Whitelands

Originally inspired by a Slowdive KEXP live session, members of Whitelands combine their disparate musical backgrounds for an updated, bleary spin on shoegaze that gives voice to marginalized perspectives. Begun in the late 2010s as the solo project of U.K. musician Etienne Quartey-Papafio, Whitelands made its official full-length debut as a band with 2024's Night-Bound Eyes Are Blind to the Day. Winning fans of members of Slowdive, among others, they expanded and brightened their hazy, swirling sound on 2026's Sunlight Echoes, which featured guest vocals from Lush's Emma Anderson on "Sparklebaby."