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From Post-Punk’s Ashes to Dream Pop’s Glow

Stained Glass Stories

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We explore how atmosphere replaced aggression, how reverb became emotional language, and how artists learned to sculpt mood instead of noise. From fog-covered streets to cathedral-like soundscapes, this is the story of how dream pop slowly came into focus.

0:00 Intro
1:14 Post-Punk (Late 70s-Early 80s)
4:46 Atmosphere and Gothic Rock (Early 80s)
8:55 Ethereal Era (Mid 80s)
13:19 Complete Transition
17:30 Legacy/Modern Era
21:54 Conclusion

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Nate: Instagram: stainedglassnate
Nina: Instagram: slowly.diving
Tomorrowsstaken: Instagram: tomorrowsstaken
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Song List:
The Radio Dept. - Sleeping in (2006)
Ramones - Now I Wanna Sniff Some Glue (1976)
Public Image Limited - Public Image (1978)
Television - Marquee Moon (1977)
Joy Division - Shadowplay (1979)
Gang of Four - At Home He's a Tourist (1979)
Wire - Outdoor Miner (1978)
Magazine - Shot By Both Sides (1978)
Cocteau Twins - Shallow Then Halo (1982)
The March Violets - Snake Dance (1983)
The Cure - A Forest (1980)
Siouxsie and the Banshees - Happy House (1980)
The Chameleons - Don’t Fall (1983)
The Cure - The Drowning Man (1981)
Clan of Xymox - No Words (1985)
The Chameleons - Perfume Garden (1985)
Breathless - Across the Water (1986)
Cocteau Twins - Pandora (for Cindy) (1984)
This Mortal Coil - Song To The Siren (1984)
Dead Can Dance - Mesmerism (1985)
Dif Juz - Love Insane (1985)
Lowlife - Permanent Sleep (1986)
Kitchens of Distinction - Prize (1989)
Pale Saints - Sight of You (1990)
Cocteau Twins - Carolyn’s Fingers (1988)
The Sundays - Can’t Be Sure (1990)
Galaxie 500 - Strange (1989)
A.R. Kane - Crazy Blue (1988)
The House of Love - Shine On (1988)
A Sunny Day In Glasgow - Passionate introverts (Dinosaurs) (2009)
Beach House - Space Song (2015)
The Radio Dept. - Keen on Boys (2003)
Beach House - Myth (2012)
Men I Trust - Tree Among Shrubs (2021)
Ethel Cain - American Teenager (2022)
Weyes Blood - Picture Me Better (2019)
Lycia - Frozen (1996)

20 Comments

@stainedglassstories Creator 9 months ago Pinned

If this video meant something to you, you might like the rest of what we do here. Subscribing helps keep Stained Glass Stories alive.

@vv247 9 months ago (edited)

Accurate, excellent. I was 14 in 78. I moved from Joy Division, Magazine, Bahaus and Psyschedelic Furs to Cocteau Twins and This Mortal Coil. F'n fantastic memories. Thankfully I kept all the vinyl.

@elkvision 9 months ago

This is so gorgeously written and delivered 😻 Thank you for sharing 🙏 Stained Glass Stories is an absolute treasure 💎

@tracyharms3548 9 months ago

Pointing to Script of the Bridge as a “bridge” seems exactly right. Lots of the forerunners pointed to in this video are key but this album is especially worth flagging given its relatively low profile.

@redmisery 9 months ago

11:14 anyone else crying every time they hear Song to the Siren? 😭
Great analysis of this music tree, hopefully my music will be influential enough to be in one of these video essays.
-red.

@christopherhaines1813 9 months ago

The Jesus and Mary Chain was glaringly unmentioned. Other than that, excellent.

@MrCastlemiller 9 months ago

Awesome video, exactly what I want to see. 😊 A video about my playlist. 😅 Perfectly narrated, Nate, you've really found your style now. Please keep it up, it's beautiful to listen. ❤

@M73073 8 months ago

I love the song sleeping in

@robertdobie3400 9 months ago

A syllabus of all my favorite bands growing up! Especially glad to see one of my favorite bands, The Chameleons, featured as a major influence: saw them live twice in just the last 18 months and they are still fantastic!

@lapsoirium 9 months ago

I knew I was in for a treat when I heard The Radio Dept gracing my ears. 🥰

@tracyharms3548 9 months ago

I have to voice my wish that Kate Bush had made the cut, here. Not because I see her as postpunk; I don’t. She was a pop artist who seemed to come out of nowhere, with few discernible continuities from the past. Dream Pop is rare for being successors to Bush’s etherial vocals and cinematic arrangements.

@lichtfilme 8 months ago

The Radio Dept 💚

@Evelyn_Richardson 9 months ago

love your work on this channel! thank you for preserving the history!

@zigzagwanderer3585 9 months ago

Great video...as always ! Thanks

@corkscrewfoley 9 months ago

I think Beach Boys' 'All I Want To Do' is the first dream pop 'choon. Yes, Wildflower isn't dream-pop, but that song.

@JunkBondTrader27 9 months ago

Well researched and spot on, love it keep doing the good work

@Evelyn_Richardson 9 months ago

pastel ghost mentioned!

@danielle78730 9 months ago

friggin' awesome video, sweets! seriously! i'd love to see one on the band low's evolution and their enduring influence on music…as well as mark kozelek's early to mid work…(the slo-core of mid-to-late 90s becoming the glitchy folk sounds that influenced everyone from radiohead, circa early to late 2000s, to bon iver's "for emily," sufjan stevens, electric president, joseph arthur, etc.)