By Jack Randall

Mirror in Your Eyes

Soundpool
Mirrors in Your Eyes
Killer Pimp

New York’s Soundpool release their third shoegazer album, Mirrors in Your Eyes, on the Killer Pimp label. The gorgeous vocals, dance beats, and wall-of-sound guitar riffs solidify Soundpool’s place at the top of the genre. Lovers of My Bloody Valentine’s Loveless will appreciate the familiar sound of effects-laden tremolo, and new fans may find the album’s accessibility more to their liking.

“Mirrors in Your Eyes” opens up Soundpool’s latest album of the same name with dream-like vocals, a subtle dance beat, and cleanly distorted guitar. “But It’s So” emphasizes their mastery of the shoegazer dance style, dropping the guitar and putting the beat in the spotlight. A virtual whirlwind of guitar on “Kite of Love” shimmers before giving way to the weightier synth beat on “Makes No Sense.”

“I’m So Tired” is a standout track, proving that Soundpool need not rely on a synthetic drumbeat to call their songs dance music. A genuine funk lazily settles over the track before the last third of the album fades out with their trademark atmospheric haze.

Reminiscent of early 90’s My Bloody Valentine and Slowdive, Soundpool generate an instant feeling of nostalgia. The guitar or lyrics do not approach the mastery of My Bloody Valentine’s Kevin Shields, and the band as a whole are not as original as Slowdive, yet that hardly matters here. The adroit use of sound on Mirrors in Your Eyes proves that Soundpool can borrow from the past while remaining unique and fresh. In the modern shoegazer genre, that is originality.

Released on April 27, 2010

Track Listing

1. Mirror in Your Eyes
2. But It’s So
3. Kite of Love
4. Makes No Sense
5. Sparkle in the Dark
6. I’m So Tired
7. That Sunny Day
8. Shelter
9. Listen