Q&A: Rising Shoegazers Glixen and Their Wall of Sound
Photo Credit: Nick Balanon
Glixen are one of North America’s up-and-coming alternative bands who create layers of sound in the shoegaze realm. They are not just any shoegaze band, throwing their name under the umbrella as a tag: they are going back to the original concepts of the genre that made shoegaze renowned.
Glixen meld proper gliding techniques with dissociative lyrics, all the while collaborating with producers that have worked on some of the most iconic records in the scene, including LA sound engineer Sonny Diperri who’s in-house credits include DIIV, My Bloody Valentine, and Trent Reznor.
Shortly after releasing their Jack Endino-produced single, "foreversoon.", the group made their SXSW debut. We caught their mind-melting set at the Third Man Records and CREEM Magazine showcase and met with vocalist Aislinn Ritchie and guitarist Esteban Santana to hear more about their love of shoegaze legends like loveliecrushings and their debut EP they have on the way via AWAL, making them a one-to-watch artist for 2024.
REVERIE: Hi Glixen! How would you describe your sound? Do you identify with any other genres - or just shoegaze?
Esteban: We’re a blend of shoegaze
Aislinn: Alternative rock, no wave maybe. But yeah, shoegaze.
REVERIE: I heard that a new EP is on the way - what can we look forward to?
Aislinn: We really wanted to be heavier, moodier, just a little bit darker. Darker tones.
Esteban: The goal with our first EP is we wanted to make a very pop oriented release and put all our ideas together.
Aislinn: Yeah it was very in-your-face, loud, and bright.
Esteban: This upcoming EP we are leaning into darker sounds and we’re a bit more bleak.
REVERIE: And you’re releasing it via AWAL, which is a label I love. I saw Reyna Tropical yesterday at an unofficial She Shreds Magazine showcase and she said on stage that she used to be anti-establishment and hated that part of the music industry, but she didn’t realize how much it would change her life for the better after signing with a label. She considers them family. What is your relationship with AWAL and has it changed your feelings of the music industry?
Aislinn: AWAL is amazing. They value independent artists. They care about the artists a lot more. I think it really just depends on how you get yourself into labels and distribution. I think I can see why some people would be against it, but it just depends on the situation and feelings. Sometimes people get fucked over, but that same label could be a good fit for another artist. It’s a game, it’s business. That’s the reality of music. It sucks.
REVERIE: Well, whatever you’re doing - it’s working! I think the music speaks for itself as well because it’s so well-done. There’s buzz fo you in Canada and we love your music. How has the journey been so far for you?
Aislinn: We started in 2020. I asked Esteban if he wanted to make music with me and we were just building the band. Kiere was already drumming and we lived together. And Sonia has been my best friend for 10 years. She started learning bass around 6 months before I asked her to join the band. So I got very lucky - we needed a bass player and it was perfect. I just had a vision and I wanted to make music my life and my career. And I’ve made that very well known to Esteban and the band that this is going to be something serious.
REVERIE: And then where did the name ‘Glixen’ come into play?
Aislinn: Glixen is a loveliescrushing song.
Esteban: We really love that band. Scott Cortez is one of the OG’s and he’s an amazing person and artist.
Aislinn: It was crazy to play Slide Away festival with him and Astrobrite because they were one of the reasons I love this genre of music so much.
Esteban: Yeah it was very cool seeing him as a person of colour, making music in the 90’s. It’s very inspiring.
Aislinn: Yeah, I’m just in love with this music. It’s how we express ourselves. I want this type of music to be known.
REVERIE: Yeah and the people you have in your corner seem rad. Sonny Diperri and Jack Endino!?
Eseteban: Yeah we were very excited. We haven’t gone in with Sonny quite yet, but we are very excited to.
Aislinn: Yeah he worked on our new single, he mixed it. It’s amazing and I can’t wait to go into the studio with him. When we finish the tour we are going to go into the studio and finish writing the EP. There will be five songs and we have three right now. It’s all just skeletons and recordings until May.
REVERIE: How have the shows been here in Austin?
Aislinn: They’ve been so fun and everyone is so nice.
Esteban: It’s so fast paced though. We roll up, we plug in, we play, and we pack out.
Aislinn: Yeah it’s so fast, so it’s a bit different than how I’d like to sound. We don’t get to use our own amps even. It makes me feel bad that people have to hear something that I want to be perfect. But I have to learn that: it’s rock. We just have to play.
Esteban: And think on your feet.
Aislinn: It’s fun to think “how I can make this room sound good with this amp”. So we try our best to figure out our EQ and levels in our pedal to get it right.
REVERIE: How about your community back home in Phoenix?
Aislinn: Yeah everyone is very supportive. We started there and now we’re here. There’s not a lot of shoegaze bands out that way, but there is a lot of support. Even with my first bands.
REVERIE: Any local bands that you’re stoked on or collaborating with?
Aislinn: Twinstar! They’re so cute and they remind me of us when we were younger. It’s been great to see them grow.
Esteban: Yeah they are our friends.
REVERIE: What’s next?
Aislinn: We are going on tour with DIIV! It’s crazy because it’s in June, and I know it’s going to happen, it’s a set fact, but I can’t wrap my head around it or imagine going to the studio either. And by the time this tour rolls around we’ll have an EP. I don’t even know what the EP is called yet, but it’s going to come out. So that’s going to happen, touring in the fall for the EP with other bands. I like going on tour with other bands. But DIIV is like the head of this wave, one of the first ones that I felt really inspired by, especially when I watched their documentary about Deceiver.
Esteban: And it’s an album produced by Sonny too!