Shoegaze on Windy Days - The Emotional Effects of Jane Remover and Quannnic
Excitement was in the air on this windy Friday night in February as the crowd packed Subterranean to watch the performances of Quannnic and Jane Remover.
Hovering over the balcony of the venue, the energy intensified in the audience as Quannnic took stage. The 18-year-old artist from Florida played some songs from his first album kenopsia, released in 2022. Quannnic can be referred to as a “shoegaze” artist, which entails de-emphasizing vocals, echoing reverb, and distorted guitars. It involves the performers using guitar pedals and looking down at the floor, hence the name “shoegaze.”
Many songs started out slow, with a low vibration and digital clipping sounds that draw you in. When Quannnic began singing, their voice blended perfectly with the music, being an integral part of the music’s effect. Songs like "soil"had a sort of sonic texture able to exude a feeling of deep emotion that’ll give you chills. The drums were executed very well as they sliced through the intense and heavy instrumental music.
I almost found myself watching the audience more than the performer during some songs as we looked over the balcony. People were locked-in with the low emotional vibe as well as the high intensity and energy of the production. Quannnic’s music had the power to make the audience lose it in the mosh pits, creating a human cyclone.
There was a short break after Quannic finished their set, and Jane Remover came to stage once everyone was settled in again. There is a deeply emotional quality to the artists’ music that had the crowd moshing less and intently listening more. The artist made the performance feel intimate, and two girls in the front row were brought to tears as Jane Remover reached out and sang to them.
The set had a variety of different styles and experimentation with digital glitches, consistent guitar strumming, and a soft voice met with beautiful lyricism. The song "Lips" from the album Census Designated released in October 2023, had a beautiful way of pulling you in with the light vocals and simple guitar in the beginning and bringing an intense explosion towards the end with the shouting and banging drums.
There was a large number of audience members who screamed every word, and eyes could not peel away from the Chicago-based artist. There was a necklace gifted to the performer as well as a large Sonic stuffed animal consistently being held up - clearly enjoying the music as well.
Jane Remover’s music video for Census Designated is able to visibly invoke the deep emotion that the song has, and uses digital glitching, a retro filming style, closeups and editing cuts to execute it. The live performance was just as impactful, as the sound of their voice overlaying the electronic synths was able to move the crowd.
Subterranean in Chicago was buzzing that windy Friday evening, Jane Remover and Quannic will continue to impress the crowds in places like Georgia and North Carolina on their Designated Dreams Tour.