‘Softer Skin’ is a hypnotically tender new single from shoegaze newcomers Joyer. In its opening moments, the single feels heavier than you might expect from a typical shoegaze track, with familiarly swirling textures being beefed up by thick layers of distortion, punchy drums and chunky, down-picked guitar chords. But they keep us on our toes, with a bold change of tempo and vibe accompanying the introduction of a tender lead vocal. Sudden rushes of heaviness are still present, however, with these melodic moments frequently being interrupted by crushes of pseudo-metal aggression. “Some of the lyrics were inspired by this exhibit I saw about antique weathervanes from farms around the country combined with a recurring stress dream I was having,” they say.“Every possible thing that could go wrong in ordinary life did; accidentally locking myself out of my apartment, trying to park my car and hitting every single car around me, things like that. I knew I really wanted to incorporate that into a song.” Joyer’s new album, Night Songs, comes out on April 26th, 2024, via Hit The North Records / Julia’s War. -Dan Peeke