Slow Crush L-R: Jelle Harde Ronsmans (Guitar / Vocals), Isa Holliday (vocals, bass), Frederik Meeuwis (Drums), Nic Placklé (Guitar) | Photo By Stefaan Temmerman
Slow Crush’s “While You Dream Vividly” is a hauntingly ethereal journey through the layers of longing and surrender. “We wanted to capture the sensation of being tethered to someone yet drifting weightlessly, lost in the surreal beauty of the moment,” the band reveal. With its slow, hypnotic rhythm and melancholic tones, the song pulls listeners into a dreamscape where time fades and only connection remains. Frontwoman Isa Holliday’s gorgeous “true blue” lyrics echo like a timeless promise, leaving you floating, falling, and forever yearning.
On Thirst, Slow Crush’s dynamic textures, propulsive rhythms and gauzy riffs glow bright as ever, but this time with more grit. The past few years off the road have given the four-piece space to breathe and create since the release of their two critically acclaimed albums, Aurora (2018) and Hush (2021), which have sold over several tens of thousands physical copies, cementing them on the forefront of rock / shoegaze. When the time came to head into the studio, vocalist / bassist Isa Holliday, drummer Frederik Meeuwis, guitarists Jelle Ronsmans and Nic Placlé decamped to The Ranch in Southampton, U.K., to work with producer Lewis Johns with no expectations in mind, aside from a metamorphosis.
Thirst’s ten tracks are a thematic cascade of noise that echoes the end and bursts into new life. The riffs are heavier, the vocals are dreamier and more emotional than ever. Isa broke new ground in her vulnerability when while in the recording booth. There were several songs she couldn’t record without dissolving into tears – her deepest excavation of feelings yet.
Thirst’s overarching theme is what Isa describes as “the romance of being with a loved one”. Although being away from someone close for long periods might strain that bond at times, the return can feel glorious, the connection sparkling new again for a while. Slow Crush set out to capture the feeling of being tethered yet feeling weightless, absorbed in the surreal beauty of the quiet moments with someone.
Isa explains, “We want people to let themselves go and feel embraced by the music, so that they can experience it in 4D. That’s what we hear a lot from people who come to see us live, or people who’ve listened to our previous albums, is that we take them to another dimension. I think that’s something that we miss in this day and age with everything that’s going on in the world, making us very aware of everything outside, but not allowing us to just be in the moment as much as you should. We want to let people take a moment for themselves and let the music take them wherever they would like to go.”
Thirst sees its release August 29 via Pure Noise Records, their first for the label. Slow Crush are set for a headlining Fall run which kicks off on the East Coast in early September and covers both coasts, the midwest and more. Tickets are on sale now. See below for a full list of dates and artwork.
Slow Crush Live Dates:
Jun 27: Resurrection fest – Viveiro, ES
Jul 05: Breakout festival – Berlin, DE
Aug 07: Brutal Assault – Okruzni, CZ
Aug 08: Void fest – Waldmunchen, DE
Sep 04: Allentown, PA – Arrow
Sep 05: Philadelphia, PA – The Foundry
Sep 06: Boston, MA – The Sinclair
Sep 07: Brooklyn, NY – Music Hall of Williamsburg
Sep 09: Montreal, QC – Bar Le Ritz
Sep 10: Toronto, ON – Velvet Underground
Sep 11: Detroit, MI – El Club
Sep 12: Chicago, IL – Reggie’s
Sep 13: Indianapolis, IN – HiFi
Sep 14: St. Louis, MO – Duck Room
Sep 16: Fort Worth, TX – Tulips
Sep 17: Austin, TX – Radio/East
Sep 19: Phoenix, AZ – Crescent Ballroom
Sep 20: Los Angeles, CA – Teragram Ballroom
Sep 21: Oakland, CA – Crybaby
Sep 23: Seattle, WA – El Corazon
Sep 24: Portland, OR – Hawthorne Theatre
Sep 26: Salt Lake City, UT – Urban Lounge
Sep 27: Denver, CO – Marquis Theatre
Sep 29: Kansas City, MO – RecordBar
Oct 01: Nashville, TN – The ’58
Oct 02: Atlanta, GA – The Masquerade
Oct 03: Durham, NC – The Fruit
Oct 04: Richmond, VA – The Broadberry
Oct 05: Washington, DC – Union Stage
