TRUTH ABOUT DREAMING, THE

Band: THE TRUTH ABOUT DREAMING

Genres: Punk / Hardcore / Emo / Emotive Hardcore / Screamo / Emo-violence / Skramz / Grind / Ambient / Noise
Related artists: Very Fucking, Flowers In Gun Barrels, Iwontstopwonderinguntilyoustopbreathing, Fair Spoken, Celestial Being, Dreamer, Aokigahara, Crocodile Hiss, xEradicatex and The Cambodian Heat.
Country: Lansing, Michigan USA
Years Active: 2012-2016
Song: "NOW I Understand Why People Shoot Up Public Places"
Album: "Under A Sky So Blue split 5inch"
Year: 2014
For fans of: Jeromes Dream, In Loving Memory, Deadseraphim, Letter To Catalonia, Aokigahara, Flowers Taped To Pens, Caught In The Fall, King's Girls, Celebration, Crocodile Hiss, Truman, Iwontstopwonderinguntilyoustopbreathing, Thisismenotthinkingofyou, Under A Sky So Blue, Eva Ras, .gif from god, (older) Examination Of The..., She Notes The Chariot, The Ultimate Screamo Band, Mara'akate, Saetia, мища, Heiße, Coma Regalia, Dispensing Of False Halos, I Wrote Haikus About Cannibalism In Your Yearbook, Nayru, Utarid, Twenty Two Days, Arches, The Hareste, Rue Morgue, Hugs, Flowers In Gun Barrels and The Spirit Of Versailles aka PROPER SCREAMO.

Label(s): Self Released / Off Cloud Nine Records / Doujinshi DIY / Plastic Smile Records / Cut Yourself Stupid Distribution / Dingleberry Records / Don't Live Like Me Records / Trends Die Records / Friendly Otter Records / Contrition Recordings
This post's artist is from the September 2016 Mix. This is track #5.

You can download: the September 2016 Mix#9 right here or get the new October 2016 Mix#10 here.

I was getting more and more into THE TRUTH ABOUT DREAMING. When I started Zegema Beach Records in late 2013 I started by buying stock from a few really good distros and Off Cloud Nine was one of them. I literally sold every tape in a matter of months and began to realize the appeal of the project. In late 2015 the solo act that was THE TRUTH ABOUT DREAMING aka Nolan Arthur started releasing some stuff that began to melt my mind, most notably the final releases of 'Two Songs', 'To Kill a Heart' and 'Capitalizing On Your Emotions', although on further listens the last two years or so of XTTADX (another take on the name) was quite impressive. I decided to ask Gio Okada if he wanted to do the write up for this project, as he has accumulated nearly every release and knows the songs much better than I do. I would simply say that the early stuff is influenced by Jeromes Dream lo-fi screechy emocore while the later material is more akin to The Spirit OfVersailles and Letters To Catalonia as it incorporates more melody, prominent bass riffs, metal leanings, better vocals and increased production value.

Following Gio's review is a revamped interview I did with Nolan about Off Cloud Nine and XTTADX back in January right before he decided to shelf the band as well as the label, which he rewrote last night. It was truly a sad day when he walked away, but it's what was best for him so I've got nothing but support for that decision. It must be said that he gave more than 99.9% of the people in this scene with his bands, shows, spaces and labels but he was wholly underappreciated so I hope this helps readers understand the gravity of his absence. Be sure to check out Gio's amazing and detailed blog Angry Emo Nerd (linked here) as he really goes into depth on stuff like how they were released and the packaging of all of these rare physical gems. Another note worth mentioning is the fact that you will find some repeat songs in the discography download, as there were so many and I received the 2012 and 2013 collected works.
~Dave

"Sure, the hardcore kids from the late 90's might have had Jeromes Dream but I had THE TRUTH ABOUT DREAMING. Whenever I think of modern screamo I always have this specific band in mind. No doubt this project was one of the ones that should have been acknowledged more because of its Jeromes Dream-esque approach at the start. While Nolan has done some other screamo stuff before this during his run with Plastic Smile Records, right when he began Off Cloud Nine records I knew the future would take to a better direction. While I believe this band was the second coming of Iwontstopwonderinguntilyoustopbreathing (another band from Nolan) XttadX takes it to a whole new level using more distorted guitars and just cleaning the floor with those baller riffs. Luckily I was there to see this band from the start to its end which led to OCN's finale. If you mixed Jeromes Dream with Orchid, The Spirit OfVersailles, In Loving Memory, XttadX sums up the final results. It's fortunate that this band sounded like something that came out in 1998 or '99. We don't get a lot of those often. While a bunch of releases were limited as hell, even at one point one of his releases had less than 12 copies in existence so a lot of this is just too good to be true. I do believe his earlier releases focused on some extremely loud noisy distorted guitars than the later releases had. A slightly cleaner tone even though with the distortion going on. While Nolan was able to bust some Jeromes Dream-esque screaming he made me picture this project of being a full band. He also sang and did some other forms of screechy screaming. It really sounded like a full band of 3 different vocalist doing their thing and that is what you call talent. It's rare to see or imagine one guy doing all this hard work especially when he did a bunch of releases. To conclude, THE TRUTH ABOUT DREAMING was one of those bands I will never forget because I know there will never be a band that will sound like this ever again."

-Gio

A few words from Nolan that he wrote for this post:

My name is Nolan. I played in the bands/projects Very Fucking, Flowers In Gun Barrels, Iwontstopwonderinguntilyoustopbreathing, Fair Spoken, Celestial Being, Dreamer, The Truth About Dreaming, Aokigahara, The Cambodian Heat, Crocodile Hiss, etc… I ran the now defunct labels Plastic Smile Records and Off Cloud Nine Label. I now run the small cassette label, Coercion Cassettes.

I’ve created and released a lot of music by myself and with various people for over a decade now. Why? I don’t know. I guess I just find solace in playing music and contributing to something that has given so much back to me over the years.

Like many, I feel the need to express myself and push my own limits as a musician. I’ve been fortunate enough to be able to capture plenty of my noise on sort of medium and distribute it to people who were kind enough to take the time to listen to what I’ve created. I can’t thank those individuals enough for the support over the years.

Along the way, I’ve had the pleasure to meet and become friends with so many wonderful people that have improved my quality of life.  Even if the relationships were in the short term, due to distance or growing apart, every second means a lot to me.

As my musical journey continues, I will always make it a goal to challenge myself and grow as a person. I hope every listener and musician joins me down this road. I hope that people don’t get hung up on the social aspect of music scenes or limit themselves because they are only into “this” or “that”. Remember the reason why you love music, hold it close and never forget it. While you’re at it, hold your loved one closely too because life is too short to get caught up in all the junk out there.

Again, thank you to anyone who has supported my musical endeavors. The fact that my friends and I make your lives a little better by a song or two is incredible. Creating, recording, and playing shows is satisfying enough for me, but to be told that this song or that song that I made helped someone? Damn, that’s real. That is purpose. That is a connection on another level.

Take care of yourselves mentally and physically. Live. Love. Connect.

-Nolan

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DISCOGRAPHY

2012 - The Truth About Dreaming cassetteEP
2012 - Noises From the Basement LP
2012 - The Act of Falling cd/cassetteEP
2012 - To A World Upside Down cassetteEP

2013 - ...2012 Collected 10" compilation (stream/buy here)
2013 - Anne Hero split 7"EP [purchase here]

2013 - Frames Per Second split cassette EP
2013 - Waller split cassetteEP [purchase here]
2013 - Swollen Lungs 7"LP compilation (contributed "We Have Come to Terms")

2014 - 2013 Collected cdr compilation
2014 - Zaraesihn split cassetteEP
2014 - xTTADx Cassingle cassette single
2014 - Under A Sky So Blue split 5"EP [purhcase here]
2014 - Spring Break 2014 Demo cassetteEP
2014 - Cassingle cassette single
2014 - Noise Attack Devastating Lansing Vol. 2 digitalEP
2014 - 2014 Compilation Tracks digital single
2014 - Short Stories About Their Distance split 7"EP [purchase here]

2015 - Capitalizing On Your Emotions E.P. cassette/7"EP [purchase tape here and 7" here]
2015 - To Kill A Heart cassetteEP [purchase here]
2015 - Two Songs cassetteEP [purchase here]

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(2015) THE TRUTH ABOUT DREAMING - "Song 1" (from 'Two Songs')

(2015) THE TRUTH ABOUT DREAMING - "Just So You Know...Fuck You" (from 'To Kill A Heart')

(2015) THE TRUTH ABOUT DREAMING - "The retirement song I'm not old I just hate you and your bogus friends" (from 'Capitalizing On Your Emotions E.P.')

(2014) THE TRUTH ABOUT DREAMING - "Nocturne In Black and Gold" (from 'Saraesihn' split)

(2014) THE TRUTH ABOUT DREAMING - "It's a phucking phashion statement" (from 'Short Stories About Their Distance' split)

(2014) THE TRUTH ABOUT DREAMING - "NOW I Understand Why People Shoot Up Public Places" (from 'Under A Sky So Blue' split)

(2014) THE TRUTH ABOUT DREAMING - "A Traveler's Guide to Grave Robbing" (from '2014 Compilation Tracks')

(2014) THE TRUTH ABOUT DREAMING - "Blood Moon Part 1 and 2" (from 'Waller' split)

(2014) THE TRUTH ABOUT DREAMING - "When Guiliani shot mango" (from 'xTTADx')

(2015) THE TRUTH ABOUT DREAMING - "Untitled (Demo 3)" (from 'Nevermind the Wave Here's The Truth About Dreaming')

(2013) THE TRUTH ABOUT DREAMING - "Terrance Maddox stole my shoes and my heart" (from 'Frames Per Second' split)

(2013) THE TRUTH ABOUT DREAMING - "We Have Come to Terms" (from 'Swollen Lungs' comp)

(2013) THE TRUTH ABOUT DREAMING - "When Seasons End" (from '2013 Collected')

(2013) THE TRUTH ABOUT DREAMING - "She overdosed on social media and died while in a digital coma" (from 'Anne Hero' split)

(2012) THE TRUTH ABOUT DREAMING - "Song 1" (from '3rd Demo')

(2012) THE TRUTH ABOUT DREAMING - "The Ballad of Jim Joe Kelly" (from 'Flexi Promo cd')

(2012) THE TRUTH ABOUT DREAMING - "Untitled 1" (from 'To A World Upside Down')

(2012) THE TRUTH ABOUT DREAMING - "Make Love To The Night Mother Fucker" (from 'The Act of Falling')

(2012) THE TRUTH ABOUT DREAMING - "Untitled 8 OR 9" (from 'Noises From the Basement')

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THE TRUTH ABOUT DREAMING additional links

Bandcamp

Facebook

Blog

Aokigahara review

Great Cambodian Heat live

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