''The Dream'' is the fourth album by English

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...

band

alt-J Alt-J (stylised as alt-J, real name Δ) are an English indie rock band formed in 2007 in Leeds. Their lineup includes Joe Newman (guitar/lead vocals), Thom Sonny Green (drums), Gus Unger-Hamilton (keyboards/vocals), and formerly Gwilym Sainsbur ...

, released on 11 February 2022 by

Infectious Music Infectious Music is an independent record label owned by BMG, whose bands have included Alt-J, Ash and The Subways. History Infectious Music was established in 1993 as Infectious Records by former Zerra One drummer Korda Marshall after leav ...

and the

Canvasback Music Atlantic Records Group LLC is an umbrella label owned by Warner Music Group. It oversees several labels assigned to its Atlantic Records unit. In total, the label group has nearly three hundred artists on its roster. History In 2004, Time Warner ...

division of

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over its first 20 years of operation, Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most i ...

. It was promoted with the single "U&Me", which was released alongside the album's announcement on 22 September 2021. The track listing for the album was also revealed on this date through publication ''

Stereogum ''Stereogum'' is a daily Internet publication that focuses on music news, reviews, interviews, and commentary. The site was created in January 2002 by Scott Lapatine. ''Stereogum'' was one of the first MP3 blogs and has received several award ...

''. "Get Better" was released as the album's second single on 3 November 2021 and was accompanied by a pixel-art music video. "Hard Drive Gold" was released as the album's third single on 5 January 2022. "The Actor" was released as the fourth single on 7 February 2022.

Artwork

The artwork for ''The Dreams cover is a drawing by the artist Joel Wyllie.

Critical reception

The album received a four-star rating from ''

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the w ...

'', who said it was a "stroll around the curiosity shop". In the same review the band's embrace of American sounds was noted.

Track listing

Personnel

Alt-J * Joe Newman – vocals, guitar (all tracks), additional percussion (2) *

Thom Sonny Green Thomas Stuart Green (born November 5, 1985), known professionally as Thom Sonny Green, is an English drummer and electronic music producer. Green attended Leeds University, where he met the musicians with whom he would found the band Alt-J ...

– drums, percussion, programming (all tracks); additional percussion (2), spoken voice (12) * Gus Unger-Hamilton – keyboards, synthesizer (all tracks); backing vocals (1, 3–12), organ (1, 2, 4, 6, 11), additional percussion (2), bass (3, 9, 11) Additional musicians * David Force –

bagpipes Bagpipes are a woodwind instrument using enclosed reeds fed from a constant reservoir of air in the form of a bag. The Great Highland bagpipes are well known, but people have played bagpipes for centuries throughout large parts of Europe, No ...

(1),

crumhorn The crumhorn is a double reed instrument of the woodwind family, most commonly used during the Renaissance period. In modern times, particularly since the 1960s, there has been a revival of interest in early music, and crumhorns are being play ...

(1, 2) * Reinoud Ford – cello (1, 2, 4, 5, 7–9) * Will Gardner – conductor, string arrangement (1, 2, 4, 5, 7–9); backing vocals (9) * Tim Rundle – crumhorn (1, 2) * Andy Marshall –

double bass The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or #Terminology, by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched Bow (music), bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox addit ...

(1, 2, 5, 7–9) *

Charlie Andrew Charles Andrew, (born 1980) is a British record producer, mixer and songwriter. He is best known for his work with indie band Alt-J. In 2013 he was awarded 'Breakthrough Producer of the Year' by his peers at Music Producers Guild awards, in ...

– programming (all tracks), additional percussion (2) * Highgate School Choir – vocals (1–3) * Tyler DeFord – sound effects (2) * Matthew Ward – violin (2, 4, 5, 7, 9) * Ciaran McCabe – violin (2, 4, 5, 7, 9) * Kirsty Mangan – violin (2, 4, 5, 7, 9) * Anna Zara Newman – spoken voice (3) * Cordelia Unger-Hamilton – spoken voice (3) * April Unger-Hamilton – backing vocals (4, 5), spoken voice (6) * Sarah Andrew –

bassoon The bassoon is a woodwind instrument in the double reed family, which plays in the tenor and bass ranges. It is composed of six pieces, and is usually made of wood. It is known for its distinctive tone color, wide range, versatility, and virtuo ...

(4) * Trevor Mires – trombone (6) * Christie Valeriano – backing vocals (8) * George Eddy – backing vocals (9) * Andrew Cohen – sound effects (9) * Arianna Cohen – spoken voice (9, 12) * Matt Glasbey – spoken voice (11) * Mark Newman – spoken voice (11) Technical * Charlie Andrew –

production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stati ...

, mixing * Dick Beetham – mastering * Matt Glasbey – mixing,

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific method, scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad rang ...

(all tracks); additional production (1, 10) * George Collins – engineering assistance (1, 3, 10–12) * Katie Earl – engineering assistance (1–4, 9–12)

Charts

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dream, The 2022 albums Alt-J albums Infectious Music albums