Trouble in Dreams

Trouble in Dreams
Studio album by Destroyer
Released March 18, 2008
Genre Indie rock, chamber pop
Length 52:59
Label Merge
Destroyer chronology
Destroyer's Rubies
(2006)		 Trouble in Dreams
(2008)		 Bay of Pigs (EP)
(2009)
Singles from Trouble in Dreams
  1. "Foam Hands"
    Released: December 4, 2007

Trouble in Dreams is the eighth LP from Destroyer, released on March 18, 2008 by Merge Records. The album was preceded by the single "Foam Hands", released on December 4, 2007.

The album was leaked to the internet in January of 2008.

Production

Bejar admits that when it came to recording the album there was initially a

scary lack of ideas coming into the record [...] The songs, in a performative way, weren't really coming together. They all had really awesome parts, but as a band, it just kinda sounded like a bunch of noise, sometimes. So I kind of just decided to make a bit more of a studio record. That's never really my intention, but that's what happens. I kind of wanted to make things dreamier sounding then they had been of late.[1]

The album's sound was also influenced by the fact that Destroyer's piano player Ted Bois took it upon himself, as an alternative to keyboard and piano accompaniment, to create all string and synth arrangements for the songs. Bejar maintains "That stuff I didn't even see coming. I didn't even know it was going to happen until we got into the studio. A lot of the songs I just had no idea they were going to be so symphonic, at least half of them. And then the other half I just wanted to come off like thrashy rock songs."[1]

Lyrics

According to Bejar the lyrics on Trouble in Dreams touch on a number of recurring images and themes: “There are many themes running through it. Nostalgia; the beach; fascism; poets and poetry.” When asked about the many references to 'light' and 'darkness' that occur throughout the album, Bejar offered: "There is something about trying to see, though. That seems like a classic poetic concern. I think there’s, for the first time, kind of classic surrealist-style writing, simple, dream-like situations described in the songs.[1]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic78/100[2]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
Drowned in Sound8/10[4]
Paste8.0/10[5]
Pitchfork7.7/10[6]
PopMatters[7]
Q[8]
Rolling Stone[9]
Spin8/10[10]

Trouble in Dreams received largely positive reviews from contemporary music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 78, based on 31 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews".[11]

Rolling Stone magazine awarded the album 4/5, noting the band's debt to early-Seventies Glam rock – T.Rex and David Bowie in particular – and praising Bejar for "filter[ing] his cribbing through an indie rocker's sense of humor and a poet's love of language."[12] Pitchfork Media critic William Bowers awarded the album 7.7/10 amid mixed praise, contending that "the act's longevity had begun to work against the initial reasons for fan excitement – what were once singular eccentricities now have become anticipatable," but arguing that the "album succeeds despite itself," praising its performance and "spirit," and ultimately concluding that Bejar is an "untouchable wizard."[13]

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Dan Bejar. 

No. Title Length
1. "Blue Flower/Blue Flame"   3:24
2. "Dark Leaves Form a Thread"   3:36
3. "The State"   3:58
4. "Foam Hands"   3:50
5. "My Favorite Year"   6:07
6. "Shooting Rockets (from the Desk of Night's Ape)"   8:00
7. "Introducing Angels"   3:44
8. "Rivers"   5:14
9. "Leopard of Honor"   5:33
10. "Plaza Trinidad"   3:33
11. "Libby's First Sunrise"   6:00
Total length:
 52:59

References

  1. 1 2 3 Tedder, Michael. "Q&A with Destroyer". Self-Titled Daily.
  2. ↑ "Reviews for Trouble in Dreams by Destroyer". Metacritic. Retrieved January 3, 2016.
  3. ↑ "Trouble in Dreams – Destroyer". Allmusic. 2008-03-25. Retrieved 2016-01-03.
  4. ↑ Porter, Bruce. Destroyer - Trouble in Dreams. Drowned In Sound. 15 March 2008. Retrieved 03 January 2016.
  5. ↑ Howe, Brian (March 26, 2008). "Destroyer: Trouble in Dreams: Music Reviews". Paste. Hearst Corporation. Retrieved January 3, 2016.
  6. ↑ Bowers, William. Destroyer: Trouble in Dreams. Pitchfork Media. 25 March 2008. Retrieved 03 January 2016.
  7. ↑ Schonfeld, Zach. Destroyer: Trouble in Dreams. PopMatters. 25 March 2008. Retrieved 03 January 2016.
  8. ↑
  9. ↑ Hermes, Will. Destroyer: Trouble in Dreams. Rolling Stone. 1 May 2008. Retrieved 03 January 2016.
  10. ↑
  11. ↑ "Trouble in Dreams – Destroyer". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved January 3, 2016.
  12. ↑ Hermes, Will. "Trouble in Dreams review". Rolling Stone Magazine.
  13. ↑ Bowers, William. "Trouble in Dreams review". Pitchfork Media.

External links

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