Lush Guitars and Emotional Weight Define Sungaze’s New Album I’m No Longer Afraid of Heights

I'm No Longer Afraid of Heights is the ridiculously good new record from Ohio-based six-piece Sungaze, an outfit known for their sonic exploration of shoegazy atmospheres and midwest emo. Serving as their fourth studio album, the band calls it their most "cohesive and emotionally direct record" to date - and after putting it through its paces multiple times, I can confirm they’re not overselling it.

Another Life gets things underway carefully and deliberately before plunging the listener into a sea of lush, hazy guitars and the ethereal vocals of Ivory Snow. Intense and gripping, it's the perfect start.

Feel Better Tomorrow then steps up to the plate and provides yet more dreamy, chewy, atmospheric drama that's just impossible not to sink into, before giving way to Shadows, a tune that's really getting under my skin more and more with each listen.

Rice Crispies, a track nearing 140,000 Spotify plays, beautifully encapsulates the very essence of Sungaze’s sound, while its successor, Be a Better Man, simply extends the album’s immersive grip.

Simultaneously personal and outward-looking, I'm No Longer Afraid of Heights is a record that, in the outfit's words, "traces the cost of staying, the fear of leaving, and the moments that finally force change." It's a truly stellar LP,  and I can't wait to dive into Sungaze's back catalogue!

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