Minor Victories

Band comprised of members of Slowdive, Mogwai, and Editors. Shimmering indie rock with a heady dose of synths, strings, and shoegaze. Rachel Goswell sings mostly but sometimes male vox are present too. No FCCs.

1. (3:41) *** Give up the Ghost—Drowsy vocals and guitar distortion, ponderous head-swaying rocker
2. (3:55) ** A Hundred Ropes—Bubbling synth intro, drum machine and dazzling synths/guitars, urgent
3. (6:25) **** Breaking My Light—Dense and grave with a certain airy lightness in the vocals still. Soaring synths and more spare passages with just voice and piano
4. (4:17) Scattered Ashes (Song for Richard)—Hopeful, grandiose, twee. Male and female vox, synths, driving guitars
5. (6:42) * Folk Arp—Softer acoustic ballad, airy female vox, sublime synths. Adds drums and feedback-drenched guitars eventually
6. (3:19) ** Cogs—Fast rock anthem, grinding guitars, memorable synth line, never loses momentum
7. (3:50) For You Always—Male and female vox alternate in conversation about a love story. “We once met in Los Angeles just around the time of the Columbine murders and Mojave 3 were playing on Sunset Boulevard at Tower Records.” Steady beat, synths, chime
8. (4:09) Out to Sea—Hazy female vox, strings, synths. Steadily becomes a more thunderous, opulent shoegaze
9. (7:26) ** The Thief—Spooky. Low female vox, chime and violin.
10. (6:20) *** Higher Hopes—Melancholy piano, fragile raw female vox, spare. With three minutes left it takes off—violin and drowned out vocals, swiftly building drums, syrupy shoegaze textures