BLEARY EYED + SUNNBRELLA – DUST, BRIGHTON 27.2.26
Almost forty years on from its initial lambasting, shoegaze has had an unexpected revival thanks to TikTok. Coined derisively by music executive Andy Ross and used extensively by the 1990s music press as a shorthand for disdain, critics reacted so harshly to the static stares down at snaking pedals that Slowdive disbanded for nearly twenty years. Shoegaze was treated with as much contempt then as modern critics hold for Benson Boone’s backflipping bubblegum pop now. This initial criticism seemed to be for little reason other than its introspective attempts at deafening were the polar opposite of the laddish swaggering of Britpop’s 60s revivalism.
While a future critical revision of Benson Boone seems impossible, the appeal of shoegaze’s raw emotion seems retrospectively inevitable. ‘When The Sun Hits’ by Slowdive has nearly 300 million Spotify streams and over 100k uses on TikTok. My Bloody Valentine even managed to sell out a 2025 UK arena tour, with younger audiences drawn to the raw and dreamy emotional intensity of them both. Shoegaze is built for endurance, reclaiming the once-insult into something finally well-esteemed, as resolute as its sustained chords resolved to ring in your eardrums.
Despite the genre’s inception being dominated by the UK, its current incarnation is spearheaded by American DIY scenes intent on expanding the soundscapes their UK counterparts started. Bleary Eyed operate in this sphere, along with fellow Philadelphia act and recent Daltons’ headliners They Are Gutting A Body Of Water. While the latter focuses on challenging its listener, Bleary Eyed are more accessible. Still committed to walls of noise, any attempt at being truly deafening is mollified by an ear for bedroom pop melody. While sometimes buried in Dinosaur Jr.-style fuzz, it is always melded with zig-zagging computerised samples that seem influenced by James Blake’s robot-electronica production.
Bleary Eyed arrive at Dust tonight (courtesy of Brighton based concert promotions company FORM) for their first show in Brighton after finishing their first European run with countrygaze favourites Wednesday. As tonight’s headliner, they’re joined by fellow shoegazers Sunnbrella; the London-based project of David Zbirka. With both acts offering much of the same, Dust feels poised for a cross-Atlantic showcase of post-modern takes on shoegaze: a new scrapbook take of fuzzy riffs and electronic sampling underpinned by trademark walls of sound. Philadelphia’s Bleary Eyed and London’s Sunnbrella are a promising double bill of nu-gaze, with barely 30k monthly listeners on Spotify to separate bragging rights.
In a mark of fashionably late hospitality, Sunnbrella go on first in their own backyard. The room that started with seventeen people suddenly fills, and gains a dedicated front row. They open with the hazy indecision of ‘Ivy League’ – a song that lightly introduces a brand of computer-gaze.
Throughout, their camaraderie – constant “you okay?” and fist bumps to each other – undercuts any genre coldness or attempts at cool for genuine warmth. From the twitchy, industrial digital quilting of ‘Flowstate’ to the more straightforward spiky reverb of ‘No More’, it seems impossible to pin down just one 90s scene they belong to.
While this indecision can be seen as meandering to some, it avoids simple genre pigeonholing through amalgamating each subculture available. This is prevalent in closer ‘Fever Dream’ – playfully introduced with Zbirka stating “We are Sunnbrella. With two Ns. Or you’ll find a company that makes garden furniture”, its spaciness floats through the air. This softer approach tones down the fuzziness of 90s shoegaze to assist a neighbouring Moby-esque sample instead of battering through it. It is all hazed out guitars, feeling like a tribute to the club, with Zbirka’s anhedonic delivery feeling like reluctant knowledge that the night is ending.
As Sunnbrella pack up a pyramid of equipment totalling the cost of a mortgage deposit, a man stands at the bar getting a pint before Bleary Eyed arrive on stage. Oblivious to his volume, he half-shouts “Sunnbrella. F*cking yeah.” I can’t help but agree with the sentiment. While practically unrecognisable as traditional shoegaze, they evoke the quote “how are you gonna be a revolutionary if you’re such a traditionalist.” Sunnbrella are thoroughly original, using traditionalism as a springboard and are a welcome introduction to nu-gaze. Unfortunately for Bleary Eyed, this means they have a momentous task on their hands topping their opener.
Sunnbrella:
David Zbirka – lead vocals, guitar
Claire Peng – vocals, samples
Jamal Malik – bass, synth
Benedict McDowell – drums
Sunnbrella setlist:
‘Ivy League’ (from 2023 ‘Heartworn’ album)
‘Flowstate’ (from 2025 ‘Gutter Angel’ album)
‘Have Your Say’ (from 2025 ‘Gutter Angel’ album)
‘No More’ (from 2023 ‘Heartworn’ album)
‘Kiss On Credit’ (from 2025 ‘Gutter Angel’ album)
‘Tuff’ (from 2025 ‘Gutter Angel’ album)
‘Defend Urself’ (from 2023 ‘Heartworn’ album)
‘Omnimori’ (from 2025 ‘Gutter Angel’ album)
‘Wrong’ (from 2023 ‘Heartworn’ album)
‘Fever Dream’ (from 2023 ‘Heartworn’ album)
Tonight is in disarray: due to poor timekeeping (typical artist), Sunnbrella finish their set at the time Bleary Eyed are supposed to start. Our curfew is at 10, creating a race for Bleary Eyed to get through their headline. Entirely unfazed, founder Nate Salfi walks through the crowd with his guitar. A hasty soundcheck leads to a quick group huddle, and the obligatory mentions of gratitude before starting.
Opener ‘Susan’ pairs a slowed breakbeat drum sample with glittering synths to lull us into a false sense of security. It is a floating sense of dreaminess, with only fuzzed out guitar effects from an armada of pedals disturbing a peace that still feels ear-filling. This is stripped away by follower ‘Wreck’ – its bass-led swirl of distortion gives way to squealing walls of 90s noise that refuses to vacate your ears.
Between each track, samples of digitalised feedback buy time to retune instruments, as does Salfi’s consistent statement of gratitude for the turnout of their headline outside the US. This seems to serve almost as an apology for ‘2 True’ – an earsplitting, pummelling track. The reverb feels like TV static in the ears, sustaining a riff ripped straight from J Mascis’ oeuvre.
The mood has been set for the night: attempts at tinnitus, gleefully assisted by the low ceiling of Dust’s basement. ‘Easy’ is all 90s insolence, yet feels straightforward beneath its claggy layers of retrofuturism before a barnstorming conclusion tears the whole thing down.
In another round of retuning and vamping to buy time, Cate Reynolds reveals “We thought this show was last night so we pulled up… We went to go see Wuthering Heights.” The reveal earns laughter from an audience still growing, but already won over in sound and charm.
The spacey echoes of computerised samples that feel like propelling synths introduce the least effect-ridden riff we’ve heard. 2023 cut ‘Upset’ batters through the basement space like an android fed on My Bloody Valentine, hellbent on conquering eardrums. Introduced with “we’re going to slow things down”, Follow-up ‘Pennies’ mercilessly brings the volume down low enough for us to properly hear Salfi’s vocals. In a blur of lo-fi haze, his vocals have a slightly haunting effect – they’re not quite a shout, but hold an intensity in trying to reach someone who isn’t quite hearing what you’re saying. This trifecta of 2023 tracks is concluded with the loud-quiet ‘Birds’ – perhaps a nod to their own Philadelphia Eagles.
The final act is kicked off with confusion over whether there’s 3 songs left or 4. In the midst of this, ‘Special’ comes straight in with a complete crush. Vocals and hints at spaced-out melody are suffocated under layers of grunge-infused droning haze, offering minimal reprieve from a set that seems intent on tinnitus. The theme continues with ‘Heaven Year’ – led by Cate Reynolds’ tenderised voice, its foundation-shaking computerised sludge; only shoegaze in its vast walls of noise that seek to obscure its digital samples. Wonky computer samples introduce ‘Jersey Shore’ with unsettling pulsating rhythm, allowing Nate’s vocals to appear cleaner. While it takes slightly longer to break into its noisy core, it seems slightly muted compared to tonight’s set: an oddly understated piece to end on yet still earning cheers.
Sensing they can’t leave their first UK headline on a slower note, Bleary Eyed’s members tune and debate on one last song. During this the small talk of someone at the bar overbears: apparently, they’re more friends than dating – a sign that Bleary Eyed have stolen their audience’s volume control. Eventually, 2021 cut ‘Take The Car’ is decided upon. While opening with a drench of feedback, it leans closer into fast and loud structures of straightforward punk; a bare-bones demonstration to emphasise the scale of their latest record. A moment of how far they’ve moved not just musically but now geographically: headlining a show some 3500 miles from home.
Despite seemingly being uncategorisable, nu-gaze has one clear structure based on tonight: Experimentation with a robotic sample before deciding to overpower it. It feels like a battle of traditionalism and futurism, with newer electronic elements threatening the indie sanctuary. While the noise gets the upper hand most of the time, the digitised samples are never truly buried but instead hold a semblance of melody. It is earthquakingly loud, to the extent you can’t tell if a song is quieter or your ears have just surrendered. It is shoegaze but forward thinking; it truly sounds like the evolution 1990s would have hoped for, paying respect to those who came before while Frankensteining something new out of it.
Bleary Eyed:
Hayden McGarvey – drums
Whit Lane – bass
Cate Reynolds – guitar, vocals
Nate Salfi – guitar, vocals
Bleary Eyed setlist:
‘Susan’ (from 2025 ‘Easy’ album)
‘Wreck’ (from 2023 ‘Bleary Eyed’ album)
‘2 True’ (from 2025 ‘Easy’ album)
‘Easy’ (from 2025 ‘Easy’ album)
‘Upset’ (from 2023 ‘Bleary Eyed’ album + ‘A Julias War Triple Split’ EP)
‘Pennies’ (from 2023 ‘Bleary Eyed’ album + ‘A Julias War Triple Split’ EP)
‘Birds’ (from 2023 ‘Bleary Eyed’ album + ‘A Julias War Triple Split’ EP)
‘Special’ (from 2025 ‘Easy’ album)
‘Heaven Year’ (from 2025 ‘Easy’ album)
‘Jersey Shore’ (from 2025 ‘Easy’ album)
‘Take The Car’ (from 2021 ‘Guise’ album)
