Enveloping with a dreamy post-punk beauty that recalls the likes of The Chameleons UK, “Dream Hangover” is a gripping new single from Dream Bodies. Los Angeles-based artist Steven Fleet is the sole songwriter and instrumentalist, with his longtime friend Josh Achziger providing mixing and mastering. Ghostly synths, a driving rhythmic pulse, and twanging guitar chills conjure a sound with deep ’80s nostalgia, centering around the “just a beautiful dream,” refrain in its wistful longing for a better reality.
Personal tumult is reflected in the overall lyrical prowess, though also presenting a hope following the strife. “It’s about going through a painful breakup after having lost your identity and given it away to a toxic relationship, but then finding your way and sense of self in the aftermath,” Fleet explains.
“I don’t wanna wake up,” Fleet’s decisive vocals hypnotize amidst the synth/guitar intertwining, capturing the title’s essence of recovering from a previously blissful period — and now encountering a more lonesome reality. The production in general stirs throughout, and one can feel echoes of emotive isolation within. “I had been living alone in an isolated house on the Oregon Coast when I wrote and recorded this and the other songs from this batch of recordings,” Fleet says. “It was a dark and lonely time, but necessary.”
We’re excited to hear what’s forthcoming from the new project, with “Dream Hangover” representing the first of several upcoming releases from Dream Bodies.
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This and other tracks featured this month can be streamed on the updating Obscure Sound’s ‘Emerging Singles’ Spotify playlist.
We discovered this release via MusoSoup, as part of the artist’s promotional campaign.
