London, England

London-based alternative rock quartet Gengahr was formed by friends studying at the Stoke Newington School in Hackney. Comprising bassist Hugh Schulte, drummer Danny Ward, and guitarists Felix Bushe and John Victor, the group was initially called RES, but switched to Gengahr when the bandmembers discovered another group already had the same name. In 2014, Gengahr recorded a demo that circulated widely, and the band quickly caught the ears of fans, promoters, and radio programmers. Their debut album, A Dream Outside, surfaced in 2015 via Transgressive Records and gathered rave reviews nearly across the board for its dark take on dreamy shoegaze and updated approach to British-bred indie rock. The band promoted the record on a nationwide and European tour before getting to work on their sophomore effort. The record -- titled Where Wilderness Grows -- arrived in late 2017. ~ Fred Thomas