Memories are not infallible. While we may think we remember something exactly as it happened, our brains have a funny way of messing with things. We color our recollections based on how we were feeling at the time, what we’re feeling now, and what we want to remember. When our memories make their way into our dreams, it can warp them even further. LA duo Dysplay–comprised of Eric Scullin and Devin Hoffman–know how our dreams and memories shift and morph. They’re exploring their own realm of memories on new single “Dream,” premiering this afternoon on Substream.
What immediately stands out about “Dream” is the serious production chops of Scullin and Hoffman. There are a lot of moving parts in this song: synths that fade in and out like waves, guitar hooks that filter in behind them, and percussion that makes you tap your foot. Each segment of the track works together in harmony, one instrument fading out to let another have its moment in the sun. When they all come together with Scullin belting the lyrics, it does feel like the listener has stepped into a glimmering memory Dysplay have constructed.
Drawing the listener in was exactly the goal of “Dream.” The duo explain “We wanted to build a world that you can fall in and out of – a bittersweet memory, or maybe just a fleeting thought that feels like it really happened. Imagination and memory can color the truth of an experience, and the song utilizes the mundane, real-world elements of dirty trains and rainy streets to contrast against the complicated and colorful emotional impulses it explores.”
You can listen to Dysplay’s new single “Dream” below.