Winter Gardens: Uncomfortable/Unlovable – EP Review

Winter Gardens: Uncomfortable/Unlovable

Out Now on austerity Records

Physical & Digital

Brighton’s Winter Gardens return with the new EP Uncomfortable/Unlovable, an atmospheric, dreamy odyssey that showcases the band’s luminous fusion of shoegaze, gothic electronica, and dreampop. Bold, dark, and exciting, the seven-track release flows between blissful ambience and explosive, guitar-led intensity. Engineered and mixed by Luke Marsden, with mastering by Andy Miles at Star Delta, the record is meticulously textured, allowing every element – from shimmering synths to snarling guitars – space to breathe and bloom.

Opening with the pulsing arpeggiated synth bass and reverb-soaked piano of The Honeymooners, the track quickly introduces a glowing guitar line that channels a neon, new wave-meets-shoegaze aesthetic. The band’s signature dual female vocals, haunting and harmonised, soon enter, delivering ethereal melodies as the soundscape expands. Punchy drums inject a rock-driven undercurrent, giving weight to the otherwise dreamlike atmosphere.

As the track swells, a stadium-sized energy emerges: cinematic synths surge while live bass and thunderous drums deliver a cathartic release of the tension built in its opening moments. The final crescendo unveils a shimmering lead synth riff that seamlessly and cleverly transitions into track two, Anthropocene, a move that reflects the band’s creative ambition and refined execution.

Anthropocene doubles down with an extended instrumental introduction, navigating through layered synths, swirling guitars, pounding drums, and driving bass, all drenched in reverb yet maintaining impressive clarity. Around the one-minute mark, it hits a peak of electrifying intensity, capturing the raw power of the band’s live presence within the tight framework of its polished production. Continuing with atmospheric vocals and richly textured instrumentation, the track blurs genre lines, flirting with post-punk, alternative rock, and darkwave while staying rooted in the shoegaze tradition.

Both frenetic and expressive, yet clearly and carefully constructed, the opening two tracks lay out Winter Gardens’ full musical scope: maximalist, immersive, and adventurous.
Elsewhere on the EP, Search Party delivers a glittering, hook-laden chorus, while U/U explores the band’s industrial leanings – metallic textures, spoken-word vocals, and a driving uptempo rhythm entwined within their signature hazy aesthetic.

Closing with perhaps the EP’s standout moment, Hyacinth offers some of the most evocative guitar work on the record. Drenched in chorus and reverb, the bright, biting guitar tones drift above tight percussion as airy vocals float freely across the mix. Expanding over six minutes, the track builds to a euphoric climax, a quintessentially Winter Gardens-y eruption of punchy drums, sizzling synths, and ghostly vocal harmonies.

Altogether, the EP feels like the product of a rigorous and emotionally charged creative process. Sonically, it recalls the likes of School of Seven Bells, bdrmm, Cocteau Twins, and even moments of Mogwai, a densely layered work that shares the restless experimentation and reworking of a Bon Iver album.

With drums that wouldn’t feel out of place on a rock record, guitars which could have come from a Slowdive recording session, cinematic electronics that evoke a Blade Runner-style dystopia, and vocals that float with dreamy elegance, these seven tracks are bloated yet cohesive, vibrant yet haunting. There’s a bounty of ideas, and an even greater abundance of creativity, giving the EP a deeply immersive quality.

While I do feel some of the best moments of the EP are when the band manage to find restraint and hone in on one sound, on one idea, there’s no doubting and no questioning that it’s a breathtaking body of work.

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All words by Simon Lucas-Hughes. More writing by Simon Lucas-Hughes can be found at his author’s archive.