Secret Admirer fell head over heels for Weird Dreams after reading about them in Loud And Quiet magazine. After hassling lead singer Doran through the medium of email, he found time to answer our burning questions whilst putting the final touches to his band's debut LP.
Where did the name Weird Dreams come from?
Doran : Weird Dreams came from the song 'Little Girl' off our first EP. I've always had very vivid dreams that have been good and bad, but they've always been a big part of my life. Weird Dreams has no negative connotations as a phrase and so we really liked it's ambiguity. That and it felt like it summed up the bands sound and lyrical content perfectly!
Why did you form the band together?
No.
Me and Craig (drums) bonded over The Beach Boys and David Lynch whilst working in a vintage clothes shop and we had a similar background of punk rock, metal and tattoos. It just felt right to start something. I wrote the first EP which we rehearsed as a two piece, recorded it to tape with Rory Atwell in one day and released it on Craig's Sleep All Day Records imprint Sleepy King Cassettes.We got Hugo in to play bass and then James on 2nd guitar 6 months later. As on writing the 2nd EP 'Hypnagogic Lullaby' I felt like there was a development that needed more melodic depth and scope.
Do you feel like you are rebelling against anything as a band?
No.
Where does the inspiration for your lyrics come from?
What has been the best live show you have played so far?
Stream their new single 'Holding Nails' below:
http://soundcloud.com/tough-love/weird-dreams-holding-nails-1
I think most of my lyrics tend to be a cathartic cataloging of events, a need to diarise and process things.
What has been the best live show you have played so far?
I think it's kind of like saying "what was the best day of your life?". There's been lots of great shows for us as a band, a few not so great, but the best ones have been for who we've supported rather than our actual show. Playing with Women for our 3rd show ever was unreal. Probably one of the best live bands I've ever seen, and we were all big fans so it was an honor. We also recently played with The Fresh & Onlys at The Lexington and they are such nice dudes! We're also big fans of theirs so it was just such a pleasure to play with a band as prolific, ernest and awesome as them!
What music have you released so far, and what are your plans for future releases?
In July 2010 we released a 4 track cassette EP on Sleepy King Cassettes. In November 2010 we were on a split 7" with Total Slacker which Marshall Teller records put out in March 2011. We released another 4 track EP on vinyl through Sleep All Day Records, and on cassette through Suplex Cassettes. We have the first 7" of our new album coming out on October 31st through Tough Love Records. Then Tough Love will also be releasing our album 'Choreography' in January 2012.
What do you want people to get from listening to your music?
That's something you can't think about. You just have to make it the way it needs to be for you, and then if people like it, hate it, have sex to it, or whatever, then it's out of your hands.
For someone who hasn't heard your music before, what can they expect?
Blue Velveteen Psych pop.
How has the internet helped you as a band?
The same way it has helped most people in the modern world!
What bands inspire you to make music?
This is a good question. I am strongly against bands who's sound is singularly derivative and I think the mystery of not quite being able to pinpoint what something is is really what makes you fall in love with something you're hearing for the first time. Inspiration, instead of influence is important to bare in mind as not all inspirations are musical. The main inspirations of the band are The Beach Boys and David Lynch. Both for their use of textures and Brian Wilson and David Lynch's strong senses of vision. Me and Craig also started the band while we were obsessed with a 60's girl group called The Tammy's. Unlike so many of the girl groups of the time, there's something unsettling about their delivery, like it's not quite right and they sound a bit demented! And it was that feeling of it not quite sitting right that I recognised and loved about David Lynch's work also. You know, kind of pushing reality and cultural displacement .I'm also a big fan of 60's / 70's soul like Syl Johnson, O.V. Wright, Barbara Mason, Shirley Walton etc. And you probably wouldn't listen to Weird Dreams and instantly recognise any of those artists, but soul inspires me so much to just write as purely as possible. I also love using little musical motifs and putting them in different genres. You know, a beat here, or style of singing or chord progression. It's not about trying to replicate what exactly what you love about someone elses music.
Stream their new single 'Holding Nails' below:
http://soundcloud.com/tough-love/weird-dreams-holding-nails-1
Pre-order the single here, quick! Before they sell out like hot cakes!
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