Bad Dreems
“There’s not much to do in Adelaide, except start a band,” write Bad Dreems in their bio. So they did, penning songs about “shitty Adelaide summers, doomed relationships and bad comedowns”. Thankfully, they’re pretty good songs too, channelling jangly, bittersweet retro guitar pop (think Real Estate, Twerps etc) that sticks in your head like an old photo.... most likely of the remnants of a doomed relationship.
Adelaide. There’s no time to wallow in the mire. If you do you’re just gonna get sucked away. Sucked up north through the city’s decaying fringe, past the closed Mitsubishi plant, past Snowtown, past Port Augusta and into the dry red nothingness.
Sure the trams stopped here in 1958 , sure venues keep closing, sure the good bands keep leaving for Melbourne and sure, you gotta keep paying the bills. But just have a bloody crack and then keep on chooglin’ .
Bad Dreems know this. That’s why they got together the summer before last, sweating it out in a warehouse next to the West End Brewery. And it’s these sentiments that underlie Hoping For, the centerpiece of their debut EP Badlands.
“When my minds at ease
When I show up at your door
When I’m not strung out,
I can give you what you need
That’s what I’m hoping for”.
When I show up at your door
When I’m not strung out,
I can give you what you need
That’s what I’m hoping for”.
Yeah, I admit my faults . We all screw up. Times might be bad but there’s something better around the corner. The schooner’s still half full!
There’s no musical pretensions here. The band might like me to mention the early 80's Australian underground or US outsiders like the Replacements or Wipers, but this is just heart on your sleeve rock and roll: three honest chords, a driving beat and ragged vocals.
But then again, you can’t help but feel the desperation in Marwe’s voice, like a slug in the guts, when the band crashes into that minor change and he lets go:
And I feel like I can change!
Don’t we all.
The video for the clip was shot in Port Adelaide and in the north of South Australia around Orroroo. It was directed Alex Watkins from whobyfire.com
Since their debut single Chills in 2012 Bad Dreems have released a two further singles, seeing them end the year as the second most played act on triple j unearthed. They have supported acts such as Wavves (US), Children Collide, Oh Mercy, The Reubens and Cut Off Your Hands (NZ).
The lead single from Badlands received airplay on triple j and community radio. Their take on The Seeds’ Pushing Too Hard will be featured on the upcoming vinyl release of the Nuggets re-release.
“Adelaide four-piece Bad Dreems are one of the best Australian bands at the moment (in our humble opinion). Too Old is about a fizzling relationship, with a nod to the humdrum routine somewhere in between…Downer-pop at its best.” -- Melissa Tan, whothehell.com
“Perhaps being good at making slacker rock is a paradox. Surely musical accomplishment is antithetical to slackerdom. I don't have any answers, I'm no geologist. All I know is that Adelaide four piece Bad Dreems negotiate the contradiction like men who sleep with their instruments.” -- Kane Daniel, thethousands.com.au
Members:
Ben//Alex//James//Miles
Press Contact:
Vanessa Bassili- vanessa@littleoldmepublicity.com
Bookings:
badbaddreems@gmail.com or nick@habitmusiccompany.com.au
Facebook:
Website:
Watch out for more "Featured Artist of the Week" next week....
No comments:
Post a Comment