Cryogeyser shows a resilient tenderness in vulnerable slowcore track “Stargirl”

Even in the darkness, we transform. Purveyors of shoegaze and grunge genres like Cryogeyser know this truth well, spilling out those knowing hearts accordingly in wildly cathartic alt-rock ballads. With bold guitars and wickedly honest lyrics, the songs both refresh and revive with their simultaneous truth and grittiness.

Having rubbed elbows with mainstays in the slowcore scene like Wednesday, Pond, Citizen, and Horse Jumper of Love, to name just a few, Cryogeyser is coming off a string of sold-out tours and is now back to releasing new music. Coming just after the surreal pop euphoria of some of their latest singles “Sorry” and “Blue Light”, the trio is back again with the reverb-laden single “Stargirl”, a slowcore sister of those previous tracks.

Luminous in its feelings of longing and regret, the slow burn features strums of gritty electric guitars serving as a backdrop for Shawn Marom’s subdued vocals. Here Marom recounts the isolating feelings that grief invites inside of unsuspecting bodies. They wonder, how can we find our way back home when our bodies no longer feel like our own? The alt-rock track is relatable in lyrics like these, words presented both introspectively and with rightful frustration. It’s a dichotomy that’s both raw and therapeutic. All driven by a sonic fortress of resilient drums, bass, and guitar, “Stargirl” is another addictive single from this band.

With a video directed by American filmmaker Lance Bangs, the song coincides with the announcement of Cryogeyers’s upcoming self-titled album, which is bound to be one of their most freeing projects yet. “Before music, I often felt like I took up too much space. This album is about transforming that shame into something shimmery and hopeful—playing like myself and no one else,” Marom said of the album.

Slated for release on February 14th, this will be the band’s sophomore record, the last of which, Glitch, came out almost six years ago.