This Is What Happened To 90s Rock Band Mazzy Star
Mazzy Star struck a distinctive chord when they emerged into the '90s music scene, with their moderate-tempoed, proggy soundscape of dreamy acoustics, led by the downy, vulnerable vocals of '90s crush icon Hope Sandoval. They practically defined an entire genre of lounging, languid etherealism that can be heard in current acts like Lana Del Rey, Beach House, Grimes, Dum Dum Girls, and many more. 1994's "Fade into You" became the backing track of an entire generation of swooning hearts and teenage palpitations, and was featured as recently as 2016 in A24's stupendous film American Honey, as described in a Refinery 29 interview with Sandoval.
After gaining fame and notoriety, though, Mazzy Star practically disappeared. From 1996's Among my Swan until their reunion tour in 2013, when they released Seasons of Your Day, Mazzy Star went unheard. Since then, they performed a live show in Sydney in 2018, and dripped out some scattered singles on Spotify, but have continued to stay out of the public eye. The band — comprised of Sandoval and composer/guitarist David Robeck — was always notoriously shy about performing for audiences, and much more focused internally on the songwriting process, as described in Rolling Stone. They consider their music to be private, first, and not something that automatically belongs to the public, which may in fact account for much of the band's window-into-the-soul appeal, particularly Sandoval's performances.
But what exactly has Mazzy Star been up to since the '90s?
What will we do now, now that you leave me here?
Apparently, Mazzy Star never stopped writing music during their public hiatus, as Robleck told Rolling Stone. They very simply continued to compose on their own, for themselves. Over time they amassed a bunch of unreleased material, which accounted for their aforementioned 2013 reunion tour.
Sandoval, in the Refinery 29 interview, describes a highly sensitive, artistic process of crafting stories and music, saying, "We like to take our time experimenting with different ideas and creating new sounds until we feel satisfied that we've accomplished something mind-expanding," and, "I like to hang out in restaurants and cafés, eavesdrop on people's conversations and collect new stories. Then I go home and spend the evenings embellishing them." For Robleck's part, as reported by the BBC, he moved to Norway and got involved with local musicians making experimental music, as well as producing songs for singer/songwriter Beth Orton. Neither of them ever intended to write anything that exploded in popularity, like "Fade into You," as News.com.au states, and the band has more or less retained the authenticity of its indie, California roots.
Mazzy Star may have come to an actual end, however, as co-founder Robleck passed away in February 2020. Sandoval, devastated by the loss, posted a poem about her former partner: "What will we do now? Now that you leave me here. Even though the dark blue sky is still radiant and filled with the comforting sadness that holds us together."