FEVER DREAM Tracklist
FEVER DREAM is the third studio album by Icelandic band Of Monsters and Men, preceded by the lead single “Alligator”.
Lead singer Nanna Bryndís Hilmarsdóttir said that while writing the album she had grown “really tired” of writing songs on an acoustic guitar as it “brought out things in [me] that were predictable,” so she began working on a laptop at home, “figuring out all these new sounds and being curious about them.” Nanna said lead single “Alligator,” called “driving and percussion-heavy” by Billboard, began like a “dance song,” but that it is not entirely representative of the album’s sound. She described the album as “more poppy and brighter” than the band’s previous album, 2015’s Beneath the Skin.
The album received positive reviews from music critics. It currently holds a rating of 70 on Metacritic, indicating “generally favorable” reviews. FEVER DREAM debuted and peaked at number nine on the US Billboard 200. It is Of Monsters and Men’s third US top 10 album.
“FEVER DREAM” Q&A
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Translations:
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How do the artists think fans will react to the new album?
Honestly, I think some of our longtime fans will have a very difficult time with this album at first, if they’re comparing it to our other works. Our job as musicians and artists is to explore and to not get stuck in a sound that people think that we are. We never made those rules up for ourselves, and we are the kind of band that wants to develop our sound. Making albums and being in this business is only fun if you get to truly express yourself, and we did that for this album. We pushed ourselves and we grew. Speaking for myself, it was like a growth spurt. I learned and grew so much and I’m so incredibly proud of this album and it feels like it was exactly what we were supposed to do in this moment in time.
I know that some people won’t like it, because it’s different and people don’t like change, but that’s okay. Even if we get a bad reaction, at least I know that we’re making the album we want to make and that’s the most important thing. But I hope people can listen to it and not compare it to what OMAM is in their minds, because that’s not the rule we set up for ourselves [laughs].-Nanna, Billboard
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What have the artists said about the album?
The album was written and recorded in Iceland. Over the last few years we’ve been slowly but steadily building our own studio. Having that place to ourselves gave us the time and space to be creative and expand on our sound and get lost in our own little world. The album is heavily influenced by being open to changes and unafraid of expressing yourself. We set out to explore the different ways we could go about writing and arranging these songs, playing around with different instruments and techniques along the way such as synths, sampling and extensive vocal arrangements which led us to a new and exciting place sonically. We set out to embrace the chaos that comes along with creating and focused on making this album feel light and fun.
It’s about yearning for something greater, feeling content in your loneliness, embracing your vulnerability and wanting to feel present in a moment.-Of Monsters and Men, Facebook
