The Vacant Shapes formed in Vancouver in the late 1990s with Paul Aucoin on vocals and guitar, Ryan Dahle on bass, and Craig Northey on drums. Their first album, 'Static,' came out in 1999. They put out a few more records, including 'Moonsick' in 2003, 'The Last House on the Left' in 2006, and 'In the Shadow of the Sun' in 2011. The band stopped working together around 2012.
Their music had a hazy, layered quality that drew from shoegaze and dream pop. Songs like 'Swell' and 'Thick Honey' show that side of their sound, with drifting melodies and dense arrangements. They worked with producer David Fridmann at one point, and Canadian singer Sarah Harmer appeared on some tracks.
There was some talk about the cover art for 'Moonsick' being inappropriate, but that didn't change how they approached their music. They kept making atmospheric, inward-looking rock until they wrapped things up. People still listen to those records.
Keep it compact: a lyric you come back to, a live memory, or the part of the catalog you would point someone toward first.
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