Description
Release Date Friday 12th July 2024
All pre-orders will be dispatched/made ready for collection on that day.
Small Town Monsters, the second full-length album from The Dream Machin, is
set to be released this April on Run On Records/ Modern Sky.
If 2022’s critically-acclaimed debut album Thank God! It’s The Dream
Machine… was their first and most wild child, then Small Town Monsters is its
refined younger sibling. The psychedelia, euphoric choruses, flashes of surf
guitar and B-movie references are all there, amongst the familiar reflections of
life in their beloved and faded seaside town of New Brighton, but this time the
wilder elements are controlled, the songs packed into three-minute pocket
symphonies.
Lead single Frankenstein is an anthem for the sugar-rush generation, an
infectious, rattling earworm that recalls everything from haunted rockabilly to the
sun-drenched melodies of Blossoms.
Elsewhere on the album, the pulsating surf-stomp of Cindy’s Eyes, a small-
town story of unrequited love, has a chorus to fill the most cavernous arena.
Produced by The Coral’s James Skelly, the album was partially recorded at
The Dream Machine’s rehearsal space, then stitched together in Skelly’s
Kempston Street Studios.
There’s a refined, more literary quality to singer and primary songwriter Zak
McDonnell’s lyrics; explorations of everyday life, teenage doom, B-movie
monsters, family turmoil, and coming-of-age tales in the familiar backdrop of life
in modern Britain. Small Town Monsters is the sound of a band breaking free
from the small town into the big world.
Psychedelic pop with an anthemic punch, Wirral’s The Dream Machine hit their
comeback stride with outrageously infectious single Frankenstein, out March
14th on Run On Records. The single is a precursor to their second full-length album, to
be followed by a summer festival run including Liverpool Sound City, and their own
headline tour.
After 2022’s critically-acclaimed debut album Thank God! It’s The Dream Machine… a
host of Radio DJs - namely Steve Lemacq and Stuart Maconie – voiced their support
for the group. It led to regular plays on BBC6music and Radio X, then live support slots
with established big-hitters like The Coral, The Charlatans and The Mystery Jets,
before headlining their own run of gigs, ending the summer as The Lathums special
guests at a sold-out Castlefield Bowl.
In a year filled with highs upon highs, the band made valuable use of time spent touring,
absorbing music to throw in the melting pot of new material, namely the wild energy
of Fontaines DC, The Brian Jonestown Massacre, Blossoms, Arcade Fire and The
War On Drugs.
Having grown up amongst the faded fairground glamour and beachfront arcades of their
native New Brighton, Merseyside, they caught the ear of The Coral’s James
Skelly while still teenagers and has been a constant influence. Skelly stepped in on full
production duties for Frankenstein, recorded late last year in his own Kempston Street
Studios.
Singer and primary songwriter Zak McDonnell explains Frankenstein’s weird and wild
origins: ‘Frankenstein is a confession of love from somebody disfigured by immaturity
and misery. A helpless tale of hope and anguish. Heart to heart, man to monster. It’s a
pulsing teenage freak show romance driven by desperation and despair. I wanted it to
sound like Phil Spector producing the Ramones in the 80’s or a twisted take on one of
the songs from Fraggle Rock’.
All things considered, and with Frankenstein already garnering national airplay, 2024
promises to be The Dream Machine’s biggest year yet.
TRACKLIST
1. Frankenstein
2. Cindy's Eyes
3. My Father's Son
4. Holding On
5. Cathedral
6. Tonight, I've Got Heaven In My Arms
7. Posters Of You
8. Wind-Up Bird
9. The Horse
10. Wolfman
11. Bring Back The Wonder
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thank you for looking at our listing, below are a few points to consider before making a purchase:
- All records we sell are Brand New - pre-orders will normally come sealed but if you are purchasing in stock items, please note the copy may have been unsealed for display in the shop. Please email straight after purchase to enquire if this is of importance to you.
- Orders won't ship until all items are released, so keep this in mind when purchasing multiple pre-orders or a mix of in stock and pre-order items.
- The 'Product' page will show the most up to date info we have with regards to the item and its release date, but this information is subject to change so check in with us if you have any questions.
- We unfortunately don't offer tax/vat outside of the UK via the website so please keep in mind that when the items arrives in your country you may be liable to pay a further charge before delivery. (all UK orders the price you see is the price you will pay). Please also note that we are unable to adjust the declared value on items sold internationally.
Payment & Security
Your payment information is processed securely. We do not store credit card details nor have access to your credit card information.