Diary of Dreams is a darkwave project from Düsseldorf, Germany. The lead si… Read Full Bio ↴Diary of Dreams is a darkwave project from Düsseldorf, Germany. The lead singer and founding member Adrian Hates has produced most of the albums by himself or with minimal help from others. He rarely uses a full band, except when he is on tour.

Adrian Hates was originally a classically trained guitarist and pianist, and subsequently bassist of Garden of Delight. He initiated the Diary of Dreams project in the late 1980s, taking the name from one of his early classical guitar compositions, 'Tagebuch der Träume'. The first album, 'Cholymelan', appeared in 1994 on the Dion Fortune label.

Encouraged by this success, Adrian formed his own label Accession and released a string of albums over the following years, building a loyal fanbase each step of the way. The second album 'End of Flowers' was released in 1996, expanding on the darkwave sound of the debut. 'Bird Without Wings' followed a year later, whilst the more experimental work 'Psychoma?' arrived in 1998.

The first sign of consolidation came in 1999, when a compilation album 'Moments of Bloom' appeared, containing two reworked tracks from each album. The next two albums 'One of 18 Angels' and 'Freak Perfume' (plus its companion EP 'PaniK Manifesto') made greater use of electronic rhythms, resulting in greater club play and wider recognition for the band.

Their 2004 'Nigredo' (a concept album inspired by a mythology the band designed themselves) saw a move back towards the more subtle, sparse concepts of old, but still featuring bursts of their more recent, dance-oriented sound. Songs from the Nigredo tour were later released on the live CD 'aLive' and the companion DVD 'Nine In Numbers'. The next Diary of Dreams album 'Nekrolog 43' was released in 2007, offering a greater variety of moods and concepts than previous works. Adrian Hates claims to be influenced, both lyric wise and artwork wise, by the German 1909-1935 expressionism and the "beauty of ugliness" in the course of his work.

The ninth album entitled "(if)" was released on March 13, 2009.

Discography

Albums

* Cholymelan (1994) – re-released in 1999 with four bonus tracks
* End of Flowers (1996)
* Bird Without Wings (1997)
* Psychoma (1998)
* Moments of Bloom (1999)
* One of 18 Angels (2000)
* Freak perfume (2002)
* Dream Collector (2003) (originally a limited South African compilation - later given wider release)
* Nigredo (2004)
* Alive (2005) – live album
* Nekrolog 43 (2007)
* (if) (2009)
* Ego:X (2011)
* Dream Collector II (2012)
* the Anatomy of Silence (2012) - acoustic album
* Elegies in Darkness (2014)
* Grau im Licht (2015)
* reLive (2016)
* hell in Eden (2017)

Singles and EPs

* O' Brother Sleep (2001)
* AmoK (2002)
* PaniK Manifesto (2002) – EP/mini-album
* Giftraum (2004)
* Menschfeind (2005) – EP/mini-album
* The Plague (2007)
* King of Nowhere (2009)

DVDs

* Nine in Numbers (2006)

The Colors Of Grey
Diary of Dreams Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

This is my color
This is my legacy
Take what you need
and leave me behind

This is my offer
Take it or leave it
End of all games

Without me it all remains the same

Come here and live my life
as if it's yours my friend
I know it's hard
so hard to understand
And yet let me beg you
I am tired and weak
Let go of my hand
I feel no regret

Tell me please
where do you come from?
And let me know the price to pay

I wish I knew where I belong to
How did you find me anyway?

Overall Meaning

The opening lines of Diary of Dreams's song, "The Colors Of Grey," express a sense of ownership and attachment to identity: "This is my color / This is my legacy." The singer is staking their claim on something that is uniquely theirs, while also acknowledging the possibility that others may want a piece of it, evidenced by the line, "Take what you need / and leave me behind." The singer appears willing to part with a part of themselves if it means satisfying the needs of others.

The song's chorus repeats the phrase, "Take it or leave it," indicating a sense of urgency and finality to the singer's offer. There is also an acknowledgement that the singer's absence will not drastically impact the world around them, as they sing, "Without me it all remains the same." Despite this reality, there is still a plea for the listener to try to understand the singer's perspective, as they sing: "Come here and live my life / as if it's yours my friend / I know it's hard / so hard to understand."

The final lines of the song express a sense of confusion and dislocation, as the singer wonders where they belong and how they were found: "Tell me please / where do you come from? / And let me know the price to pay / I wish I knew where I belong to / How did you find me anyway?" Overall, "The Colors Of Grey" is a melancholic meditation on identity, connection, and the ways in which we can offer ourselves to others.

Line by Line Meaning

This is my color
This is the essence of who I am

This is my legacy
This is what I will leave behind

Take what you need
Take what you require from me

and leave me behind
Leave me in the past

This is my offer
This is what I can provide

Take it or leave it
It's up to you to choose

End of all games
This is the end of all the games we played

Without me it all remains the same
Without me, nothing will change

Come here and live my life
Experience life from my perspective

as if it's yours my friend
As if it's your own, my friend

I know it's hard
I understand it's difficult