A musical genre, essentially synonymous with shoegazer and dream pop.
Since the genre is usually characterized by hazy, floating melodies and a saturation with guitar effects, the result is a spacey sensation not unlike a beautiful dream or a drug experience. For this reason, the name assumedly comes from the combination of the words ether (name for the heavens, or above the atmosphere; also a type of drug) and bliss (the state you enter when the music starts playing, if all goes well).
Since the genre is usually characterized by hazy, floating melodies and a saturation with guitar effects, the result is a spacey sensation not unlike a beautiful dream or a drug experience. For this reason, the name assumedly comes from the combination of the words ether (name for the heavens, or above the atmosphere; also a type of drug) and bliss (the state you enter when the music starts playing, if all goes well).
by Jonathan H. December 1, 2004