Review Summary: Dreaming of the dusty trail back home.
During this ephemeral journey we call life, one usually finds albums that speak of places, music so magical that the soothed mind abandons itself to a short-lived moment of bliss in which physical borders disappear, and all that is left in the end is the afterthought of a pleasant dream.
Dark Matter Dreams is one of those albums. The duo from Iowa known as Field Division have had their share of bumps along the road to the release of their radiant debut through Bella Union. Five long years have passed since a first EP called
Reverie State helped the band to present their magnificent blend of dream pop infused americana, a brief insight into the riveting chemistry between Evelyn Taylor and Nicholas Frampton that announced something that, sadly, in the end never happened. Five years later and the time has come for
Dark Matter Dreams to finally see the light. And Field Division have made good use of that time, to find the proper shape, to polish the rough edges and to, somehow, create something unique and meaningful for them.
“River in Reverse” serves as the first contact with the band’s proposal, a spirited country track with a delightful chorus that screams Fleetwood Mac, with Taylor’s strikingly lustful voice painting the tune of a different colour. The second track “Big Sur, Golden Hour” relishes the waters of psychedelia, serving almost as a bridge to the second single, “Farthest Moon”. Echoes of early Bon Iver and ecstatic singing trotting along, evoking the vast lands and infinite skyline of their homeland. Frampton takes the lead singer role in some deeper cuts, like in “Lately” or “Stay”, grounding the album to indie rock territory but never losing that distinct americana identity that bleeds through the whole album. Not only his guitar work is superb in this sense, his vocal contribution to Taylor’s voice also results in a long list of extraordinary harmonies to be found in both singles as well as in heartfelt closer “This is How Your Love Destroys Me”.
The duo channels a lot of their influences without holding back, namely Fleetwood Mac, Beatles, Eagles or James Taylor, indulging themselves with some “Hey Jude” moments like in the end of “Innisfree (Lets Be the Peace Now)” or diving in full into acoustics with tracks like “It’s Gonna Be Alright”.
Dark Matter Dreams succeeds in connecting two not-so-foreign styles with astonishing talent, allowing fans of either of the two genres aforementioned to find a place to daydream of starred skies and dusty roads, following the nomad trail where Field Division have conceived this unexpected collection of fantastic songs.
