I speak with Neil Halstead from the band Slowdive. Slowdive are a legendary British shoegaze band that formed in Reading in 1989. They, along with My Bloody Valentine, are credited with pioneering the shoegaze sound: ethereal obscured vocals, swirling guitar distortion and effects, feedback, and overwhelming volume. The band's 1993 album Souvlaki has been recognized as one of the best releases of the 1990s and one of the greatest shoegaze albums of all time. The band broke up soon after the release of their third studio album Pygmalion in 1995, and reunited in 2014 to play Primavera Sound festival. In 2017 they released their first album in 22 years, Slowdive, which is perhaps the best music they’ve ever done. Their fifth and latest album, Everything Is Alive, came out on 1st September via Dead Oceans, and it is also excellent.

It was a true honour to get to talk with Neil, who is Slowdive’s primary songwriter. We got to talk about everything from his studio setup to the band’s early days, to his love of surfing. Support Slowdive by buying Everything is Alive here.