Cold Gawd (Shoegaze / Kalifornien) + Soft Blue Shimmer (Shoegaze / Kalifornien)

In the organizer's words:

Cold Gawd, the project of Californian multi-instrumentalist Matt Wainwright, combines shoegaze with R&B elements and focuses on love, lust and longing. Following the release of their debut "God Get Me The Fuck Out Of Here" in 2022 , the band returned in 2024 with their second album "I'll Drown On This Earth", a powerful blend of distortion, melancholy and dreamy soundscapes.

The album, recorded in Anaheim, California, combines anthemic tracks like "Portland" and "Malibu Beach House" with introspective, surreal lyrics. With influences from shoegaze classics, R&B and post-hardcore, Cold Gawd showcases a modern and eclectic interpretation of the genre.

Soft Blue Shimmer, a trio from Los Angeles, combines soaring instrumentation with emotional lyrics on their album Love Lives in the Body (2022). The band, consisting of Meredith Ramond, Charlie Crowley and Kenzo Cardenas, shows a natural progression since their formation in 2018 and earlier releases such as Nothing Happens Here (2019) and Heaven Inches Away (2020). Lyricist Charlie Crowley is particularly vulnerable on this album.