Drawing on the tones of artists such as David Bowie, Super Furry Animals, The Kinks, Supergrass and many more, De Novo Dahl was created in Nashville's burgeoning rock scene in 2001. After a self-released EP in 2003 the band teamed up with theory 8 records to release their biggest effort to date, a double album entitled Cats & Kittens.
The response to Cats & Kittens was overwhelming--first charting at ..60 on the CMJ Top 200 and landing reviews in Spin, Magnet, Pitchforkmedia, CMJ and many online tastemaker sites such as Stereogum, Delusions of Adequacy and Coke Machine Glow.
Pitchfork declared, "The net impression left by the two discs of Cats & Kittens is one of a confident, talented band letting its collective imagination run wild, deconstructing it own ideas and recycling them into something new. It's a damn impressive debut overflowing with mostly realized ambition" giving it a 7.5 rating.
While supporting the album on the road De Novo Dahl has performed countless festivals and conferences including South By Southwest, CMJ Music Marathon, Midwest Music Summit and Atlantis Music Conference. The band has also shared the stage with numerous acts including TV On The Radio, The Detachment Kit, Wilco, Elf Power, The Impossible Shapes, Juliana Hatfield, Preston School of Industry, Head of Femur, The Joggers, Apollo Sunshine, Archer Pruitt, VHS or Beta, David Meade, The Features, The Natural History, I Am The World Trade Center, International Orange, Feable Weiner, The Paper Lions and even Blues Traveler.
After months of touring in support of Cats & Kittens, three of the original members of De Novo Dahl decided to pursue other interests leaving drummer Joey Andrews, singer/guitarist Joel J. Dahl and vocalist/omnichordist Serai Zaffiro with the daunting task of rebuilding their band. Not ready to give up on over 4 years of hard work the three set out to restructure the band and begin writing new material for the remainder of 2005.
Wishful Thinking
De Novo Dahl Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
My head's been humming about the people I could meet
It's overwhelming without much time to spare
My heart's been thumping so loud,
I can hardly wait to be there.
This is the one thing that all people dream,
But it's all a big mess and it's too hard to clean
I got a feeling about this treasure hunt
We'll make a killing and then forever we'll just have fun
A lamp with a genie inside who will grant my wish
A hot air balloon takes me up, what a wonderful gift.
This is the one thing that all people dream,
But it's all a big mess and it's too hard to clean
Wait one minute, we're all sinners
Makes me feel like a beginner
I got a feeling about the first day of school
This year will be different
And all the kids will think that I'm cool
I got a feeling about the silver screen
My mouth's been drooling about sugar cane tasting sweet
This is the one thing that all people dream,
But it's all a big mess and it's too hard to clean
This is the one thing that makes us hang on,
But it evaporates and then it's all gone
Wait one minute, we're all sinners
Makes me feel like a beginner
The lyrics to De Novo Dahl's song Wishful Thinking seem to be about different scenarios in life in which we have high hopes and expectations, but also have doubts and worries. The singer speaks about going on a weekend retreat and his anticipation of meeting new people, but also acknowledging the overwhelming aspect of it. He also talks about going on a treasure hunt and wishing for a genie to fulfill his desires. The singer then moves onto the first day of school and wanting to be perceived as cool to his peers, and then to the silver screen and dreaming of sugary treats. Throughout the song, the singer's tone changes from hopeful and excited to somewhat cynical, admitting that we are all sinners and can't clean up our messes.
The song's overall theme is about the concept of wishful thinking, and the various dreams and desires that we all have at some point in our lives. All of these hopes and wishes are portrayed as something that might be unattainable or even a little naive, hence the line 'wait one minute, we're all sinners'. It's a reminder that life isn't perfect and we can't always have everything we want.
Line by Line Meaning
I got a feeling about this weekend retreat
I have a strong intuition that this upcoming weekend retreat will bring something special.
My head's been humming about the people I could meet
I've been eagerly anticipating meeting new people and forming connections with them.
It's overwhelming without much time to spare
The amount of excitement and anticipation is almost too much to handle, given the limited time before the retreat starts.
My heart's been thumping so loud, I can hardly wait to be there.
My heart is beating rapidly in anticipation of the retreat, and the excitement is almost unbearable.
This is the one thing that all people dream, But it's all a big mess and it's too hard to clean
The idea of finding fulfillment and happiness is something that everyone hopes for, but the process can be messy and difficult to navigate.
Wait one minute, we're all sinners
Pause for a moment - everyone makes mistakes and has faults.
I got a feeling about this treasure hunt
I feel confident about the upcoming treasure hunt and believe we will be successful.
We'll make a killing and then forever we'll just have fun
We will reap great rewards from the successful treasure hunt and then enjoy endless amounts of fun and adventure.
A lamp with a genie inside who will grant my wish
The dream of having a wish-granting genie in a lamp is a fantasy that I hope comes true.
A hot air balloon takes me up, what a wonderful gift.
The idea of riding in a hot air balloon brings me great joy and excitement.
I got a feeling about the first day of school, This year will be different
I have a positive feeling about this year's first day of school and believe it will be a unique and memorable experience.
And all the kids will think that I'm cool
I hope to impress and gain the approval of my peers at school this year.
I got a feeling about the silver screen
I have high hopes for the movies I will soon be watching, feeling excited and hopeful for what they will offer.
My mouth's been drooling about sugar cane tasting sweet
I have been eagerly anticipating the delightful taste of sugarcane while watching these movies.
This is the one thing that makes us hang on, But it evaporates and then it's all gone
The pursuit of happiness and fulfillment is what motivates us to keep going, but sometimes it proves to be fleeting and short-lived.
Wait one minute, we're all sinners
Take a step back and remember that, at our core, we are all flawed individuals.
Makes me feel like a beginner
The fleeting nature of happiness and the flawed nature of humanity can make it feel like we are constantly starting from scratch in our pursuit of fulfillment.
Contributed by Evan F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.