Toronto Shoegazers Rituals Debut Hazy Post-Punk Single “Illusions”

Toronto shoegaze outfit Rituals first stirred to life in 2009, a quiet experiment in Adam Seward’s small, dim room, where lo-fi post-punk and shoegaze simmered in shadows. As Seward spun these somber sounds, he drew in kindred spirits, cutting their teeth on dimly-lit stages, bleeding raw, restless energy into two releases: a self-titled EP in 2010 and then Mesmerized in 2012.

But in 2014, life took Adam into the world of filmmaking, where music became a private affair, hidden yet simmering in quiet. A decade passed, and in late 2022, Adam sifted through these quiet creations, pulling select tracks from the dark recesses. By 2023, Rituals found its rebirth with a fresh cast—Phil Wilson, Chris Riel, and Alistair Blundale—breathing new life into old sounds. The music emerged matured, tempered by time, ready once again to meet the night and whatever restless souls wait within it.

Illusions drifts in, a slow, sinuous groove, its drums low and steady, pulling like a whispered secret, while vocals slip through like smoke over the hum of ringing guitars. There’s a gothic pulse here, yet it sways with a psychedelic ease, conjuring the hazy feel of early ’90s trip-hop but softened, as if filtered through a serene mist. One might sense the velvety touch of The Veldt, the rawness of Black Tambourine, the shimmer of Lilys, with faint echoes of Jeff Buckley’s poetic soul, all merging into a reverie that lingers, lulling, before it fades.

Listen to Illusions below, and order the single here.

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