As far as popular shoegaze (oxymoron?) goes, Ride has undeservedly slipped beneath the overbearing shadow of rock legends, My Bloody Valentine. I recently learned that the British press actually coined the term shoegaze in reaction to Ride’s live show – they would stare at the stage while playing, walls of trembling, shivering noise pulsing behind them. So, in light of what seems to be a modern, indie shoegaze resurgence (see: The Raveonettes, Mew, Blonde Redhead’s 23, basically any indie in the last decade), it is fitting to consult the vaults, and resurrect this gem.

“Dream Burn Down” opens with an impossible momentum – huge, slightly-off kilter drums charging in, backed by a distorted, heavily tremolo’d rhythm guitar. The piercing specifics of the guitar lead are a brilliant (literally, they’re all sparkle) counterpoint to the amorphous mass of sound swirling beneath, propelling Andy Bell’s melody toward a series of immaculate noise breakdowns. As the verses proceed, the anticipation builds, the increasingly frantic instrumentation mirroring Bell’s heightened frustrations: “Waiting, hoping for a sign/That what’s forbidden can be mine/I just want what I can’t have/’Til my dreams burn down every time.” And at the resolution of each verse, the vocals dissolve seamlessly into walls of static noise, a visceral release in a wave of sound.

Sometimes I get a little carried away with my writing, but I think that’s probably a reflection of how much I want people to dig what I’m writing about. There aren’t many songs that I feel my stereo can’t do justice. And this song absolutely kills. Like My Bloody Valentine’s Loveless, “Dreams Burn Down” demands to be listened to at maximum volume on your system. This is when an 11-knob a-la Spinal Tap would come in handy.

And for a love song on the lighter, less-angsty side, check out “Vapour Trail,” also below for download. Even more swirls!

Ride – Dreams Burn Down (Nowhere – 1990)

Ride – Vapour Trail (Nowhere – 1990)

[youtube]http://youtube.com/watch?v=RzLdgqSXNJs&feature=related[/youtube]

With the video below, the interview is kinda lame, but the unplugged song is real cool, done like the Take Away Films of today.

[youtube]http://youtube.com/watch?v=Em_jbm33tBo&feature=related[/youtube]

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