SHOEGAZING FOR THE HEAVENS: WISP AT METRO
The Metro, Chicago, IL | September 10th, 2025
Written by River Epperson | Photographed by Regan Jones
Shoegaze has had a good couple of years. Popularized in the ‘90s as a subgenre of rock distinguished by distortion, reverb, and a wall of sound, it has inspired many of the decade’s up-and-coming rock acts like Wednesday, Hotline TNT, and Soccer Mommy. Today, the genre finds itself amidst a full-on revival with Wisp, the alternative/shoegaze project of 20-year-old San Francisco rocker Natalie Lu.
It is no surprise that shoegaze functions as a breeding ground for juvenile rockers. The overwhelming sound, reverbed vocals, and the twang of distorted guitars are perfect for screaming your desires and sorrows straight into the abyss. Lu herself went viral at nineteen years old on TikTok in 2023 after laying her lyrics and vocals over producer and collaborator Grayskies’ instrumental to create the song “Your Face.” Supported by similarly young acts ALDN and Dream, Ivory, drenched in as much autotune and late 2000s emo misery as their shoegaze inspirations, the sound of desire rang through the ears of audience members at Chicago’s Metro on Wednesday, September 10.
Touring the album If Not Winter, Lu marries the sound of existential dread with songwriting rooted in the celestial plane, communicating her desires as something bigger than herself. This creates an irony of sorts, in a genre sometimes mocked for its extensive use of pedal modifiers and “shoe gazing,” Lu’s creative energy remains aimed toward the sky. Featuring songs like “Guide Light” and “Mesmerized,” If Not Winter is an attempt to journey through the complex emotions of early adult life, rather than wallow in the misery and angst of adolescence.
Though industry seems ready to make Wisp the face of the shoegaze revival, Lu seems reluctant to take up the banner, likening herself to dream-pop acts like the Cocteau Twins and Beach House rather than shoegaze legends like Slowdive or My Bloody Valentine. Listeners who are nostalgic for the overbearing rumble of shoegaze, the unrelenting longing of 2000s emo, or the feather-like vocals of dream pop can find something to enjoy in Wisp’s If Not Winter.
