Slowdive is a dream pop/shoegaze band that formed in 1989 in Reading, Engla… Read Full Bio ↴Slowdive is a dream pop/shoegaze band that formed in 1989 in Reading, England, United Kingdom. Signed to Creation Records in 1990 and initially championed by the British music press, the band scored a UK top forty entry with their debut album Just For a Day.

The band consists of Rachel Goswell (vocals/guitar), Neil Halstead (vocals/guitar), Nick Chaplin (bass), Christian Savill (guitar), and Simon Scott (drums, 1990-1994, 2014-present); additionally, Ian McCutcheon replaced Scott from 1994-1995. Goswell and Halstead had known each other since early childhood in Reading, Berkshire.

Initial demos were released as the Slowdive EP in late 1990; the band's sound was influenced by the Cocteau Twins and Creation labelmates My Bloody Valentine, featuring heavy use of guitar effects and muted vocals. Reviews in Melody Maker and the NME were enthusiastic, and two further well-regarded EPs followed in 1991 (Morningrise & Holding Our Breath). Their debut LP Just for a Day was written and recorded in six weeks, and was generally felt to be a disappointment at the time. At the same time, the UK music press had started to pick up on the American grunge scene, and the more introspective sounds of Slowdive, labelmates Ride, Chapterhouse and other "shoegazing" bands had fallen from critical favour. American label SBK pushed back the release of Just for a Day after a disastrous viral marketing campaign (involving vandalism of a public statue). In early 1992, the band toured the USA with Ride, and then returned to the UK to record a second album.

The band's second album, Souvlaki, would later become generally the band's most popular and well-received record. The album broke new ground for the band: two songs featured contributions from Brian Eno; "Souvlaki Space Station" was influenced by dub reggae; tracks such as "Dagger" and "Here She Comes" would become indications of the country-rock direction Halstead and Goswell would take a few years later; and several songs such as "When the Sun Hits" and "Alison" continued the style of the first album, but with improved songwriting. Initial copies of the UK version came with Blue Day, a compilation of most of the early EP tracks originally released as a separate album in Japan and some European countries. Later in the year, the band also released the 5 EP, containing four songs showcasing the influence of ambient techno; the lead track "In Mind" was also remixed by Bandulu and Reload (both then signed to Creation's dance label).

As with the first album, SBK delayed Souvlaki's release, and the band found themselves touring the USA in the summer of 1993 as Catherine Wheel's supporting act with no product to promote. The US version of Souvlaki was eventually released in early 1994, and included "Some Velvet Morning" (originally recorded for the Volume 7 compilation) and three of the tracks from the 5 EP. When Slowdive were finally able to tour America to support the album, SBK withdrew their funding halfway through; two further tours in 1994 were entirely funded by the band.

Simon Scott left amidst creative differences in 1994; he was replaced on drums by Ian McCutcheon. The band had almost become a Halstead solo project by the recording of their final album, 1995's Pygmalion. A critically misunderstood and widely-misinterpreted "ambient" record, Pygmalion took the dreamy guitar sound and warm-yet-solemn tone of earlier Slowdive to a newer, more minimalist extreme, similar to earlier dream pop bands such as A R Kane, or bands such as Labradford.

Slowdive was dropped by Creation in 1995 a week after the release of Pygmalion; Halstead had been warned before the recording of the album that the relationship with the label would end unless he delivered a "pop album". A legend arose that the band was dropped due to the Gallagher brothers refusing to sign Oasis to Creation if Slowdive and their counterparts remained on the label's roster, although Oasis had in fact released their debut single almost a year before Pygmalion.

After being dropped from Creation, Slowdive eventually went on hiatus later in 1995. Neil Halstead, Rachel Goswell and Ian McCutcheon recorded an album of country-influenced songs, and were signed to label 4AD, changing the band name to Mojave 3. Halstead and Goswell have also both released solo albums for 4AD.

Christian Savill went on to form Monster Movie, a dream pop group that continued where Slowdive left off. They have released three albums thus far, Last Night Something Happened, To The Moon, Transistor, and—most recently—All Lost.

Simon Scott formed Televise in 2004, a group which developed the lengthy noise swells and experimental song structures that helped define shoegaze while (also) including a more electronic brand of indie rock.

Eventually, all of Slowdive's albums were reissued in late 2005. Just For a Day included a bonus disc with all tracks from the first three EPs, and the three songs recorded for a John Peel session on 26 March 1991. Souvlaki included a bonus disc with all the remaining EP tracks, as well as "Some Velvet Morning" (originally recorded for a compilation). Pygmalion—which had become a collector's item in the years since its release due to it never being issued in the USA—contained no extra material, however.

On January 28, 2014, following a 12-day countdown and the appearance of an official website and Twitter account for the band, Slowdive announced their reunion with the Just for a Day/Souvlaki-era line-up including Simon Scott as drummer. The band was confirmed the same day to be playing the 2014 Primavera Sound Festival in Barcelona, Spain. 2014 saw the band go on a 5 month, 40 date long tour. In January 2017, Slowdive released their first new single in 22 years on the Dead Oceans label. Another single and a self titled fourth album followed in May 2017, preceded by another single, "Sugar for the Pill".

In September 2020, Slowdive announced they had begun work on their fifth studio album. In April 2023, the band confirmed on a podcast that they had finished their new album. The lead single "Kisses" was released on 20 June 2023, and later that month the band played the Glastonbury Festival for the first time. The album's second single "Skin in the Game" was released on 18 July 2023, followed by "The Slab" and "Alife" in August, and the album Everything Is Alive, was released on 1 September 2023.

02. Spanish Air
Slowdive Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Screams that seem unreal
Shouts follow the sins
There's nothing here for me now
The wind blows for as far as I can see
I long for the sun
The midland air
For all that I have
There's written in waves

I know that now
There's left to be seen
I know that I've lost him
I'm leaving here
Fastest knife a sign
Feels so far away
There's nothing here for me now
The clouds fly, so far
I'm lost there now
I long for the sun
The midland air
For all that I have
Is written in waves
And now that I [know]
Is left to be seen

And now that I've lost him
I'm leaving here

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Slowdive's Spanish Air seem to be an expression of inner turmoil and a desire for escape from a difficult situation. The song starts off with what can be interpreted as screams of intense emotion that feel almost surreal. The following lines suggest that these screams are the result of the weight of guilt and regret. The singer feels trapped and as if there is nothing left for them in their current surroundings. The imagery of the wind blowing as far as they can see serves to emphasize this point.

In the next few lines, the singer expresses a yearning for something new and better - the sun, the midland air - the kind of freedom that comes from simply being in a different place. But despite their longing, they are still weighed down by the past. The idea of all they have being "written in waves" suggests that they are still being swept along by the consequences of their actions, and they still have much to face. They know that they have lost someone important to them, but it is never quite clear who this person is or what they mean to the singer.

The song concludes with the singer making a firm decision to leave their current situation behind. They will not let the difficulties of the past continue to haunt them. The symbolism of the clouds flying far away emphasizes that the singer is leaving behind their troubles and is now free to explore new horizons. The final lines serve as a reprise of the earlier lines, underscored by a sense of purpose and determination. Overall, the song is a beautiful and haunting portrayal of emotional struggle and the yearning for freedom and new beginnings.

Line by Line Meaning

Screams that seem unreal
The screams are so intense that it seems like it's not happening in reality

Shouts follow the sins
The shouts come after the sins have been committed

There's nothing here for me now
The singer feels like there's nothing left for them in the current place or situation

The wind blows for as far as I can see
The wind is blowing so hard that it feels like it's stretching for miles and miles

I long for the sun
The artist yearns for the warmth and light of the sun

The midland air
The air in the midland region

For all that I have
Despite having everything that the singer has

There's written in waves
The message is conveyed through the waves

I know that now
The artist understands this at present moment

There's left to be seen
There are things that remain to be observed

I know that I've lost him
The singer realizes that they have lost someone important