Out of nowhere, and in a minimum amount of time, 2025 appeared, and carried on its wings the first cult-album of the still young year. A surprise release from a band that many figured was retired, recorded in November, dropped online on Christmas day, with a proper release in spring, Raw Blue is only Whirr‘s fourth full length. In an ongoing storyline that is riddled with bizarre detours, shocking plot twists and an ever-changing line-up, it doesn’t so much mark a new chapter, as it rewrites the prior pages of the book. It’s a plot twist, nothing short of shocking!
No, Whirr had not retired after their third record, 2019’s shoegaze flagship release Feels Like You – they had just gone radio silent. This had been their modus operandi for a long time: in 2015, a small but noticeable media storm erupted around a very stupid edgelord tweet the band’s account had made. The band quickly clarified that the post (a confrontative and quite transphobic missive directed at the band G.L.O.S.S.) had been written by an associate who managed the account, and subsequently deleted it. Still, the damage would carry over for years. In a wide-reaching deep dive interview published in May 2024, guitarist Nick Bassett spoke of his deep regret surrounding the controversy and the band’s edgy social media presence as a whole.
The newfound maturity and self-reflection Bassett showed in the conversation seemed to have carried over to the band’s sound. In 2023, Whirr released a digital 7 inch in the form of the songs “Muta” and “Blue Sugar”. In terms of sonics and dynamics, the two songs marked a strong progression from the past material. As somebody who has enjoyed Whirr’s aesthetics, it’s still very noticeable that many of their EPs and LPs shared the same sonic palette. And indeed, one of the most widely shared criticisms is that their records all sound “the same”.
It turned out that “Muta”/”Blue Sugar”, was a first glimpse of what Raw Blue would sound like. Loren Rivera’s vocals, which were buried in artificial delay and mixed into the background, are now pushed to the front, while Devin Nunes’ heavy drumming, which was always centred in the mix, takes a step back. Instead of wall of sound, the guitar dynamics now resemble the complex and tender compositions of Slowdive, Cocteau Twins or Pale Saints.
A track like “Crush Tones” would have been unthinkable on a prior Whirr release: a quiet country-infused ballad, the song can be compared with the ethereal vibe of Mojave 3 or crystalline melancholia My Bloody Valentine confined to their EP releases. Rivera’s repeated “You’re so lovely…” becomes a genuine mantra of bliss. The equally beautiful “Collect Sadness” uses a delayed riff to suggest the waving unreality of dreams, as the vocal melody dances with the sensual gravitas of a Sade or George Michael track. Where previously, the band would stick to formulas others had already explored, ultimately ‘playing it safe’, Whirr finally seems to have found their very own sound.
“All Mine” is another good example of this: a lesser band would have used the central motif of duelling guitar melodies to just indulge in MBV worship, but here it is directed in strong nuance, allowing each movement to blossom besides the central motif. There’s a lot of space between the instruments, which further highlights each shift within the composition, one time prioritising the bass, another time opening up for an unexpected bridge. It’s likely their most Smashing Pumpkins reminiscent track, not too far off from some off Machina 2.
The slow waltz of “Walk Through Space” flirts with the jangle of The Stone Roses, although (characteristically for Whirr) more metallic. The push and pull here has moments of ambient music, fully unloading in a instrumental epilogue. “Worries Bloom” goes a step further, mixing verses to hushed background tapestry, only to jump back into the foreground, before climaxing in the euphoric chorus. These choices serve the songs in both occasions: while Whirr are still a shoegaze band, they approach the songs like you would a pop composition, prioritising the writing over experimentation.
That can also be felt in opener “Raw Blue”, a track that could have fit in the mid-section of Souvlaki. More than the title track, it seems a “thesis” for this new iteration of Whirr, a cross-breed of “When the Sun Hits”, “Melon Yellow” and “Souvlaki Space Station”, diving in and out of noise, vocals mixed dynamically to represent the current figuration of guitar structures. There’s an incredible tone to the song, both aquatic and cosmic – resembling the strange landscapes of Roger Dean’s alien worlds.
The centrepiece of Raw Blue hides in its finale. “Enjoy Everything” is an almost eight minute track that moves with the slow bliss of TV Girl – or even The Smiths (think “I Don’t Owe You Anything” off the debut) – and finally climaxes in an extended trumpet solo from Kelly O’Donohue. Mixing shoegaze and jazz is an actually innovative move, and it pays off in what could be a new classic of the genre. As to be expected, the instruments slowly drift out, leaving only ambient echo, single notes piercing through the haze, bleeding away like the last moments of a fading dream.
It’s possible that the secret at the heart of so much shoegaze is the genre’s quest to find elaborate dreamscapes. The surreal planets of Dean’s paintings or cosmic configurations of Chris Foss would possibly have fit the cover artwork better than the blurred out fisheye style associated with Creation Records and 4AD. Whirr fit neither style. Like their social media posts, the band used to sound a little too heavy for this imagery – indeed, their chosen meditations on “Eyes Wide Shut” seemed better suited to their sound: erotic and poetic, but also vulgar and carnal. The choice of ballet dancer Kayleigh Western as cover star embodies a growth, towards a more mature, romantic identity – one that’s not so much caught between the sheets, but explores the haziness of dreams itself. Whirr toyed with this gestalt before, on the often forgotten, and decidedly more gothic Around EP. The sole document of a brief period when Kristina Esfandiari (now the centre of King Woman) co-fronted the band, the song “Keep” works almost like a “what if?”-scenario, with much of it bleeding in and out of focus.
Raw Blue‘s two bonus tracks further heighten the dreamlike atmosphere: “Speeding” is equally as brilliant as “Enjoy Everything”. Less innovative but just as beautiful, it concentrates on a stripped down performance, once more inviting comparison to Billy Corgan’s compositions from the Machina era. “Busy” in turn seems directly lifted from an early 90s Creation release, all pretty melodies and tastefully laid back guitars, with the bass taking a central role. Whirr would have been well advised to keep those two tracks as central album moments, but given their inclusion in the physical package of the release, that seems a very unnecessary criticism.
There’s no doubt that Raw Blue is Whirr’s best record so far. And the unmitigated euphoria it has spawned in the online shoegaze community is proof of that. Within hours of its release, the spaces were packed with discussion and praise for the project – one user remixed a bass-heavy alternative version within days. It’s easy to see why: almost every single track here invites obsession, every mixing choice rewards revisitation. The lyrics are not online yet (possibly might never be released officially) – there surely will be lots of mounting interpretation and analysis. Where Whirr albums of the past could be tiresome to get through due to their dry dynamics and formalist writing, Raw Blue demands to be listened to over, and over, and over again, revealing new layers and melodies each time. But most of all, the record will be a generational experience for young Zoomers, who obsess over the hazy romanticism of TV Girl. A hidden gem and a potential modern classic.
