The 7.5-minute lead single off his fourth album ‘Into the Burning Blue,’ Trace Mountains’ “In a Dream” is an exhilarating outpouring of raw vulnerability, spirited indie rock fervor, and provocative perspective.
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Stream: “In a Dream” – Trace Mountains
You’re in a dream, and you don’t know what the f* it means…
It was a bold move for Trace Mountains’ Dave Benton to introduce his fourth studio album with a seven-and-a-half-minute song, but big risks make big rewards –
– and there’s no quantifying the emotional, cathartic payoff for listening to “In a Dream” in full. As intimate and intense as it is warm and wondrous, the lead single off Into the Burning Blue (out September 27th via Lame-O Records) is a cathartic, hard-hitting, groovy, and gut-wrenching outpouring of raw vulnerability and provocative perspective:
late night bike ride
sweat drips down through your helmet
world burns take turns
leading on through the humid velvet
night time ride
you’re in a dream
and you don’t know what the f* it means
you’re coming clean
the open heart ain’t the way it seemed
“From the start of the record-making process, Craig Hendrix (Japanese Breakfast) and I envisioned ‘In A Dream’ as the opening track,” Benton tells Atwood Magazine. “On an album that is largely auto-biographical and very personal in nature, it felt vital to begin in a place with a bit of worldview. Especially now, in an election year in the US, I think it’s meaningful to acknowledge the state-inflicted suffering and denial of life that happens here and all over the world. There are so many kinds of Dreams, some are nightmares, some are fantasies, some are very real hopes for one’s future. With ‘In a Dream,’ I wanted to explore the universal idea of dreams – the ones that come at night and the day, what they mean, and who gets to have them.”
“When I was writing ‘In a Dream’ I was listening to so much of Bruce Springsteen’s 1987 album Tunnel of Love and I had also just watched David Lynch’s thriller Blue Velvet,” he adds. “I think those two influences really stewed together in my brain, Springsteen’s heartbreak mojo clashing with this surreal, dark and dreamlike scenery. Eventually the song came out as a confluence of the two… I was really lucky to workshop some of the lyrics and song structure with my partner who gave me some great ideas and feedback that really helped shape the back half of the song.”
US progress, what’s your name boy
i want you to see this
short fuse true blue
blanketed in the utter madness
drifting on
you’re in a dream
you feel the world busting at its seams
you’re coming clean
but you don’t know what the f* it means
With ‘In a Dream,’ I wanted to explore the universal idea of dreams – the ones that come at night and the day, what they mean, and who gets to have them.
Not so much an eruption as it is a slow burn, “In a Dream” sets the tone for Trace Mountains’ upcoming album, with radiant, sun-kissed melodies (recalling some of The Killers’ softer work) and propulsive beats accompanying Benton’s expressive, impassioned voice as he opens his heart and soul to the world. “In a Dream” is on the one hand an unfiltered display of the artist’s humanity, and on the other, a charming, churning outpouring of angst and anxiety; and truly, the only way to appreciate just how beautiful a song this is, is to hear the full thing for yourself.
I come away from this song feeling like I’ve got more questions than I do answers, and yet there’s no mistaking the sense of catharsis Benton imbues in the ears and the soul; in short, should you take that seven-minute ride down some dusty dirt road with him, there’s no telling what you might find on the other side.
you’re in a dream
in a town out west on a river
you sink a stone you feel it in you
and you know you’re alone while
the world is on the run
the naked sun like a stone sinks low
and you wonder where it goes
will there be thunder where it shines?
will the people suffer?
do you have faith in it
then the way you always pretend
can a country be good
can a person learn to be a part of of the world
natural human animal
do you know what i mean?
Yeah, you know what I mean
I think you know what I mean
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Stream: “In a Dream” – Trace Mountains
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© Alyx Soard
© Alyx Soard
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