Back in 2016, So Totally dropped their self-released EP A Cheap Closeup Of Heaven, a noisy throwback to the poppier side of 90s shoegaze that, at the time, was mostly peerless in Philly, save for a few other shoegaze groups like Blue Smiley. That was almost ten years ago.
Now, it’s 2024, and we might have more shoegaze bands in this city than we do human-staffed Wawas. The Anti-Flower Show girl is overtaking “Praise Dobler” in terms of street presence. In a few years time, they’ll probably convert Independence Hall into a house venue, and we’ll all be forced to trade RAT distortion pedals as currency. In the meantime, early progenitors of Philly shoegaze revival So Totally have announced their first record in five years, an announcement that comes alongside a new single, “Strange Way.”
Double Your Relaxation is So Totally’s first album released through a record label, and three singles into the rollout, it shows; the imperative-mood-title and swirly cover art suggests something less like the brittle noise-pop they used to traffic in and more like a guided meditation tape you’d find at a thrift store, which is fitting, considering that the six-minute “Strange Way” seems to lure me out of my body. It’s a very Knifeplay-inspired track, a beautifully-produced piece of slowcore with a vulnerable but powerful vocal performance. You can check it out here; Double Your Relaxation comes out May 17th.