shoegaze revival
/ˈʃuːɡeɪz rɪˈvaɪvəl/
UncommonThe renewed mainstream interest in shoegaze's wall-of-sound guitar aesthetics, driven by new artists and older fans rediscovering the genre.
Real-world examples4 examples
| # | Example | What it means | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | mbv and slowdive getting streams from 17 year olds because of the shoegaze revival is genuinely beautiful | The speaker is moved that classic artists are reaching new audiences. | x, 2023 |
| 02 | this ep is giving shoegaze revival done right. walls of guitar, buried vocals, the whole thing | The EP fully commits to the shoegaze sound rather than just borrowing surface elements. | reddit, 2024 |
| 03 | shoegaze revival is wild because the original scene was so small and now gen z acts like it was huge | The speaker is noting the gap between the original scene's niche status and its current romanticized reputation. | reddit, 2023 |
| 04 | put on a shoegaze revival playlist for studying and lost an hour | The immersive sound made time feel different while focused. | tiktok, 2024 |
Use it when
- Describing new music that has the dense, reverb-heavy shoegaze guitar sound.
- Discussing the broader trend of shoegaze getting new listeners through social media.
- Reacting to an album or artist that reminds you of classic MBV or Slowdive.
Do not use it when
- You mean dreampop or any soft, atmospheric music with no direct shoegaze lineage.
- You are talking about the original early 1990s scene itself.
Shoegaze revival vs post-punk revival
shoegaze revival
Shoegaze revival focuses on lush, effects-heavy guitar walls and atmospheric sound.
VS
post-punk-revival
Post-punk revival focuses on angular, minimal guitar lines and cold, rhythmic production.
Origin and context
Shoegaze originated in the UK circa 1988-1995 with bands like My Bloody Valentine, Slowdive, and Ride. A revival of interest in the genre began online around 2020-2022, accelerated by TikTok surfacing older tracks and new artists citing it as a direct influence.
- First seen
- 2021
- Confidence
- medium
Cite this page
Use this stable URL to reference the entry.
https://slang.fyi/shoegaze-revivalUpdated: 2026-08-29License: CC BY 4.0