Toiling away at regular overnight sessions in their cramped Kwai Hing practice room, the Hong Kong shoegaze quintet formerly known as Thud forged a fresh identity—as Lucid Express—and a self-titled debut LP many years in the making. “We wanted a new start; ever since Thud formed in 2014, for a bunch of reasons, we weren’t able to put an album out,” guitarist Sky tells Apple Music. Conceived among the dense skyscrapers, packed alleyways and relentless bustle of Hong Kong, the sound of Lucid Express feels like an escape—an exploration of a sonic and emotional landscape that’s spacious, unhurried and full of wonder. Influences of shoegaze greats such as my bloody valentine and DIIV are palpable, while one track, “Hollowers”, even boasts a contribution from Adam Honingford of The Bilinda Butchers (a name inspired by the mbv singer/guitarist). “I think it’s just because we all resonate with this kind of music, we didn’t specifically choose it,” says drummer Wai. His brother Samuel (bass) elaborates: “In the beginning, we weren’t clear what kind of music we wanted to play at all. One day, I went to Taiwan and heard albums from DIIV and mbv, as well as Taiwanese indie band The Sign Of Human along the way, and started really digging this style of music. Back in HK, I introduced it to each of the members. We were listening to more and more of it, and our own music naturally shifted that way.” Like Hong Kong itself, their music—with lyrics touching on topics from young love and heartbreak to life’s impermanence—has a global appeal. “A large part of our fanbase would be outside Hong Kong,” Kim (vocals/synths) says. “Since we’re always listening to music with English lyrics, we naturally take inspiration from it. Also, when it comes to music, it’s easier to express certain tonal subtleties in English than in Cantonese,” Samuel says. Below, members of Lucid Express choose their favourite tracks from the album. Wellwave “I like all of the songs on the album, but if I have to choose, I’ll pick ‘Wellwave’,” Andy (guitar) says. “It has some pretty distinctive samples on it, and the way all the instruments meld into each other really lets each member’s perspective shine through.” Aquarium “I like ‘Aquarium’, because it gives me this seriously blissful, other-worldly feeing, as if I’m being transported to another dimension,” Wai says. Ride the Night “I like them all!” Kim says. “But the one I love most is ‘Ride the Night’, because it’s really, really romantic! [Laughs]”