It Was A Good Dream
One of my favorite post-rock records is "Help Me to Recollect" from It Was A Good Dream. This special and soulful album has accompanied me since its release. Now I had the great chance to talk to Chris Anthony and Alex Glover from It Was A Good Dream about their music and creative process.
We also talked about their collaboration with James Bridges (Caspian, American Echoes, Mike Gordon) and the current state of the music scene.
Anne: Hi! Thanks very much for taking the time for this interview! I'm really curious about getting to know you! How are you doing these times? COVID-19 has brought a lot of trouble to all of us.
"We will soon be releasing new music"
Chris: We’re holding up, all of our touring for 2020 has been put on hold, which is a bit of a bummer. However, we were fortunate to jump into the studio before the lockdowns started and are excited to share some new material later this year.
Anne: This sounds exciting! I'm looking forward to hearing the new stuff!
I would have met you at this year's DUNK! Festival, which sadly has been postponed like all concerts at the moment. Are you planning on going there in 2021?
"We plan on coming to DUNK! Festival 2021"
Chris: Yea! It would be so much fun to do the interviews in person. We do plan on coming in 2021, so we will definitely need to grab a beer and fries while we’re there.
Alex: Absolutely! Luckily the guys at DUNK! confirmed us on next year’s line up as soon as this year got canceled. We can’t wait to actually make it happen.
Anne: It's a date! I am also looking forward to it so much. To the music, the wonderful people, to the conversations and of course to the legendary DUNK! fries! Besides DUNK! - which festivals do you like best? As artists and on the other side of the stage.
"We will play Bergmal 2021"
Chris: POST. Festival in Indianapolis, IN, USA is run by a great team and always has solid acts coming through. We’re big fans of Bergmal Festival, too, which we’ll be playing in 2021 as well. Others that stand out to us are Hear The Change in Italy, ArcTangent in the UK, VIVID in Norway, and Boston Calling here in Massachusetts, USA
Alex: As far as being on the other side of the stage, I’ve only been to festivals here in the US. I was fortunate enough to attend Bonnaroo and Camp Bisco last year (2019). Camp Bisco features a lot of bass-heavy electronic music, which is a big musical inspiration for me. It doesn’t always show in an obvious way, but a lot of the electronic elements in our music are pulled from guys like Bassnectar, Lane 8, and Tycho. I’m also really into Phish, and a lot of their shows end up feeling like festivals because they do these 3-day residencies in different cities.
Anne: You started in 2018. When did you sign at DUNK! Records?
"We spent 2018 writing music"
Chris: We spent the majority of 2018 writing, recording and preparing our debut album "Help Me to Recollect". We teamed up with Wout and Luc at dunk! in the summer of 2018 and began planning the release of the album for spring/summer of 2019.
Alex: Everything Chris said! We’re so fortunate to be working with them.
Anne: I can imagine that. Wout is really great. Everyone at DUNK! is incredibly nice. You can tell that they love what they do. Everyone is doing their jobs with heart and soul.
When you look at the time between your early days in 2018 and now. What has changed for you as a band since then?
"We started to find our voice"
Chris: A few things have noticeably changed in our writing style and approach. We started the project after following and listening to so many artists in the post-rock scene and looked to them for writing inspiration. Since then we’ve started to find our own voice and sound in our writing. We’ve also put together a live set up with other musicians to help fill out our sound.
Alex: It’s funny. The band started without really...trying to be a band. We decided to just jam one night, and after that night I think we decided to make it a goal to write and record two songs. The next couple of times we got together, those two songs expanded into the five songs that comprise "Help Me To Recollect". So we didn’t really have an arc in mind back then, but now it’s a bit different because we have that album behind us, and now it’s a matter of building and expanding on that foundation.
Anne: Chris, you and Alex had been friends for quite a while when you started It Was A Good Dream. Did you make music together before this project?
"We have been playing in an indie rock band"
Chris: Alex and I have been playing in an indie rock band called Nemes for almost ten years. It’s been great to share his friendship on and off the stage!
Anne: Sounds like the perfect friendship. And the perfect foundation for a band of course! You are originally from Boston, Massachusetts. A lot of hardcore and post-hardcore are coming from your city. Would you say, it influenced your sound?
"We'll see what the future brings"
Chris: While we’re both big fans of the genres, I would say not much of it was used as inspiration while writing the record. We’ve toyed with working in some more aggressive elements, but so far they haven’t fit, yet. We’ll see what the future holds, though.
Alex: I’m actually not so sure I agree with Chris on this one! While most of our music doesn’t really peak into hardcore, I think a lot of the rhythms and elements we incorporate are influenced by those bands for sure.
band fight
Anne: You are great! I think it is very sympathetic seeing how you agree in terms like this one (laughs).
Your first album (After your mysterious teaser single "Forgetting How To Speak" in 2018) was called "Help Me To Recollect" and published on DUNK! Records. In March 2020 you released the single "Descend / Suppress / Sustain. You told me you have been working on new stuff. Tell me more about it!
Chris: We just cut the master to another single that will be out later this year called "Spooling Lines Into the Deep". It runs about 17 minutes long and feels like an EP in and of itself. Other than that we’ve been tossing ideas back and forth to start to flesh out a second album, but with COVID and quarantine limiting our studio time, we aren’t sure when anything will be ready or released.
Alex: I’m really excited about sharing "Spooling Lines Into the Deep". That’s what’s next for sure. Otherwise, I feel like we have a million ideas floating around for what the next album can be, but there will absolutely be one. We can promise that.
Anne: You've recorded your first album in a centuries-old Masonic temple that was turned into a recording studio. This sounds fascinating to me. How did it feel? I would love to know more about this place.
"The studio is incredible"
Chris: It’s really an incredible space, and we’re amazed the building has held up for so long. There are hidden hallways and rooms throughout the building. The ceilings are tall and the room is spacious, it really gives us a ton of natural sounds to work with while we record.
Alex: It’s the best! I think it’s my favorite room to listen to drums in. I wish we could practice there 100 percent of the time. The ceilings are huge and it’s a really vibey place. If you check out our live video for "Falling/Running/Mute” on Youtube, that was filmed there.
Anne: James Bridges (Caspian, American Echoes, Mike Gordon) produced "Help Me To Recollect". How was it like working with him and how did you get in touch with him?
"James Bridges is a fantastic producer"
Chris: We had worked with James on other projects and once we had a framework ready for the album we knew he was the guy. He’s a fantastic engineer and producer and brought so many good ideas to the table, it’s almost like he’s in the band.
Alex: It’s totally like he’s in the band! He’s great at getting these really natural feeling sounds for everything, and always has awesome suggestions for guitar tones. I can say with confidence that our recordings would sound quite different without James’ input.
Anne: An editor from Everything Is Noise said that it rarely occurs, that an album transposes him⋆her into a certain atmosphere, irrespective of the state of mind he⋆she had when he⋆she started listening to your album. David Zeidler from Young Epoch said you are traveling within a world of delicate textures, contemplative nuance, and passionate outpour. I think this exactly puts it into words, how I feel about "Help Me To Recollect". Where do you get all the creativity and inspiration from, to create music like this?
"It means a lot to us when people find kind words for our music"
Chris: It’s always humbling to hear/re-hear the kind words people have to say, so thank you. We found inspiration through artists we love and expanded on it to create our own sound. The post-rock world is really fascinating in that the musicians and artists within it are able to deliver so much emotion through their music. Hopefully, we’re able to communicate that in a way that’s meaningful to listeners with our songs as well.
Alex: As Chris said, thank you so much. That means a lot to hear! I think it comes from so many different places. We made it a goal for ourselves to strive to write melodies, not just riffs, and chords and beats. Obviously, this genre (mostly) doesn’t have vocals, so I work really hard to try mimicking a voice with the guitar. I think that has to do with it a little bit. I try to picture little phrases of lyrics that a voice might sing, then translate those nuances to guitar. That emotion comes first and foremost.
"We want to give our listeners Ear Candy"
Another thing is, I feel like it’s really important to give the listener some ear candy along the way. All of my favorite albums have little details that I’m noticing, even though I’ve listened to them a hundred times. Unconventional sounds that kind of subconsciously change the mood of the music. Even if the chords and melody aren’t changing along the way, I’m always hoping to create ongoing vibes around them and see what different spaces they can work in. Hopefully, we can continue translating all of that.
Anne: Thank you very much for this great interview! I enjoyed it a lot! All the best to you!