In the early-’90s golden age of local indie rock, The Veldt stood out among the likes of Superchunk and Archers of Loaf.
Not only did brothers Daniel and Danny Chavis fuse shoegaze and soul music in a scene dominated by punk and rock, but they were also Black people in a very white alt-rock world. They talked about the era and their ham-fisted treatment by record labels throughout their career in a revealing story in The Guardian upon their 2016 comeback.
Because they were hard to categorize—and, probably, because they stared straight at race rather than tactfully ignoring it; one album, in the period when they were called Apollo Heights, was titled White Music for Black People—The Veldt didn’t lodge in the canon in the same way their white peers did.
But their 2016 recordings raised their profile enough to squeak their 1994 album, Afrodisiac, onto Pitchfork‘s “50 Best Shoegaze Albums of All Time” list.
Tonight, the Chavis brothers are playing a concert on Facebook via the Virtual Listening Room, which presented a livestream by al Riggs on Tuesday. The Virtual Listening Room is a new project by Rebecca Newton and Mike Allen that seeks to help local artists produce and centralize their livestreams.
Slowly but surely, The Veldt are reclaiming their deserved place in the canon one compelling song and forthright interview at a time. Check out their classic “Soul in a Jar” and the contemporary “Everlasting Gobstopper” below, and head to Facebook at 7:00 for the show; the suggested donation is $10-$20.
Contact arts and culture editor Brian Howe at bhowe@indyweek.com.
