The Capsules have made a return with a spookily plastic new visual experience to their single "Machines," which not only reintroduces the Texas duo to longtime listeners but is also a reimagining of their creativity.
With this release, The Capsules Julie Shields and Jason Shields return to the atmosphere they helped create to dream-pop and electronic-rock, while beginning a new evolution in sound that is firmly rooted in the character of analog, electric, emotional charge, and depth of themes.
Having emerged out of Texas' ever-changing alternative scene, the Capsules have always been known for their solid sonic textures, cinematic moods, and entrancing vocal work. Machines make it clear this era is to be different. After long being muted on new music releases, the duo presents a presence that feels intimate, self-aware, and deeply symbolic. "Machines" is not a nostalgia play; in fact, it is a reconnection, a kind of reboot, and a renewal.
The song and video look at what it means to be human - more specifically, how analog gear helped them to shape and perform their humanity as a band. Even by the last frame of the video, they are talking about their reverence for pedals, processors, amplifiers, and old instruments, all of which form the emotional spine of the video. They were never just machines for Julie and Jason; they were part of the partnership, archives of memory, vessels of experimentation, and voices in the creative dialogue. As time passed, what started as a simple pedal or amp became nearly human.
This sentiment is echoed in a moment they sing about in the middle of the video, when Julie sings: “The silence breaks / the circuits pulse / reverberate.” It is a line that appears to operate as both self-reflection and resurrection. With silence and loss behind them, circuits and souls are brought back to life. The Capsules artfully blur the lines between man, machine, and music. Are they talking about their devices, their music, or themselves? Either way, does it matter? The video lets all interpretations exist.
Machines is a darker, richer evolution from their dream-pop roots and has the Capsules leaning further into shoegaze energy, darkwave shadows, and immersive analog tones. The Capsules still ground their work in that familiar synth foundation, yet the mix here feels more raw and tactile, straying from fantasy to reality, and diving into the influences of overdriven amps, buzzing cables, manual cranked pedals, and altogether ignoring imperfections. It connects nostalgia and the modern in one body of work; a work full of warmth and grit.
The video pairs well to amplify that analog heartbeat as the band appears like flickering outlines, cracking like static, moving like a live electrical diagram. The handwritten words that rise above them feel even fragile at first, shaky like a signal coming in and out of focus. As the letters grow steadier and clearer, a visual rhythm sets up. The imagery makes a neural network of creativity momentarily broken, then buzzing before it ultimately grows clearer.
What draws the listener into Machines is sincerity. There is no chasing trends or returning for a bunch of noise; this is a return to craft, to authenticity, and to the spark that gear, sound, and creation breathe into the human spirit. The Capsules are not back, they are revived, recharged, and re-tuned to release a listening experience both personal and timeless.
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