Kristina Esfandiari is Miserable. Former vocalist of Bay Area shoegazers, Whirr, Kristina writes and performs a brand of moving and evocative music that oozes with nostalgia – and the Halloween Dream EP is no different. Over the course of four tracks, Esfandiari’s powerful voice and poignant compositions swell into soundscapes both haunting and wistful.
Building on the momentum of her Run For Cover-issued 7-inch split with PA’s Grey Zine, Halloween Dream finds Kristina experimenting with muscular riffs ("Bell Jar") and sparse instrumentation ("Spinning") – new territory for the songwriter, but seemingly comfortable all the same.
All purchases include an instant digital download of the release.
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Press:
[on "Halloween Dream"] "a crashing epic that exposes the beauty in widescreen destruction."
– Spin
"... far more harrowing than anything Whirr kicked out. It starts out a bit like Deftones at their most lugubrious, all celestial moans and molasses strums, but it steadily builds into to a frightening beast of a song with tumultuous low end that will make you wonder if the earth has opened up beneath you and you’re falling into hell."
– Stereogum
"Miserable's minimal yet epic approach to music will intensify your inner psyche."
– Vice/ Noisey
"Bell Jar is quite possibly her strongest solo track to date. It sounds as depressing as the Sylvia Plath novel it shares a name with, starting out not unlike the dark folk she recorded as King Woman, but building into big metallic shoegaze and ending with the reverbed screams that helped make Deafheaven such a memorable name in heavy music this past year."
– Brooklyn Vegan
Test Pressing – 15
First Pressing:
Ultra Clear w/ Gold Haze – 300, Hand-numbered
Second Pressing:
Milky Clear w/ Orange Splatter – 200
Translucent Orage – 300