Picture the scene. It’s
September. You’re sprawled out across a semi-damp, stain ridden 2-seater sofa
outside in your back garden. You’re trying to get the most out of the British
summer by drinking Fosters at midday with your already inebriated mates. Amidst
the overproduced clutter of Calvin Harris and the lad-clad Courteeners on the
playlist, a song comes on that resonates entirely with the situation. You try
hard to be cool in front of your friends by not waving your arms around like
you would at a summer Springsteen festival set. Instead, you say to your mate “What’s
this band again?” (pretending to have already known who they are). They reply “Bad
Dreems”; to which you play along with the façade and nod along as if you’re
entirely familiar with the band. Later on when the conversation has ended, you slyly
note down the band’s name in your notes section on your phone; so that you can
instantly download any releases they’ve had and ‘be cool’ again. The problem is
you can’t seem to find the band because it’s spelt with Es.
To save you this
intrinsic embarrassment, I’m here to let you know it’s spelt Bad Dreems,
and that you should probably check the band out before this scenario affects
you. Hopefully, you can be that guy who puts the song on the playlist.
From Adelaide, Bad//Dreems
are a 4-piece energetic “outsider rock” band who offer up vibrant melodies and
a mammoth sound. Nothing here is brand new. Nothing here is attempting to
reinvent the wheel, nor is it trying to genre hop. Despite this, Bad//Dreems
have developed from a group of four mates kicking around in bars, to a band
(amongst others) carrying the rapidly expanding punk rock scene in Australia. What
makes this band stand out, is their rise. It’s not through excessive marketing,
selling of their sound, or direct family funding. Rather it’s simply their
passion for the music, which is shown through their DIY film clips and gritty
live shows.
Mixing raw,
heartfelt garage with gaudy vocals, Bad//Dreems tell tales of the sordid
underbelly and decaying fringes of their home city. The band released their debut
EP Badlands in the summer of 2013,
and have since been signed to Ivy League Records. The track ‘Hoping For’ embodies
the whole ‘feel-good’ concept and can make a Tuesday evening feel like the
weekend.
New UK AA-side ‘Cuffed
& Collared / Dumb Ideas’ highlights their electrifying, authentic sound, but
this time by dosing it with a sprinkle of raw integrity. It could quite easily
be played in the background to a bar room punch-up (not inducing it). A
thinking man’s release. To sum it up; think Parquet Courts bouncy, aggressive guitar,
but throw in some rasp Cobain-esque vocals (from lead vocalist Ben Mawre).
Recently completing
a UK tour including The Great Escape and Live at Leeds festivals, Bad//Dreems
will be back soon (potentially after completing their debut album) and by then
you should all have them firmly locked into your Spotify playlists.
Check them out now
before they conquer the UK too.
For fans of // Parquet Courts, The Replacements and Nirvana
Written by Richard Maver (@richmaver)
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