Dragonfly / Land Whales

The international shoegaze is a musical genre that emerged in the UK in the late 1980s and is defined by a powerful and abrasive sonority. It is characterized by ethereal layers of sound, usually achieved through the processing of electric guitars and effects pedals (distortion, distortion, etc.), reverb or delayed). In search of the creation of dreamy atmospheres, usually with unintelligible or simple vocal interpretations, their aim is rather to express an emotion, rather than to give a lyrical message directly. 

This genre is, from my point of view as an outside observer, a sort of punk shy. It owes its name to the musicians who play it, since, by using a large number of pedals of different types, they usually remain looking at the floor (shoe-gazing), although others say it alludes to the shyness of the interpreters. 

The very way in which this style is conceived takes into account the attitude of the performers, who largely seek to create layers of sound that hide what the voice really wants to say in its rawest and most visceral form. 

In short, the shoegaze takes on the energy and rawness of the punkand carries them through space wrapped in thousands of layers of sweetness and ethereal softness. If the shoegaze cotton candy, the punk would be the stick that holds everything and that, as much sweetness that surrounds it, has at its core that rawness and need to express the innermost in a visceral way.

What's this all about?

It can be said that in Cuba there is a indie-rock. There always was in spirit, but not in name. Many bands of all the rock edges, which is not the same as metal, already have their works available in the platforms of streamingbut one of the last subgenres to enter this list has been the shoegazewhich arrives thanks to Land Whales and their debut EP Dragon-fly (Hiss Records, 2023), recorded between 2021 and 2022 and released on January 12 of this year.

Dragon-fly is, at least declaredly, the first allusion to a work of shoegaze in Cuba, although it can be considered a National Electronics as a precursor of this genre in our country with themes such as We have reached the future!with more tinges of electronic music, specifically IDM (Intelligent Dance Music), than rock. Both IDM and shoegaze converge in their quest to create enveloping atmospheres from the repetition of motifs and melodies through the use of superimposed sound processing. 

Without being exactly the same thing, there are precursors of the noise rockas the Trio Mataflores, which played it in a banana groveor Cristian Alejandro who, following his father's spirit, ingenuously experimented with distortion at high levels complemented by a suffering voice, similar to the way it is used in the shoegazein songs such as Lostthe main theme of the telenovela Dust in the wind. 

What is Land Whales?

Land Whales is a band from Havana, four are its members (now) and their style varies, but in this work it is the shoegaze their main letter of introduction. Its head is Yaismar Schellekens, better known as Martin or Rogelio in the local scene. geeks, punkers and undergrounds of indie Havana, electronic music and the hyper-reparto. When I say indieI mean this in the strict and original sense of the word, do not read Arctic Monkeys, nor Tame Impala. Land Whales is music made and recorded from a room, distributed by the Chilean independent label Hiss Records founded by Claudio Manriquez (Sonic horse mackerel), leader of the Chilean group of shoegaze Adelaide, one of the Land Whales reference bands. The release of Dragon-fly through this label is due to the tireless persistence of Martin, who even before he came of age had achieved the dream of any emerging musician: that a band he admires and respects appreciates his work enough to release it under their label. 

They say that, just a few days before the scheduled release date of the EP on streamingMartin sent his work first to Jurel Sónico and then to Anke Steinhofel (Adelaide's bassist) and received positive words about the work. Within a month, Jurel contacted him directly and offered to release his debut through Hiss Records. Without hesitation, Martin, who had already received refusals or no response from more than 50 labels, cancelled the planned release under a generic distributor in order to do it through the label of one of his favorite bands.

What does Dragonfly sound like?

It is an EP of five tracks with a total duration of fifteen minutes, where each and every track includes heavy distortion, a lot of ambient and vocals barely distinguishable from the background. 

I don't see youFrom the very first moment, the aesthetics that will set the tone for the EP is declared. A wall of sound is created by using the superposition of drums, guitars and bass in the first bars, overflowing with intensity and explosiveness. A few moments later, just before some space is freed up for Martin's vocals to enter. Then some guitar details are added to the mix and then the intensity of the beginning is resumed while the vocal performance expresses agony and frustration. 

Supersonic CowIt is an interlude made from sound experimentation with various electronic elements and the use of loopsguided mainly by Martin's voice. Quoting a good friend: ''it's the closest thing to the sound of the album. OK Computer (Radiohead) that has been made in Cuba''. It is one of the most interesting and experimental pieces on the EP. The lyrics talk about the aerodynamics of a cow and it is my favorite track on the phonogram.

HielThis is a more traditional rock song, where distortion is the protagonist, present from beginning to end. Here you can hear Martín singing, and his voice is treated with the same spatiality of previous songs, but in this one it occupies a central place. The lyrics fulfill the function of transmitting through images supported by the expressivity of his interpretation and vocals of background he makes himself.

WindowsLightens a little the intensity of the previous track with more spatial arrangements and some angelic backing vocals by Ki Dei, in a track that sounds a little more melodic and less heartbreaking than the previous one, but not lacking in intensity.

Where you hide (end)This is the shortest of all the works (1:57), and it begins as the EP does: with a wall of distortion that hits violently from the moment the song is played. In this track the voice is practically buried in the mix, the distortion occupies almost all the space as if it were an internal discussion where the negatively charged voice is winning. The piece leaves me with a feeling of anxiety and no resolution. It is also the closing track of the EP and the continuation of the cover a As A G of Rosaliawhich was launched by the group a little over a year ago.

The future is today

I really like that from such a young head comes a breath of fresh air to Cuban rock, and that finally someone in our island has dared to explore this genre, incorporating us to the list of countries in the continent with bands of this style. I like the fact that new sides of rock are being tried in Cuba, and that in a direct or indirect way they defend that rock is not only metal. I am also excited to know that, for their next work, the band plans to take another direction. And above all, it surprises me how much Martín is capable of, with such a young age and so much motivation per square centimeter that he brings.

The last year has been one of experimentation and sonorous search for several groups, a period in which several releases have taken place that make me believe that there is a new wave of rock created on the island, interesting for Cubans and for the world. Can you imagine, finally, exporting rock made in Cuba?

Dragon-fly is not for everyone, especially if you are not familiar with rock. If you don't like it or are not interested in distortion, you've been warned. However, if you are curious and daring, I recommend you give it a listen, you may be surprised by what's cooking in the backyard.

Credits:

Martin Schellekens: Guitar-Voice

Christopher Lázaro Maceiro - Drums

Carlos Daniel Moya - Bass

Mixing/Master/Production - Land Whales with the exception of Hiel where the work was done by Bosito

Written and performed by Land Whales 

Portada - Carlos Quiroga (@codito.western)