New Era Slowcore

In the 1990s, the American rock music scene experienced a renaissance. Hardcore was the short, sharp shock to the system, with its punk energy and politically-charged lyrics. Grunge spoke to a new “slacker” generation, with its distorted riffs and anti-corporate messaging. And while these sub-genres blew up fast, they weren’t the only ones that evolved from that time. More experimental and, somewhat ironically, less marketable sounds began capturing imaginations. One of those sounds was slowcore.

Taking the lilting harmonies of dream pop, acoustic elements of Americana and folk and the looping soundscapes of ambient music, slowcore utilizes downbeat melodies, oh-so-slow tempos and repetitive, minimalistic arrangements as a way to express a youthful, aching malaise. At its genesis, slowcore conveyed a sense that, despite the overt optimism of mainstream 1990s culture, there were young artists that sought to excavate the difficult, tender parts of life. 

Within slowcore, several groups emerged with different approaches. Galaxie 500 drew from folk singer-songwriters like Leonard Cohen and Nick Drake — whose confessional and often morose lyricism were inspirations — and a hypnagogic dream pop that would be teased out by later acts like Cocteau Twins. Red House Painters, led by Mark Kozelek’s searing monotone, followed in this vein, too, on albums like 1992’s ‘Down Colorful Hill.’ 

Another act, Codeine, were the early 1990s prototype for more abrasive post-rock acts like Slint and Mogwai, with their teasing of dissonance and willingness to experiment with loudness. Low, however, captured slowcore arguably at its finest. Low stripped their sound of an legible contemporary influence within indie rock music and walked into the vastness of slowcore with albums like 1995’s ‘Long Division.’ These bands influenced other contemporary acts — Songs: Ohia, Nina Nastasia, Lisa Germano and Bedhead, to name a few — but none as consequential for the recent surge in slowcore’s popularity as Duster.

Hailing from San Jose, California, Duster formed in the mid 1990s and broke up by the turn of the millennium. But when their tracks “Moon Age” and “Constellations,” from their 1998 album ‘Stratosphere,’ caught fire on social media, they found a new audience with Gen Z listeners, especially those interested in lo-fi styles like shoegaze, folk, post-rock and bedroom pop, and new acts like Clairo, Ethel Cain and Alex G. Duster reunited in the 2010s, reissued their back catalog and went onto release new albums, like 2024’s ‘In Dreams.’ With public attention already captured, this fresh material brought myriad more artists to slowcore, like salvia plath, Flooding and Gawshock. 

Dive into this collection of new tracks — featuring acts like Horse Jumper of Love, Shallowater, Teethe, Cancer House, deathcrash, Lutalo and more — and discover the contemporary sound of slowcore.

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LISTEN TO THE NEW ERA SLOWCORE PLAYLIST ON SOUNDCLOUD

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Duster, “Quiet Eyes”
Duster took a near-twenty-year hiatus after helping pioneer slowcore in the ‘90s. Bathe in this languid track from 2024’s ‘In Dreams.’

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Ruby Haunt, “Speed Bump”
This drifting track from the LA duo brings together dream pop and slowcore, and comes from their 2024 EP ‘Heaven Sent (Between Heavens B-sides).’

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Teethe, “Holy Water”
The Southern slowcore band’s track from sophomore album ‘Magic Of The Sale’ pairs Madeline Dowd’s soft-sung vocals with a backing that veers from crunchy distortion to atmospheric slide guitar.

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Horse Jumper of Love, “Wink”
Formed in 2022, HJOL are relative newcomers to the scene. This track from 2024 album ‘Disaster Trick’ features restrained lead vocals from Dimitri Giannopoulos and forlorn backing vocals from Karly Hartzman of Wednesday. 

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Sweet Boy, carpet bed, sign crushes motorist, “how long do we have?”
This emotionally charged collaboration brings together Australian slowcore projects Sweet Boy and carpet bed, alongside sign crushes motorist, one of the many creative aliases of prolific Irish musician Liam McCay.

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Lightning Bug, “Song for a…”
Drift into this ethereal track, the latest from Lightning Bug, the now-solo recording project of New York singer/actor Audrey Kang.

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Shallowater, Hayden Pedigo, “All My Love”
The self-styled “dirtgaze” trio from West Texas close their 2025 sophomore LP ‘God's Gonna Give You A Million Dollars’ with this hushed country ballad featuring Amarillo guitarist Hayden Pedigo.

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They Are Gutting a Body of Water, Horse Jumper of Love, “charter spec”
Shoegaze revival leaders TAGABOW unite with Boston's Horse Jumper of Love. Soaked in fuzz and punctuated by octave-shifted guitars, the single teases the bands’ collaborative 2026 mixtape.

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deathcrash, “NYC”
Leading the UK’s slowcore revival, the London-based quartet give voice to touring-life anxieties in this cut from their third album ‘Somersaults,’ released February 2026.

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Herr God, “Guns In America”
Stay past the opening noise to be rewarded with a disaffected, hazy but ultimately heavy cut from the Portland slowcore revival act.

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Cancer House, “Waterscene”
This haunted, spindly single appears on Cancer House’s March 2026 EP ‘The Moth.’

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Jana Horn, “Designer”
Featured on her self-titled January 2026 LP, Texas-born, New York-based songwriter Jana Horn brings a tense, slow-building energy to this track through its uneasy harmonies.

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Sooj, “In The Walls”
Sooj is a collaborative project between members of sample-collagers Dirty Art Club and influential slowcore act Duster. This track “In The Walls” appears on the album ‘Crusher,’ which dropped in April 2026.

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sover, “goodbye, old skin”
The Australian slowcore-folk four-piece’s February 2026 album ‘Something Worth Fighting For,’ continues the band’s hushed, bedroom-recorded aesthetic.

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porch kiss, “pull back”
The opening track to the May 2026 EP ‘home sweet home’ is replete with telephone-vocal tone.

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Knifeplay, “Specula (2024 Remaster)” 
A standout from Philadelphia slowcore/shoegaze act Knifeplay’s 2024 remaster of their cult 2019 debut ‘Pearlty,’ made more affecting by its spectral, layered guitar work and strings.

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Qozy, Kay Krull, “Long Time No See” 
San Francisco bedroom project Qozy opens the February 2026 EP ‘Love You Bud’ with this acoustic-focused collaboration featuring Indiana’s Kay Krull, bridging DIY indie scenes.

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Lutalo, “Call It In” 
Multi-instrumentalist Lutalo opens his 2022 debut EP ‘Once Now, Then Again’ (via DIY label Winspear) with stream-of-consciousness reflection, AMSR acoustic guitars and leftfield production.

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Clinic Stars, “She Won't Be”
Synthetic atmospheres give way to hypnotic guitar chords and breathy harmonies in this track from the Detroit duo’s 2024 album, ‘Only Hinting.’

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Dirt Buyer, “Bullshit F***”
Unlike the lo-fi iPhone recordings of Dirt Buyer’s previous album, this track from ‘Dirt Buyer III’ pivots to “guttural shoegaze.” 

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Tacoma Radar, “Loneliness Comes Without A Sound”
This gentle track from early-2000s Scottish slowcore band Tacoma Radar’s 2004 album ‘No One Waved Goodbye’ was reissued as a deluxe double LP in September 2025.

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Bedlocked, “All Over Again”
This track was originally released on a 2023 split 7-inch, with fellow Texan slowcore band Teethe, through iconic emo label Saddle Creek.

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Outlander, “Sinking”
This spiralling 8-minute track opens ‘The Valium Machine,’ the debut album from Birmingham doomgaze band Outlander. Following the critical success of their 2024 sophomore album, the debut received a full vinyl re-release in January 2025.

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you made me happy, “feel the air”
Worn-tape lo-fi and programmed drums underpin close harmonies on the July 2025 debut single from mysterious slowcore project, you made me happy.

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Midwife, “Signs”
Madeline Johnston’s slowcore-meets-drone project, Midwife, released this 2025 standalone single about searching for messages from the dead.

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Macha Loved Bedhead, MACHA, Bedhead, “Only The Bodies Survive”
Featured on the fan-favorite 2000 collaborative album, which blends slowcore with gamelan and Javanese zither, this track finally hit vinyl in March 2026 as part of a major archival reissue.

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Matt Jencik, Midwife, “Flower Dragon”
Matt Jencik (of Implodes and Don Caballero) teams with Midwife’s Madeline Johnston on the 2025 collaborative LP ‘Never Die,’ a meditation on mortality and loved ones.

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Fine Before You Came, “Grandezze nascoste”
This track comes from the 2025 album ‘C’è ancora amore’ (There Is Still Love) from long-running Italian slowcore/post-rock band Fine Before You Came.

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earth moon transit, “More Travel Music”
From Norwegian slowcore band, earth moon transit comes this folktronica-tinged track from the June 2025 album ‘Faking It, Not Making It.’

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40 Watt Sun, “Astoria”
A 2024 standout from Patrick Walker, former frontman of British doom legends Warning, delivering his signature mournful atmosphere.

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LISTEN TO THE NEW ERA SLOWCORE PLAYLIST ON SOUNDCLOUD