Stephen Pierce unearths Gold dust with his blend of cosmic americana and shoegaze to create something extraordinary.
‘Gold Dust’ is the first solo release by Stephen Pierce, a Massachusetts based musician, who has previously been in hardcore and shoegaze bands but has thrown himself fully into americana music and this release combines his love of all of these genres. As Gold Dust Pierce has embodied a warmth with the dynamics of shoegaze and created a beautiful album which should delight anyone who appreciates this combination of pastoral and gentle psychedelic music. The songs were crafted by Pierce at home as he altered his musical approach to making music delving into personal narratives and building the songs up using acoustic guitar. Pierce sought out Justin Pizzoferrato, an engineer who has worked with Dinosaur Jr and Speedy Ortiz) to mix the album creating something personal that feels cosmic.
Pierce draws upon his knowledge of roots music to craft an album which sways languidly with vocals which gently pull you in sounding at times like the best of West Coast folk music. ‘Brookside Cemetery Blues’ sounds like a long lost Spacemen 3 song creating a buzzing harmony in your ear. Gold Dust has made an album which blends all of the best bits of Fleet Foxes, Neil Young and the Stone Roses but feels like his own unique creation. ‘Gold Dust’ is the sound of an artist searching for something to get through the trying times this was made in. Wanting to be hopeful but recognizing how hard it can be as Pierce sings “If there ends up time left, & if I find my voice, I hope I find profundity & words to say That mean something,,, on ‘Oh Well‘.
Sometimes when you stumble across something that you never knew you were looking for until it is right in front of you. Occasionally you are lucky enough to find something which bends your ear, pulls you in and leaves you with a feeling that you were destined to fall in love with it. ‘Gold Dust’ is one of those records which manages to do this reflecting the feelings many of us have had (and may still be struggling with) as he sings on ‘Cosmic Joke’ that “The last few months seemed to age me ten years. It’s like a joke with no punchline or release.” Just like Pierce in his musical explorations into americana music you should never stop looking for beauty in the world and this is a good place to start your journey.
