On Yogurt & Angelic Voices

This morning, while making yogurt, I threw on an old Love Spirals Downwards album. Total random pick. I hadn’t listened to them in decades, and just like that, I was back in some strange corner of the ’90s. A twilight zone tucked between late ’80s dream pop and Twin Peaks-style jazz noir. Dreamy guitars, weightless vocals, everything wrapped in that soft, otherworldly haze. Pure 1993 bliss. Like an air bubble that never popped.
That album instantly triggered a memory: the Heavenly Voices compilations. A whole series of CDs that opened the door to a zillion like-minded bands I never would’ve found otherwise. Released by the German label Hyperium Records, they were the ultimate gateway drug to the ethereal scene. Some volumes even came with Zillo magazine, which back then was pretty much the sacred text of goth and darkwave heads.
There were five volumes in total (plus a bootleg sixth entry from Mexico!), featuring obscure artists from all over the globe. Always fronted by these spectral female voices that felt more like weather than sound. Stoa, Love Is Colder Than Death, Collection d’Arnell-Andréa, and of course, the mighty Cocteau Twins, they all lived in that space.
I think I got into it thanks to Semantic, the French distributor who carried the series. I even remember scoring a Best of Heavenly Voices disc—maybe it came with a magazine, maybe someone gave it to me. The details are foggy, like everything about those tracks. Soft, shimmering, half-remembered.
Now where the hell did I put the lactic ferments?