Dreamswell might Spoil your mood with the heavy “doomgaze” of its first LP

Heavy rock group Dreamswell made their debut in 2017 with the single “Illusionist.” Two EPs and another single later, the Philly four-piece have just released their first full album, called Spoiled.

If you’re familiar with Dreamswell, yes, the album maintains the deeply haunting sound we’ve heard from the band before. If you’re unfamiliar, the band’s self-proclaimed genre is “doomgaze,” and for good reason. Spoiled is a dark, seven-song-long drone with quiet whispers and loud guitar shreds. The LP turns the volume up but the tempo down, like the mostly instrumental “Stranger” or the electric crescendo of “Temporary.”

Dreamswell offers their listeners a break from the cymbal crashes on “Nightmares”, but brings the energy back up on “Existence” to conclude the record with a hard, chaotic jam.

The nightmare-inducing gloom of the album is appropriately represented by the photo on its cover — two members of the group wearing gas masks standing in front of an abandoned house. Images of melting faces were used for their first EP Act I, and the gas mask theme began with Act II.

Listen to the album’s leading track “Stranger” below (but only if you’re not looking to brighten your mood). To go deeper, catch Dreamswell at Boot & Saddle on July 12th for their record release show. Ticket info can be found here.