| Nu gaze | |
|---|---|
| Years active | 2000s |
| Location | Europe,North America |
| Influences | Shoegaze |
Nu gaze (also typeset asnu-gaze and sometimes known assecond-wave shoegaze) was an international movement ofshoegaze that took place during the 2000s. The movement was influenced by the original shoegaze movement but embraced a more diverse array of influences, particularly fromelectronic music. Often, bands in the movement were faster and included cleaner production than those in shoegaze's first-wave.
Nu gaze began around 2000, with England'sMy Vitriol, Sweden'sthe Radio Dept. and France'sM83. The 2003soundtrack for the filmLost in Translation helped accelerate the revival whenDeerhunter,Maps andAsobi Seksu began to gain attention. The movement had declined by 2013, succeeded by a separate shoegaze revival includingDIIV,Cheatahs andWild Nothing. During the 2020s, nu gaze's name was adopted for a separate genre: those merging elements of shoegaze andnu metal.
Pitchfork described nu-gaze as a diverse spectrum of bands from around the world who incorporated both analog and digital production in their shoegaze-adjacent sound and approach.[1] In nu gaze, tempos were often faster than traditional shoegaze, and vocals were mixed more prominently.[2] Often, bands showed an influence from 1990s shoegaze, blendingjangly indie with layers ofdistortion.[3]
As early as 2001,My Vitriol vocalist Som Wardner had identified his band using the name "nu-gaze".[4] By 2005, it had been used to describeAmbulance LTD,[5] and by 2006 to describethe Morning After Girls.[6] In 2007,Jude Rogers ofthe Guardian noted the name as being used interchangeably with "stargaze" and "shoetronica", crediting their popularity as due to a stigma around the name "shoegaze".[3]
In a 2009 editorial forDrowned in Sound, Cramp dismissed nu-gaze as a "bad pun", emphasizing that it was not a distinct music scene but rather a renewed interest in shoegaze.[7] By the 2010s, nu gaze was largely used synonymously with the phrase "second-wave shoegaze".[8][1]
Eli Enis, former editor ofRevolver, noted in a 2024 article that during the 2020s, the term "nu-gaze" evolved from referring to this second-wave of shoegaze, to referring to a specific fusion of shoegaze andnu metal. He noted this fusion as largely descending from the shoegaze-influenced sound ofDeftones, listing examples of this style asNarrow Head,Wisp,Loathe,Fleshwater, Trauma Ray, Trxy and Leaving Time.[8] This definition has been stated byStereogum,[9]Ultimate Guitar,[10] andEpitaph Records.[11]
An article bySplice specified that this definition is explicitly hyphanated as "nu-gaze", while the traditional definition is unhyphanated as "nu gaze".[12]
According to Claudio Lancia of the Italian magazineOndarock, the 2020s definition of nu-gaze has a subgenre calledzoomergaze, which is defined by being played bygeneration Z.[13] In 2025, a few prominent American news outlets referred to Wisp and her debut albumIf Not Winter as "nu-gaze".[14][15]
Around 2000, an international wave of bands taking influence fromshoegaze began to take shape with England'sMy Vitriol, Sweden'sthe Radio Dept. and France'sM83. Following the release of their debut EPFinelines (2001), My Vitriol experienced a sudden rise in notoriety, its single "Always: Your Way" entering the UK's top 40 charts, leading them to perform atTop Of The Pops,Glastonbury Festival andReading Festival. The following year the band went on hiatus, leading to the rise in popularity of the Radio Dept. and M83.[4]
The 2003 release ofSofia Coppola's filmLost in Translation helped accelerate the revival, due toits soundtrack being curated byMy Bloody Valentine'sKevin Shields. By 2007, the movement had led to an increased notoriety of contemporary albums by artists includingMaps,Blonde Redhead,Mahogany,Deerhunter,Asobi Seksu, andUlrich Schnauss.[3] Other notable acts in the movement includedAutolux,[16]Silversun Pickups,Amusement Parks on Fire andFilm School.[2]
Nu-gaze had declined by 2013, succeeded by a separate shoegaze revival includingDIIV,Cheatahs,Wild Nothing,Younghusband,Echo Lake,Teen andMelody's Echo Chamber.[17]
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