Allwax

Allwax are playing Hole In the Wall on Sunday, October 18, with GOOD and Ram Vela & the Easy opening. It's an Austin band playing a local room, so it's a home-city show rather than a tour stop.

If you're not familiar with them, Allwax works in dream pop and shoegaze, and they describe their sound as dreamy, layered vocals with melancholy undertones over droning distorted guitars and heavy reverb. That's a fair way to put it: the vocals sit on top of a wash of guitar noise that's more about texture and atmosphere than riffs. It's the kind of music that leans into the reverb, where the melodies float through a thick layer of sound rather than cutting straight through it. The melancholy they mention comes through in the vocals, which hold a certain weight even when the guitars are washing over them.

They describe their sound as playing across the territories of dream pop, shoegaze and indie pop, and that's a good way to frame it. Dream pop brings the ethereal, layered vocals; shoegaze provides the distorted, droning guitars and the heavy reverb; and indie pop keeps the songs grounded in a recognizable structure. It's a combination that puts them in the company of bands that prioritize mood and texture over everything else.

GOOD and Ram Vela & the Easy are the supporting acts, so the night starts with them before Allwax takes the stage. The show is at Hole In the Wall, 2538 Guadalupe St, Austin, TX 78705, and it starts at 5 PM.