The Veldt - "Sweeter"

The Veldt occupies a bit of a legendary space in the world of American Shoegaze adjacent rock. The North Carolina duo of identical twins play a powerful brand of Shoegaze / Dream Pop that is inherently non-ethereal. It’s rooted in a strong backbeat and compositional structure that ties it to a blistering pace while allowing the huge, swelling guitars and instantly hummable chorus to remain lodged in the listener’s brain.

A bit of history, “A soul-powered shoegaze band that was dream pop at its core yet just as able to dish out driving riffs and battering drums, the Veldt were misunderstood from the beginning. Led by identical twins who were proud to cite the likes of Echo and the Bunnymen and Public Enemy among their inspirations, the Veldt would have stood out in any U.S. scene. In no way did they resemble any of the geeky indie rock acts such as Superchunk and Archers of Loaf, who thrived in their Chapel Hill home base. Likewise, North Carolinian status was the only thing the band had in common with the earlier likes of the dB's and Let's Active. That the Veldt had one of their songs remixed by the Jesus and Mary Chain and Diamond D -- pioneers in their respective fields of noise-pop and rugged hip-hop -- explained much about their natural yet categorically evasive approach. The Veldt were formed in 1986 by Raleigh, North Carolina natives Daniel Chavis (vocals, guitars) and Danny Chavis (guitars), identical twin brothers who had been playing in different bands.”