Biography
Westkust, the Swedish group operating in shoegaze and noise pop, assembles tracks from dense guitar layers, folds in powerful twisting melodies, and crowns them with vocals steeped in yearning indie pop conventions.
Formed in Gothenburg, the project began on a casual basis in 2010 and took concrete shape the next year once vocalist Julia Bjernelind, drummer Philip Söderlind, and bassist Rikard Hjort welcomed Makthaverskan members Gustav Andersson on guitar and vocals plus Hugo Randulv handling bass and guitar.
The band shared personnel at the outset with like-minded Makthaverskan and issued their first album, Last Forever, in 2015 while that configuration remained intact.
By the arrival of their 2019 self-titled record, almost the entire roster had turned over and the sound had grown noticeably more forceful.
They joined Luxury, the label tied to Makthaverskan, and delivered their opening 12-inch EP, Junk, in 2012; the “Summer 3D” 7-inch single followed in 2013.
Last Forever, their initial full-length, surfaced that same year and reached the United States through Run for Cover.
In the period afterward the lineup continued to change, first with Hjort’s departure and then the exits of Andersson and Randulv.
The two remaining members reconstituted the group by recruiting guitarist Brian Cukrowski and bassist Pär Karlsson; Bjernelind added guitar to her role and became the lone vocalist.
The revised lineup moved away from some of the debut’s dreamy atmosphere on the follow-up album, a far more direct-sounding Westkust issued by Run for Cover in early 2019.
Formed in Gothenburg, the project began on a casual basis in 2010 and took concrete shape the next year once vocalist Julia Bjernelind, drummer Philip Söderlind, and bassist Rikard Hjort welcomed Makthaverskan members Gustav Andersson on guitar and vocals plus Hugo Randulv handling bass and guitar.
The band shared personnel at the outset with like-minded Makthaverskan and issued their first album, Last Forever, in 2015 while that configuration remained intact.
By the arrival of their 2019 self-titled record, almost the entire roster had turned over and the sound had grown noticeably more forceful.
They joined Luxury, the label tied to Makthaverskan, and delivered their opening 12-inch EP, Junk, in 2012; the “Summer 3D” 7-inch single followed in 2013.
Last Forever, their initial full-length, surfaced that same year and reached the United States through Run for Cover.
In the period afterward the lineup continued to change, first with Hjort’s departure and then the exits of Andersson and Randulv.
The two remaining members reconstituted the group by recruiting guitarist Brian Cukrowski and bassist Pär Karlsson; Bjernelind added guitar to her role and became the lone vocalist.
The revised lineup moved away from some of the debut’s dreamy atmosphere on the follow-up album, a far more direct-sounding Westkust issued by Run for Cover in early 2019.
Singles
