Lore City – Kill Your Dreams LP (Already Dead / 1980 Records)

Here’s another treat for true admirers of gothy post-rock sound. You may remember Lore City from my previous writings about their full-lengths, such as Alchemical Task and Participation Mystique, and Under Way, their most recent 7″ release. As I wrote before, I was blown away by their creativity and musicianship, so I thought it would be nice to include Kill Your Dreams on our pages too. It is a second full-length release by this Portland duo and another good record that seeks your utmost attention. It carries so many good moments that you’ll, without any doubt, repeatedly return to this album when you need calm, soothing, cathartic post-rock music.

Many post-rock bands nowadays primarily focus on the progressive side of their music while pushing the ear-appealing ambiance aside. That’s not the case with Lore City. This creative duo thinks outside the box and solely relies on that pleasant, relaxing, divine ambiance that pervades your listening apparatus from all possible directions. Kill Your Dreams probably paved the road for their following recordings because the essence of their sound is right here, implemented into these eight compositions. Perhaps Lore City rely on the fundamentals of post-rock, but other elements play a significant role in shaping such a complex sound. You’ll notice some of the finest properties of goth rock, psychedelic rock, shoegaze, and ambient music lurking around in the mix, but don’t be surprised if you stumble upon experimental avant-garde genres along the way.

Lore City thoroughly combined each element to fit into their profoundly detailed version of post-rock sound. You’ll also hear how each ingredient works to the advantage of particular ambiances, segments, or sequences. It’s also surprising how none of these pleasant ambiances, drones, percussive sequences, melodies, and harmonies doesn’t spoil the listening experience. Lore City probably played with the frequencies a lot, so all these layers of sound could harmoniously work together. Still, the powerful, sincere, confident vocal performance is a centerpiece of Lore City’s music. You’ll hear a thick layer of studio reverb incorporated into all layers, so that’s probably why this material shines with the qualities of shoegaze releases. The reverb suits these compositions well, and I am sure it wouldn’t sound the same without it. Kill Your Dreams will become your go-to release anytime you need goth-infused post-rock music. The vinyl record is available directly from the band, so head to their Bandcamp page and grab this gem.