The tribute to British shoegaze sweethearts Lush found on Australian singer/guitarist Hatchie's 2018 EP Sugar & Spice caught my attention for its pinpoint accuracy and blatantness. That was nostalgia working its insidious magic in a middle-aged shoegaze fan’s mind, but if it leads more young people to explore this strain of soaring, blissful rock, everyone wins. This year's follow-up full-length by Hatchie (aka Harriette Pilbeam), Keepsake, strikes a slightly darker chord while retaining her earlier work’s swooning melodiousness and saccharine shimmer. Los Angeles’s Orchin purveys a hushed, Novocaine’d pop with subtle electronic touches on his new mauve-shaded album, Serene. by Dave Segal