Mazzy Star

Mazzy Star stood out among the most cherished acts of nineties alternative rock through their ethereal fusion of enigmatic psychedelia and understated folk, always tinged with a gentle undercurrent of sorrow. Emerging after the dissolution of the similarly ethereal Opal and the paisley-inflected guitar rock of the Rain Parade, the group essentially revolved around guitarist David Roback and vocalist Hope Sandoval. Their signature track, the 1993 single "Fade into You," thrust the pair into widespread recognition, with Sandoval’s languid delivery and Roback’s textured guitar work evoking a quiet sorrow that would shape countless subsequent dream-pop acts. Following a period of intermittent breaks that began after 1997, the duo issued their fourth studio album, Seasons of Your Day, in 2013—seventeen years after the previous release.

Roback had already established roots in the paisley underground, first appearing with the jangly Rain Parade before exploring darker textures alongside Opal. He discovered Sandoval upon receiving a recording she had made with the folk-leaning duo Going Home; the album Roback later produced for that project never saw release. Sandoval subsequently took over vocal duties from Kendra Smith for Opal’s concluding live dates. Roback and Sandoval spent the final phase of Opal in an indistinct haze, crafting material intended for a follow-up record while performing intermittently across 1988 and 1989. In 1990 they adopted the Mazzy Star moniker and committed those songs to tape as their debut, She Hangs Brightly, issued on Rough Trade—the same imprint that had handled Opal’s lone release.

After Rough Trade’s American division collapsed, Capitol Records acquired the group, keeping She Hangs Brightly available and releasing the follow-up, So Tonight That I Might See, in 1993. That record refined the droning, narcotic blues first explored with Opal while incorporating subdued pop sensibilities through Sandoval’s airy vocals. Roughly a year after its arrival the album climbed into the Top 40, buoyed in 1994 by the breakout single "Fade into You." Although it remained Mazzy Star’s sole chart entry, the track secured their status within independent music circles.

Their third effort, 1996’s Among My Swan, shifted toward a predominantly acoustic palette in contrast to the saturated guitar tones of the earlier releases. It also marked the end of the Capitol association, after which the band members pursued separate endeavors. Roback contributed to Beth Orton’s Central Reservation, while Sandoval appeared on the Jesus and Mary Chain’s 1998 album Munki and later formed Hope Sandoval & the Warm Inventions alongside My Bloody Valentine drummer Colm O'Ciosoig. Brief reunions followed: a short European run in 2000 and a joint performance during Bert Jansch’s sixtieth-birthday events in London in 2003.

Renewed attention arrived in the late 2000s when "Into Dust" featured in a Virgin Media advertisement and subsequently in trailers for the video game Gears of War 3, prompting a re-entry on the U.K. singles chart. Shortly thereafter the pair confirmed they were developing fresh material for a fourth album; their first new release in fifteen years arrived in 2011 as the double-A-sided single "Common Burn/Lay Myself Down," followed by North American and European touring in 2012. Seasons of Your Day appeared the next year. Mazzy Star resurfaced in 2018 with the Still EP, highlighted by the track "Quiet, the Winter Harbour." David Roback passed away on February 25, 2020, at the age of 61.