Ethereal dreampop from Sweden? How unusual! The Scandinavian countries have become the kings and queens of luscious, fuzzy sounds ever since the UK decided in the mid 90s that shoegaze was a dirty word, and while there's been a revival here and in the US recently, it's still to the Nordic countries we look to get a dose of misty-eyed warmth. Georgian Waters have been making music together in various forms for quite some time and they note that each member comes from a different musical background, something which you can certainly feel on some aspects of new EP 'Lessons'. 'Narkotikum' for example is a hair's breadth away from becoming a pure pop song. They even mention hip-hop as an inspiration although this influence is much harder to find.
As a whole, the songs here do veer towards to more commercial side of things, so you can forget any ideas about abstract walls of noise or loud and distorted guitars. It's almost like a chart-pop band doing battle with Ulrich Schnauss, trying to get their accessible melodies out there but having him filter them through various effects before they're ready for public consumption. You'd have to say the fight probably ends in a draw, but it's an interesting combination nonetheless. Softer tracks like 'Changes In The Weather' mingle with more upbeat, indie-type songs such as 'Caroline'. 'Lessons' is a very good EP, but from our more left-field point of view it would be nice to see them push their sound a bit further from the mainstream and see if their poppy melodies and big choruses, like those found on 'Windmill', work better with a few sharper edges.
Georgian Waters' website
Stream the EP in full
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