers of grit and gray-scale distortion, there are genuine pop sensibilities and melodic hooks that only reveal themselves after multiple listens. It is a rewarding experience for the patient listener, offering a sense of hidden beauty found within a bleak landscape.
Start with 'Black Earth' to hear their most cohesive statement. It perfectly captures that specific Chicago brand of urban isolation, blending the experimental spirit of Kranky records with a deep, shoegaze-indebted heart.
Shares shoegaze, post-rock, slowcore (subgenres); reverb heavy, layered dense, noise textured (production style)
Shares shoegaze, post-rock, slowcore (subgenres); fog, late night, winter (atmosphere)
Shares reverb heavy, layered dense, noise textured (production style); breathy, whispered, gentle (vocal style)
Shares shoegaze, post-rock, slowcore (subgenres); reverb heavy, layered dense, analog warmth (production style)
Shares reverb heavy, layered dense, noise textured (production style); shoegaze, post-rock, psychedelic rock (subgenres)
Shares shoegaze, post-rock, slowcore (subgenres); breathy, whispered, gentle (vocal style)
Shares shoegaze, post-rock, slowcore (subgenres); breathy, whispered, gentle (vocal style)
Shares post-rock, psychedelic rock, slowcore (subgenres); brooding, mysterious, melancholic (moods)
Shares breathy, whispered, gentle (vocal style); fog, late night, winter (atmosphere)
Shares reverb heavy, layered dense, noise textured (production style); brooding, mysterious, melancholic (moods)
Shares fog, slowcore, post-rock, shoegaze (signature)
Shares fog, slowcore, post-rock, shoegaze (signature)
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