{{Short description|American musician and producer}} {{for|the song by Queen|A Day at the Races (album)}} {{Use mdy dates|date=April 2025}}
{{Infobox musical artist | name = Drowse | image = Drowse Live.jpg | image_size = | caption = Drowse performing live in 2014 | origin = [[Portland, Oregon|Portland]], [[Oregon]], United States | genre = [[Experimental music|Experimental]], [[slowcore]], [[shoegaze]], [[indie rock]] [[Folk music|folk]], [[Drone music|drone]], [[Ambient music|ambient]], [[Electronic music|electronic]], [[Lo-fi music|lo-fi]], [[noise pop]], [[post-punk]], [[black metal]] | years_active = 2013 - Present | label = [[The Flenser]], [[The Native Sound]], Apneic Void, Television Records, Glowing Window Recordings, Whited Sepulchre Records | website = https://www.kylebates.net/ | current_members = Kyle Bates }}
'''Drowse''' is the musical project of American musician and producer Kyle Bates. Based in [[Portland, Oregon|Portland]], [[Oregon]], Bates founded the project in 2013 and released the debut album, ''Soon Asleep'', in 2015.
Bates collaborates with other musicians during his [[home recording]]s and live shows and creates interrelated [[audiovisual]] and [[Installation art|installation]] artwork and writings under his own name.<ref>{{Cite web|title=About|url=https://www.kylebates.net/about|access-date=2021-09-08|website=Kyle Bates|language=en-US}}</ref>
== History == Before forming Drowse, Bates played in local bands and recorded music on his laptop.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.idioteq.com/feeling-sickness-interview-drowse/|title=The feeling of sickness – an interview with DROWSE|website=www.idioteq.com|date=14 August 2015|access-date=2016-10-27}}</ref> In 2011 Bates experienced a dissociative mental breakdown that would inform the first few Drowse releases.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.portlandmercury.com/portland/the-narcotic-story/Content?oid=15771024|title=The Narcotic Story|last=Prado|first=Ryan J.|website=Portland Mercury|access-date=2016-10-27}}</ref> In 2013 he released an EP, ''Songs to Sleep On'' through Television Records and began performing live with help from various Portland musicians.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news|url=http://www.tometotheweathermachine.com/reviews/2014/08/tape-haul-august-2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141106185906/http://www.tometotheweathermachine.com/reviews/2014/08/tape-haul-august-2014|url-status=usurped|archive-date=November 6, 2014|title=Tape Haul August 2014|newspaper=Tome to the Weather Machine|access-date=2016-10-27}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://theblogthatcelebratesitself.blogspot.com/2015/07/soon-asleep-with-drowse-interview.html|title=The Blog That Celebrates Itself: Soon Asleep with Drowse - An Interview|last=Tbtci|date=2016-10-29|website=The Blog That Celebrates Itself|access-date=2016-10-27}}</ref>
Drowse released its debut album ''Soon Asleep'' through Apneic Void Sounds in 2015.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://noiseandcolorpdx.com/2015/06/08/album-debut-stream-drowses-soon-asleep/|title=Album Debut: Stream Drowse's 'Soon Asleep'|last=Leipzig|first=Travis|date=2015-06-09|website=Noise & Color PDX|access-date=2016-10-27}}</ref> Following the release of ''Soon Asleep'', Drowse recorded music that was contributed to [[Kristina Esfandiari|Miserable's]] 2016 album, ''Uncontrollable''.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://musicandriots.com/unknown-pleasures-we-caught-up-with-kristina-esfandiari-of-miserable/|title=Unknown Pleasures: We Caught Up With Kristina Esfandiari Of Miserable|date=2016-08-15|newspaper=MUSIC&RIOTS Magazine|language=en-US|access-date=2016-10-27}}</ref>
In 2016 Drowse released an EP titled ''Memory Bed'' through [[New York City|New York]] based label [[The Native Sound]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.tinymixtapes.com/chocolate-grinder/premiere-drowse-memory|title=Premiere: Drowse - "Memory"|newspaper=Tiny Mix Tapes|access-date=2016-10-27}}</ref>
Drowse signed to [[The Flenser]] to release sophomore album ''Cold Air'' in 2018.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.tinymixtapes.com/news/drowse-premieres-new-track-quickening-upcoming-lp-cold-air|title=Drowse premieres new track, "Quickening," off upcoming LP, Cold Air|work=Tiny Mix Tapes|access-date=2018-01-19|language=en}}</ref> Directly after the release Bates became an artist in residence in Skagaströnd, Iceland, resulting in new work including ''Fog Storm pts. 1-4'', released as a split with [[Planning for Burial|Planning For Burial]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.treblezine.com/premiere-drowse-fog-storm-parts-1-4/|title=Premiere: Drowse deliver an intense audiovisual hallucination with "Fog Storm Parts 1-4"|website=www.treblezine.com|date=25 July 2018|language=en-US|access-date=2018-08-07}}</ref>
''Light Mirror'', Drowse's second album for [[The Flenser]], was released in 2019–it features material recorded in Iceland and at home.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://nowflensing.com/products/drowse-light-mirror-lp|title=Drowse|website=The Flenser|language=en|access-date=2019-04-03}}</ref> Later that year Drowse released the mini-LP, ''Second Self'', in collaboration with [[Lane Shi Otayonii]] (Elizabeth Colour Wheel, Otay:onii) as an exclusive work for [[The Flenser]]'s label subscription series.<ref>{{Cite web|date=August 20, 2019|first=Andrew|last=Sacher|title=Drowse & Elizabeth Colour Wheel singer share collab, playing NYC together|url=https://www.brooklynvegan.com/drowse-elizabeth-colour-wheel-singer-share-collab-playing-nyc-together/|access-date=2021-09-07|website=BrooklynVegan|language=en}}</ref> Drowse's final release of 2019 was a split with Amulets put out by Whited Sepulchre Records, it featured sounds recorded at the same time as material for ''Light Mirror''.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Three splits from Whited Sepulchre Records|url=http://www.tabsout.com/?p=23495|access-date=2021-09-07|website=Tabs Out Cassette Podcast| date=12 February 2020 |language=en-US}}</ref>
In 2020 Drowse contributed the [[Acousmatic music|acousmatic]] piece "Screen (Hyperreal)" to the multimedia collection ''Medicine for a Nightmare: Part One.''<ref>{{Cite web|title=Part One (Book & Audio Companion)|url=https://www.medicineforanightmare.com/products/689170-part-one-book-audio-companion|access-date=2021-09-07|website=Medicine for a Nightmare|language=en}}</ref> Bates then composed and recorded a new audiovisual work, ''Failing Memory Theatre (Prologue)'', which features repurposed sounds sourced from throughout the Drowse's discography as well as versions of forthcoming material for an upcoming, as-yet-untitled, full length–''Failing Memory Theatre (Prologue)'' was created for and premiered at [[Roadburn Festival|Roadburn]] Redux in 2021.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Drowse – Roadburn Festival|url=https://roadburn.com/band/drowse-2/|access-date=2021-09-07|language=en-US}}</ref> In July 2021 the project released ''Room Impression'' as part of Glowing Window Recordings' ''Cold Fronts'', a cohesive album length collection of works by Drowse, [[Planning for Burial]], Jonathan Tuite ([[The Flenser]]), and Bryan Manning ([[Bosse-de-Nage]]).<ref>{{Cite web|date=July 29, 2021|title=28 New Songs Out Today|url=https://www.brooklynvegan.com/28-new-songs-out-today-32/|access-date=2021-09-07|website=BrooklynVegan|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Burial|first=Planning For|title=Cold Fronts - PFB/Bryan Manning/Drowse/Jonathan Tuite - C46 cassette [GWR17]|url=https://planningforburial.bigcartel.com/product/kyle-jonathan-bryan-thom-tape-gwr17|access-date=2021-09-07|website=Planning For Burial|language=en}}</ref>
''Wane into It'', the project's third proper full length for [[The Flenser]], was self-recorded in Oakland, Portland, and LA from 2019 to 2022. It was released on November 11, 2022.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Interview: Drowse on Their Dreamy and Reflective Record – |url=https://newnoisemagazine.com/interviews/interview-drowse-on-their-dreamy-and-reflective-record/ |access-date=2022-12-26 |website=New Noise Magazine |language=en-US}}</ref>
In 2025 ''Ash Souvenir'', a collaborative LP between Drowse and Pacific Northwest based Black Metal duo [[Ragana (band)|Ragana]], was released by [[The Flenser]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Strauss |first=Matthew |date=2025-09-08 |title=Ragana and Drowse Announce New Album, Share Song |url=https://pitchfork.com/news/ragana-and-drowse-announce-new-album-share-song-listen/ |access-date=2025-11-15 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US}}</ref>
Drowse has shared the stage with a wide range of musical acts, including [[Planning for Burial]] and [[Kristina Esfandiari|King Woman]].<ref name=":3">{{Cite web|url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/drowse-melt-stream/|title="Melt" into Drowse's Hypnotic Exploration of Suicide and Medication - Noisey|website=Noisey|date=26 May 2015 |language=en-us|access-date=2016-10-27}}</ref>
== Musical style == Pitchfork summed up the project's sound as "blending slowcore, ambient, and folk with lo-fi musings on memory and entropy, [part of] a grand tradition of Pacific Northwestern gloom."<ref>{{Cite web |title=Drowse: Wane Into It |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/drowse-wane-into-it/ |access-date=2022-12-27 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US}}</ref> Drowse derives influence from multiple genres and has been also been labeled "drone-pop",<ref name=":0" /> "shoegaze/drone",<ref name=":4">{{Cite news|url=http://www.spin.com/2016/06/drowse-break-stream-premieres/|title=Drowse Composes His Own Mental 'Break' On New Single {{!}} SPIN|date=2016-06-22|newspaper=Spin|access-date=2016-10-27}}</ref> and "dream pop."<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.soundsbetterwithreverb.com/dreampop/drowse-memory/|title=Drowse - 'Memory' {{!}} Sounds Better With Reverb|website=www.soundsbetterwithreverb.com|access-date=2016-10-27}}</ref> [[Vice Media|Vice]] described the project's sound as "the aural equivalent of blood rushing back to a sleeping limb"<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |date=4 August 2016 |title=Premiere: Drowse's 'Memory Bed' EP Is a Beautiful Study of Detachment - Noisey |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/drowse-memory-bed-ep-premiere/ |access-date=2016-10-27 |website=Noisey |language=en-us}}</ref> and likened it to a "post-[[black metal]] take on" English [[shoegazing]] band [[Slowdive]] and [[Texas]] [[post-rock]] band [[Explosions in the Sky]].<ref name=":3" /> [[Spin (magazine)|Spin]] writer Matt Malone noted that "Drowse prioritizes music over lyrics, using vocals not to tell a story as much as add an instrumental layer to the music's soothing fog."<ref name=":4" /> [[The A.V. Club|A.V. Club]] critic Brian Shultz characterized the project's sound as "breathy, entrancing, and certainly a little bit eerie."<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.avclub.com/article/heres-whats-coming-record-stores-and-streaming-ser-240064|title=Here's what's coming to record stores and streaming services in August|date=2016-08-03|access-date=2016-10-27}}</ref> Cris Lankenau, writing for [[Willamette Week]], compared Drowse to other Pacific Northwest musical acts [[Mount Eerie]] and [[Grouper (musician)|Grouper]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.wweek.com/music/2016/08/02/drowse-commits-his-life-to-tape-the-pain-recovery-and-everything-in-between/|title=Drowse Commits His Life to Tape—the Pain, Recovery and Everything in Between|newspaper=Willamette Week|access-date=2016-10-27}}</ref> Lars Gotrich from [[NPR Music|NPR]] reinforced the comparison, saying "Drowse [...] sounds like an intimate [[Mount Eerie]] home recording overdubbed with a worn-out cassette of [[The Cure]]'s ''Disintegration''."<ref name=":5">{{Cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/event/music/585695198/drowses-klonopin-soundtracks-a-heavy-dose|title=Drowse's 'Klonopin' Soundtracks A Heavy Dose|work=NPR.org|access-date=2018-02-17|language=en}}</ref>
== Discography ==
=== Studio albums === * ''Soon Asleep'' (2015; Apneic Void Sounds) * ''Cold Air'' (2018; [[The Flenser]]) *''Light Mirror'' (2019; The Flenser) *''Wane into It'' (2022; The Flenser) *''Ash Souvenir by'' [[Ragana (band)|''Ragana'']] ''& Drowse'' (2025; The Flenser)
=== Mini-LPs, EPs, split releases, compilations, commissions === *''Songs to Sleep On'' EP (2013; Television Records) * ''Memory Bed'' EP (2016; [[The Native Sound]]) *''Fog Storm pts. 1-4'' Split w/ [[Planning for Burial]] (2018; Glowing Window Recordings) *''Second Self'' Mini-LP (2019; [[The Flenser]]) *''Drowse / Amulets'' Split w/ Amulets (2019; Whited Sepulchre Records) *"Screen (Hyperreal)" [[Acousmatic music|Acousmatic]] Piece (2020; commissioned for ''Medicine for a Nightmare: Part One'') *''Failing Memory Theatre (Prologue)'' Audiovisual Work (2021; commissioned for [[Roadburn Festival|Roadburn Redux]]) *''Cold Fronts'' LP/Collection w/ [[Planning for Burial]], Bryan Manning ([[Bosse-de-Nage]]), Jonathan Tuite (The Flenser) (2021; Glowing Window Recordings) *''Send the Pain Below'' (2021; covers compilation released by The Flenser) *''Your Voice is Not Enough'' (2024; covers compilation released by The Flenser)
=== Other releases === * ''Naive Sleep'' (2014; self-released) * ''Covered'' (2015; self-released)
=== As Kyle Bates ===
* ''A Matinee by Lula Asplund and Kyle Bates'' (2023; Whited Sepulchre Records)
=== Videos === * "Melt" (2015; dir. Ayers)<ref name=":1">{{Cite news |title=Drowse 'Melt' (video) |url=http://exclaim.ca/music/article/drowse-melt_video |access-date=2016-10-27}}</ref> * "Break" (2016; dir. Bates, Stoner)<ref name=":4" /> * "Memory" (2016; dir. Bates, Stoner)<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://clrvynt.com/drowse-memory/|title=Lose Yourself in Drowse's 'Memory'|website=CLRVYNT|date=20 October 2016 |access-date=2016-10-27}}</ref> * "Klonopin" (2018; dir. Bates, Stoner)<ref name=":5" /> *"Bipolar 1" (2019; dir. Bates)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.thefourohfive.com/music/article/track-of-the-day-drowse-s-isolation-fractures-into-grayscale-beauty-on-new-song-and-video-bipolar-1-405-premiere-155|title=Track Of The Day: Drowse's isolation fractures into grayscale shoegaze beauty on new song and video 'Bipolar 1' [405 Premiere]|website=The 405|language=en|access-date=2019-05-14}}</ref> *"Failing Memory Theatre (Prologue)" (2021; dir. Bates)<ref>{{Cite web|title=Drowse – Roadburn Festival|url=https://roadburn.com/band/drowse-2/|access-date=2021-09-08|language=en-US}}</ref> *"Untrue in Headphones" (2022; dir. Bates)<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-09-13 |title=Drowse Announce New Album 'Wane Into It', Share New Song "Untrue In Headphones": Listen |url=https://www.stereogum.com/2199319/drowse-untrue-in-headphones-feat-midwife/music/ |access-date=2022-11-08 |website=Stereogum |language=en}}</ref> *"Ash Souvenir [Full Album Stream] Video Art" (2025; dir. Bates)<ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5sH2s9adI8&list=RDx5sH2s9adI8 |title=Ragana & Drowse – Ash Souvenir [Full Album Stream] |date=2025-11-13 |last=The Flenser |access-date=2025-11-15 |via=YouTube}}</ref>
== References == <references />
== External links == * [https://www.kylebates.net/ Official website] * [https://www.facebook.com/drowseportland Drowse] on [[Facebook]] * [https://kylebates.bandcamp.com/ Drowse] on [[Bandcamp]] *[https://www.instagram.com/drowseportland/ Drowse] on [[Instagram]] *[https://twitter.com/drowseportland Drowse] on [[Twitter]]
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Drowse}} [[Category:Musical groups from Portland, Oregon]] [[Category:American shoegaze musical groups]] [[Category:Musical groups established in 2013]] [[Category:American dream pop musical groups]] [[Category:American ambient music groups]] [[Category:One-man bands]] [[Category:Slowcore groups]] [[Category:Rock music groups from Oregon]] [[Category:2013 establishments in Oregon]]