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Apr 04, 2023 Web Exclusive By Dom Gourlay

When it comes to genre-defining anthologies and all-encompassing compilations, no one does it better than Cherry Red. So, it shouldn’t surprise anyone their latest compendium, entitled Cherry Stars Collide: Dream Pop, Shoegaze & Ethereal Rock 1986-1995, is an essential purchase for anyone interested in the aforementioned genres.

Comprised of 65 tracks spread across four CDs then housed in a deluxe ornately designed box alongside a 30-page booklet including a foreword by musician and author Frank Deserto, Cherry Stars Collide collects the movers and shakers of a scene that emerged in the second half of the 1980s before gaining momentum (not to mention immense popularity) as the decade grew to a close and the ‘90s began.

Following on from 2016’s excellent Still In A Dream: A Story Of Shoegaze compilation, Cherry Stars Collide acts as a treasure trove of sorts. Not only by focusing on many of the acts that became household names via the “indie” scene as it was known at the time, but also by including many obscure artists that perhaps didn’t get the recognition they deserved first time round, while also containing songs by acts that wouldn’t have been associated with the genres back then. Artists whose influence has ensured their works have been revisited and re-evaluated in the context of a sound that isn’t just about loud, reverb heavy guitars, but also ambient music and the more leftfield club music that could be heard in chill out rooms up and down the land.

As a result, Talk Talk’s “Eden” and the late Julee Cruise’s UK Top 10 hit “Falling” can be heard alongside choice cuts from the likes of Slowdive (the rarely played “In Mind” off 1993’s 5 EP), Cocteau Twins (1990’s “Iceblink Luck”), and The Telescopes (“Celeste” which came out on Creation Records in 1991). There’s a plethora of gems across all four CDs such as “One Thing Leads To Another,” which represents The Darling Buds’ foray into My Bloody Valentine (sadly not among the 65 artists included here) territory and pre-Slowdive outfit Eternal, whose only 45 “Sleep” on Sarah Records is arguably one of the finest singles from that era.

Elsewhere, Delaware outfit Smashing Orange make a case for being the one of the most underrated bands of the early ‘90s, while Czech Republic experimentalists The Ecstasy of St Theresa and Pennsylvania’s The Ocean Blue also stand out immeasurably among some of their more feted peers.

Overall, Cherry Stars Collide is an impressive collection that acts as a gateway to discovering a host of bands and artists that previously would have gone recognized, and that alone makes this boxset an indispensable artifact. (www.cherryred.co.uk)

Author rating: 9/10