-=- SHGZ -=- * Shoegaze * Indie * Post-Rock * Grunge * Dream Pop * Psych-Rock * Ethereal * ARTIST..: Glare ALBUM...: Sunset Funeral GENRE...: Indie STYLE...: Shoegaze, Dream Pop, Noise Pop YEAR....: 2025 (Apr 9 Japan) LABEL...: Daymare COUNTRY.: USA PLACE...: Texas FORMED..: 2015 ENCODER.: LAME 3.100 -V0 BITRATE.: 262 kbps avg QUALITY.: 44.1kHz / Joint Stereo SOURCE..: CD TRACKS..: 12 SIZE....: 80.60 MB URL..: https://www.facebook.com/glaretx https://firstrevival.substack.com/p/an-interview-with-glare https://swimintothesound.com/blog/2025/4/7/glare-sunset-funeral-album-review https://www.outofrage.net/post/review-glare-sunset-funeral https://rateyourmusic.com/release/album/glare/sunset-funeral - TRACKLIST 1 Mourning Haze 3:27 2 Kiss The Sun 3:08 3 Saudade 3:30 4 2 Soon 2 Tell 3:12 5 Chlorinehouse 4:35 6 Felt 1:22 7 Nü Burn 4:01 8 Turquoise Dream 3:20 9 Guts 3:39 10 Sungrave 4:14 11 Different Hue 3:23 12 Void In Blue (Japan Bonus Track) 4:39 Total Playtime: 42:30 Transfixing from start to finish, the South Texas shoegazers' debut is a dynamic, undulating audio portrait of the ups and downs of existence. Shoegazers Glare materialized in 2017, yet are only now releasing their first full-length. That may raise the question of whether Sunset Funeral was worth the wait-and not only is the answer an unqualified "yes," but as it turns out, the timing of the release is perfect, given the shoegaze resurgence in bands like (or inspired by) My Bloody Valentine, Slowdive, and Ride over the past few years. Similar to the output by those indie legends, Glare has crafted a record that's transfixing from start to finish. Those who listen to Sunset Funeral piecemeal do an immense disservice to this work of art, foregoing the ability to appreciate the transcendent, 38-minute endeavor. To paraphrase The Big Lebowski's Walter Sobchak, such individuals are like children wandering into the middle of a movie and will miss the frame of reference with the record. So, what's Sunset Funeral all about? The message isn't glaringly obvious, but the emotional experience is exceptional and magically personalized. The 11-song journey appears to take the form of a soulful depiction of existentialism; a dynamic, undulating audio portrait of the ups and downs of life. Reverence for the enormity of the human experience; sorrow over what one wants to grasp, but fails to before it slips away; bliss brought by the unexpected turning of events for the better; anger at how mankind continues to fuck up everything when what's right is so obvious. If that sounds heady, it should: Sure, Glare have released singles and short collections for years, but Sunset Funeral is a consummately deliberate and deliberative affair. The five musicians, who hail from South Texas' Rio Grande Valley, are in such lockstep that they could pass as quintuples. Jam sessions are easy, but crafting an album that travels to the farthest reaches of mood (especially given the number of musicians involved) is a bonafide accomplishment. Fittingly, Sunset Funeral starts with joyful radiance and optimism before beginning a turn inward with "Saudade." A sense of forlornness starts to set in on "2 Soon 2 Tell," after which "Chlorinehouse" questions whether there's something suspicious lurking behind the sunniness. The brief "Felt" finds the band realizing that, indeed, what appears aesthetically appealing can actually be insidious, and once Glare make that discovery, they lash out on the fierce "N Burn" as if they've been lied to. "Turquoise Dream" captures the band pulling back a bit, realizing they might've overreacted, and by the time "Guts" arrives, they say to hell with it and decide to dance regardless of what's real. Finally, much like a sunset, closer "Different Hue" ends Glare's debut with beauty and grace. Needless to say, it's a hell of a trip. * Glare's mood-first approach that doesn't sacrifice groove or melody has made them one of the most successful of the shoegaze revival. Heart-ripping grief and scenic beauty has always been at the band's core during their years of small sporadic releases. Now, the imagery of vivid colors, the vastness of the sky, and the cold infinity of death materialize like never before on their debut LP. Equal parts power and grace, the sound hits hard while having a blissful lull. There are strong lead guitars that soar over the mix, which is crisp and sublimely intricate. The meat of the songs set the stage for even meatier instrumental finales - the grungy angst of "N Burn", the quiet-loud tension of "Mourning Haze", the classic rock balladry of "Saudade". It's not only about the fluid guitarwork. The rhythm section is allowed to shine throughout, especially in the propulsive "Guts" and the adventurously arranged "Chlorinehouse". The ghostly vocals add to the moods while being indiscernible enough to let the potent vibes speak for themselves. More importantly, the entire band feels in step and creates a concrete sound that is larger than the sum of its parts. Glare shows us that when you put the emotion and inspiration at the center, everything else will follow. "See you in the end. Moments of passing joy play inside my head", they sing in the album's sendoff. It's that bittersweetness that Glare has perfected over the years, and makes their debut feel so real and surreal. * When you hear music like this-the wild, loose and woozy drags of guitar; the impossible beauty of it all-what kind of landscape presents itself in your mind? Vistas big enough to be forgotten in. Deserts which stretch back to the beginning of time. Infinite horizons melting into pink bokehs. It's Texas, isn't it? Formed in 2017 in Texas' Rio Grande Valley, Glare aren't so much genre traditionalists as they are painters of wide realms and intense moods. The four-piece band has already accumulated a large audience, both in the flesh with their reputation for sell-out shows, and on the internet, a place where people go to short-circuit feelings through their screens. Sunset Funeral, the band's debut CD, is a fog of dreamy grief, where feeling supersedes language. It's music, as guitarist Toni Ordaz puts it, "for people who don't know how to talk about how they feel." An album that's been years in the making, Sunset Funeral is a document of unspeakable grief, charting the process of mourning and how it travels through our subconscious and dreams. One of the great charms of Sunset Funeral, and of Glare overall, is how they approach such a large, celestial sound with humble materials. Among the shoegaze revivalists, Glare come to the canvas with a more resourceful, DIY perspective than many of their peers. Glare's music is too sublime, too huge to sound like it came from any kind of manmade instrument, tiny amp box or otherwise. On first listen, Sunset Funeral-which scans as vast as desert sand-may overwhelm the senses. But look closer, and you'll find a multiplicity of heavily crushed textures, treasures. 'Guts', with its sweetly chugging guitar line, dissolves the borders between bliss and despair. '2 Soon 2 Tell', one of the album's most gauzily romantic tracks, is both tense and transcendent. N Burn, a crunchy and lilting number, harkens back to the band's grittier hardcore roots. But even when they deign to go hard, you can hear a softening in Glare's sound compared to any of their previous releases, as well as an attempt to lean into more traditional pop song structures. The music drifts heavenward, to be sure, though it's still tethered down by steady foundations. It's beautiful. It's humid. It's delirious. It's music made by people whose feelings speak louder than their words. * GLARE have been on their come up for some time now, and it's fair to say that their debut album is well overdue. At last, it arrives. Sunset Funeral is billed as "for people who don't know how to talk about how they feel." by guitarist Toni Ordaz. Which sums it up nicely, because more often than not, there's little talking going on. Just feeling out sounds, falling into GLARE's nimbus rich shoegaze. The number one thing that jumps out during the playtime of Sunset Funeral is this element of romanticism, nothing quite feels real when you listen to GLARE. It's full blown escapism. In which, you can do anything with, these soundscapes will mold to your will when they're in between your ears. Mourning Haze sits somewhere between the realms of slipping off to sleep and jumping awake in a panic, and the fogginess of moments before you blindly flail for the snooze button. Saudade may have big triumphant riffs, which have a sort of nostalgic glow to them, launching it forward, there's a melancholy that juxtaposes that in the lyrics. It makes for a mystifying conflict of sonic and lyrical elements that epicly crash into one another. The curious chemical reaction that is fizzing throughout N Burn neither commits to being more nu-metal or shoegaze, becoming one and harmonising instead, but staying mean with the crumbly tone. If there was any worry that the record might lack heaviness, N Burn erases those worries with ease. It affords you an opportunity to venture into made up worlds, or revisit memories, their brand of shoegaze facilitates you being able to do that. So much music these days places the listener in the artists domain, where you experience track by track by their set of rules. But, with Sunset Funeral, whilst some might disagree with the idea, you're free to listen from front to back, side to side, jump in at any entrance you might find. Experience the sort of ethereal beauty that was in mind during its creation. There's a brilliant freedom in resisting a purist mindset of listening to a record in the way it's delivered to you, or looking a painting the right way up, or eating your dinner in the order it's served. Much of which shoegaze has been policed by in the past ten years, a purist mindset. Maybe this time you should eat your dessert first. At risk of being clich , Sunset Funeral is laced with a certain je ne sais quoi that feels nearly impossible to grasp. By no means do GLARE breathe new life into the genres, but they do transport you to very palpable dimensions, like Sungrave's poetic ride off into the sunset mentality. At the very least, their debut record is a gorgeous escape, at best it will ring out in your head when you fall to sleep, taking you somewhere else. * When you hear music like this-the wild, loose and woozy drags of guitar; the impossible beauty of it all-what kind of landscape presents itself in your mind? Vistas big enough to be forgotten in. Deserts which stretch back to the beginning of time. Infinite horizons melting into pink bokehs. It's Texas, isn't it? Formed in 2017 in Texas' Rio Grande Valley, Glare aren't so much genre traditionalists as they are painters of wide realms and intense moods. The four-piece band has already accumulated a large audience, both in the flesh with their reputation for sell-out shows, and on the internet, a place where people go to short-circuit feelings through their screens. Sunset Funeral, the band's debut LP, is a fog of dreamy grief, where feeling supersedes language. It's music, as guitarist Toni Ordaz puts it, "for people who don't know how to talk about how they feel." An album that's been years in the making, Sunset Funeral is a document of unspeakable grief, charting the process of mourning and how it travels through our subconscious and dreams. One of the great charms of Sunset Funeral, and of Glare overall, is how they approach such a large, celestial sound with humble materials. Among the shoegaze revivalists, Glare come to the canvas with a more resourceful, DIY perspective than many of their peers. Glare's music is too sublime, too huge to sound like it came from any kind of manmade instrument, tiny amp box or otherwise. On first listen, Sunset Funeral-which scans as vast as desert sand-may overwhelm the senses. But look closer, and you'll find a multiplicity of heavily crushed textures, treasures. 'Guts', with its sweetly chugging guitar line, dissolves the borders between bliss and despair. '2 Soon 2 Tell', one of the album's most gauzily romantic tracks, is both tense and transcendent. N Burn, a crunchy and lilting number, harkens back to the band's grittier hardcore roots. But even when they deign to go hard, you can hear a softening in Glare's sound compared to any of their previous releases, as well as an attempt to lean into more traditional pop song structures. The music drifts heavenward, to be sure, though it's still tethered down by steady foundations. It's beautiful. It's humid. It's delirious. It's music made by people whose feelings speak louder than their words. -=- SHGZ -=- -=-=-==-=-=- Shoegaze is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the late 80s. The genre is very difficult to define, and it is even more difficult to evaluate music within it. Generally, the genre is characterized by its shimmering vocals, reverberating guitars, and textural distortion that create a tranquil, opaque feeling. ---==--==---