Dusty Blood - The Veldt
The Veldt’s Afrodisiac is one of the best albums to ever grace my ears. There is not a single weak moment here; every song has enough pop hooks to keep the listener interested, and the band’s performance is nothing short of fantastic. The occasional interlude track allows a for breath of fresh air from the intensely passionate walls of sounds, a very convincing fusion of soul and shoegazing.
And here’s the thing: while most shoegazing acts have weak singers, vocalist Daniel Chavis refuses to be buried deep into the mix because his vocals are just so powerful, heartfelt, and full of passion. He can easily outsing a lot of the best vocalists out there.
I highly recommend any music lover, and especially dream pop/shoegazing fans, to get their hands on a copy of Afrodisiac. As a bonus, a few of famous names appear here: Cocteau Twin’s Robin Guthrie provides some guitarwork and The Jesus and Mary Chain provide a noisy, industrial remix of their epic single “Soul in a Jar.”
It’s a pity that this band has been shoved aside and left in the gutter; these guys are unsung heroes of dream pop and the wall of sound. The Chavis brothers in recent years formed a new band under the name “Apollo Heights,” and they’re only getting a tiny bit better coverage due to the internet but are still largely unknown.
