Golden Future in store for New York’s ‘Loops & Loops.’
NEW YORK-BASED Loops & Loops began as a side project during the height of the quarantine, mostly experimenting with lofi, although musician and producer Pete Bogolub, who writes and records the tunes has been making music for quite some time.
He’s already released several lofi/indie albums, but his newer material harkens back to indie roots of bands such as ‘Yo La Tengo,’ ‘Sebadoh’ and ‘My Bloody Valentine’ with a touch of modern notes from bands like Lord Huron.
Initially recording under the name ‘The Sems,’ Bogolub specialises in a shoegaze/dream pop style of music with more than a hint of indie and indie folk elements.
“I do tend to draw on quite a few musical influences to make music,” he said. “The first song I ever loved and played until the tape broke was Axel-F. The synth sounds are quite amazing. Some of the sounds I try to replicate come from early memories of that song. Though the synth sound from one of my latest releases, ‘Doubts.’ has been compared to leads heard from The Cars, but I was thinking of Harold Faltermeyer.
“Another large influence has been hip-hop, such as De La Soul, Jedi Mind Tricks, and Capital Steez. The DIY aesthetic combined with interesting samples and syncopated beats always drew my attention. One of my early songs, ‘Can’t Sleep,’ is an attempt to emulate those qualities. Bands such as Yo La Tengo and Sebadoh also come to mind when writing songs. The laid-back atmosphere with a trio of acoustic guitars were inspired by Yo La Tengo’s works in the song ‘County Fair,’ while the distorted guitars in the song ‘Doubts’ were a direct influence from some of Sebadoh’s works. Vocally, I have been partial to shoegaze bands like My Bloody Valentine. Pretty much every song has some elements of the vocal work from them.
“Music has continued to evolve and grow, and there are plenty of bands I listen to that are active today. ‘El Ten Eleven’ are a fantastic duo. The work they do both recorded and live is fantastic. When I first heard them, I thought it was at least four people. When I saw them live a few years ago, I was utterly blown away. Also, they happen to be really nice folks!
“Lou Barlow from Sebadoh still tours and releases records. I saw him last summer, which was awesome as it was the first show since the quarantine. Aesthetically, Cigarettes After Sex make some awesome slowdive inspired music, and recently, I have been listening to quite a bit of The Coathangers – an awesome three-piece ‘Riot grrrl’ type band with some catchy melodies and no-nonsense lyrics.”
Like so many musicians around the globe, the recent series of lockdowns has proved to be a double-edged sword. Loss of income from potential live gigs – but a new sense of camaraderie and a limitless number of opportunities to collaborate and exchange ideas with like-minded individuals online.
“If it were not for the Twitter indie scene, I’m not sure I would still release music,” added Bogolub. “When I first began releasing music again it was only on YouTube, I had never been on Twitter before but decided to look into it. I found quite a bit of support there and within a month or so, people began to ask if I had music on Spotify. Now, there is a whole debate on the evils of Spotify and the way they continually rip-off artists and I know a few people from Twitter who flat out refuse to use it.
“At the time, I was not so up to date on Spotify, I didn’t even know how to get my music there! So, I started searching around the internet and quickly found a solution: Distrokid. Once I started doing that, more people could connect/listen to my music. The more I posted, the more I found really amazing people and quite a bit of fantastic music.
“One such band has been ‘Lines of Flight.’ This fantastic duo out of Leeds were a band I made a connection with and we did a collaboration called ‘Under the Glacier’ that wound up on an independent film. Putting your music out there can be quite vulnerable, but the indie scene on Twitter has been nothing but supportive. People take time to listen to music, provide feedback, and support for each other. Oftentimes, it’s not even about the music specifically, but rather about forming a connection.”
With music released on a regular basis, Loops & Loops current offering is, ‘Doesn’t Matter.’
“That song has an upbeat feel to it which belies the underlying message of an existential crisis and a crisis in a relationship. This is actually part four of 12 for a concept album on love and loss. The artwork was done by the incredible Raeann Fetcho, a criminally under rated lofi/bedroom pop musician, and mastered by Jeff Zeigler. Each song is a slice of life from a doomed relationship. All the images from each song make one scene. I am hoping to raise enough money for a vinyl release or at least a cd with fold out art.”
And looking ahead to the New Year, lofi, indie fans have a great deal to look forward to.
“I am always recording! Besides the concept album that will be released over the course of the next eight months, I have several albums and some singles planned. One of the albums is entirely ambient, full of lush pads and sparse melodies. As someone who wrestles with insomnia, I find ambient music helpful for falling to sleep.
“Also, I have a lofi EP of songs as well. I am pretty active on Instagram and Twitter so check those out and I’m also open to collaborations and such, so feel free to get in touch!”
PRESAVE the new single, ‘Just Be You,’ here: https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/loopsandloops/just-be-you
LINKTREE:
https://linktr.ee/loopsandloops
