Shoegaze is a subgenre of alternative rock in which vocals are submerged under layers of guitars, serving more to fill the dense and atmospheric instrumental background—replete with distortions, reverbs, and delays—than to take center stage in the melody. This combination results in a dreamlike and immersive sound.
The term was coined derogatorily by critics from British magazines such as NME and Melody Maker, due to the static behavior of the musicians on stage, who played staring fixedly at their feet. Hence the combination of "shoe" and "gaze" (to contemplate/stare). Pejoratively, the bands were called "shoe gazers."
Overcoming the harshness of the English press at the time, shoegaze became one of the most innovative and influential movements in rock history, echoing to this day. Although it was consolidated by bands like My Bloody Valentine, Slowdive, and Ride from the late 1980s onwards, the elements of the genre had already germinated years earlier in the work of groups such as Spacemen 3, Cocteau Twins, Sonic Youth, and The Jesus and Mary Chain.
