The euphoric rush of Love Comes in Waves sounds every bit like what fans might expect from Andy Bells first proper solo release. As co-leader of shoegaze legends Ride and a latter-day member of Oasis -- not to mention the post-Oasis project Beady Eye -- the Welshman has remained a steady fixture of the U.K. rock scene since the 1990s, collaborating with numerous different artists, though never striking out on his own until now. A pleasing amalgam of propulsive uptempo shoegaze, misty psych-pop, and layered acoustic songwriting, The View from Halfway Down offers an attractive compendium of Bells accumulated strengths. His 2019 emergence as the shadowy producer behind the electronic project GLOK preceded this more organic song-based release, though his affinity for tight rhythms and interesting textures cuts a through-line between both solo projects. As with opener Love Comes in Waves, tracks like Indica and Skywalker are rich in melody and rippling guitar riffs that loop across a familiar-sounding shoegaze landscape which he helped pioneer in the early 90s. Most of the albums tracks ebb and flow in gently hypnotic swells, usually ranging between four and six minutes in length without outstaying their welcome. Elements of Bells Brit-pop days with Hurricane #1 and Oasis are also present, but perhaps owing to Rides 2015 re-formation and subsequent embrace of shoegaze by a younger generation, its the dreamier side of his approach that dominates The View. Other standouts include the enchanting finger-picked Ghost Tones, the hooky low-key pop of Cherry Cola, and the ethereal Spacemen 3-esque I Was Alone. ~ Timothy Monger

Rovi