Trevor Dunn has been a profession musi… Read Full Bio ↴www.myspace.com/whitewithfoam
Trevor Dunn has been a profession musician, as a bassist and composer, for about 25 years. Still you may ask yourself, "Mad what?". "Trevor who?" There is a perfectly reasonable explanation for this. Back in the mid-'80s he co-founded an avant-rock band called Mr. Bungle and later did time in Mike Patton's cut-and-paste metal outfit Fantômas. He also plays and records extensively with John Zorn among many others [for the full 70+ discography see http://www.trevordunn.net covering a wide range of genres.
In all of these groups Mr. Dunn does what any respectable bass player, who hasn't flipped pizzas since 1986, gets hired to do. Namely, keep his mouth shut and get the job done, which may be the reason his name is less familiar to you then some of his employers [i.e. Yuka Honda, Erik Friedlander, The Melvins, Sean Lennon, a guy from Korn, etc].
It wasn't until 1998 that Trevor stepped out as a leader with his spastic power-chord "jazz" group Trio-Convulsant. A sophomore CD was released on Ipecac Recordings in 2004.
But something was missing. It had been nearly 10 years since Trevor wrote any rock music (Mr. Bungle's last record on Warner Bros. came out in 1999) and he was itching to get back to his roots. Those roots being bands like Cheap Trick, X, The Pretenders and Blondie. Call it jumping on the bandwagon, call it a mid-life crisis, but Dunn decided to start his very own rock band. Enter MadLove.
The name "MadLove" is the English translation of a title by surrealist Andre Breton called "L'Amour Fou" and that's all you need to know about that. If nothing else, it describes the obscure object of desire that drives us all to our insane, inevitable, colorful end.
MadLove recorded in Brooklyn's Studio G in 2008 with a disparate yet psychically connected, hand-picked line-up: Sunny Kim, hailing from Seoul, Korea fronts the band as lead vocalist. Sunny has lead her own band Myth of Mitch and plays with the Prana Trio and a group led by trombonist Roswell Rudd. The all-important guitar chair is held by Icelandic master Hilmar Jensson (Tyft, Kitchen Motors). The drummer, known for his work with Xiu Xiu, Marc Ribot's Ceramic Dog and Theory of Ruin is Ches Smith. Keyboardist Erik Deutch who plays with Devotchka and Charlie Hunter is on hand for the live performances. Trevor, of course, holds down his comfortable position as bassist while stepping up as vocalist on occasion.
The music of MadLove fits snugly somewhere in the genre of "rock". There is no question that the songs are guitar-centric. Around power chords constructed with wrong notes, however, there are melodies that weave in and out of comfort zones; there are drum hooks and melodic bass lines that start on the "and-of-four" and there are Fender Rhodes counter-melodies. Some of the songs are fairly commercial; some will never see the light of radio; Some utilize the classic form of verse-chorus-verse, while others dare to hide form within theme and variation. And somehow, it all sounds cohesive.
In writing for this brand-spanking new band, Dunn wrote intuitively, never over-thinking the songs. Yet one gets the sense that he drew upon his many years experience, as a sideman and as a composer, in order to craft music that is at once engaging, thoughtful and fun to crank on the ol' stereo.
"white with foam", the debut CD from MadLove, will be out on Ipecac Recordings in the Fall of 2009.
Thread
MadLove Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Afraid of the dreams I keep
Wrapped in the dust of my bed
The liver is where we met
But I dream
In spite of me
I can almost see it
Dying is wide awake
Counting the threads that break
Wrapped in the wool of time and
All I resist is mine
But I dream
In spite of me
And I dream
Wide Awake
'Til the seam
Starts to break
Will it break and begin?
I can almost see it
I can almost go within
In "Thread," MadLove appears to be struggling with sleep and fearful of his dreams. He is also feeling weighed down by the past, represented by the "dust" of his bed and memories of where he and his lover once met. The lyrics suggest a sense of being stuck - MadLove cannot escape his thoughts and anxieties, no matter how hard he tries. However, he still clings to hope and the possibility of a new beginning. In his dreams, MadLove sees visions of a better future, one where he is able to break free from the limitations holding him back. The repeated refrain of "I can almost see it, I can almost go within" highlights his yearning for something beyond his current circumstances.
The song touches on themes of anxiety, depression, and hope in the face of adversity. The image of counting the threads that break suggests that MadLove is focused on the small failures and setbacks that keep him from moving forward. Despite this, he refuses to give up on his dreams, holding onto the possibility of change despite his fears. The last line of the song, "Will it break and begin?" suggests a moment of reckoning - MadLove is willing to take risks and see where they will lead, even if it means things must break in order to start anew.
Line by Line Meaning
Finding it hard to sleep
I am struggling to fall asleep and rest my mind
Afraid of the dreams I keep
I am scared of the nightmares and negative thoughts that haunt me in my sleep
Wrapped in the dust of my bed
I am stuck in my own vulnerable state of mind, unable to escape the negativity around me
The liver is where we met
The place where we first met and connected was filled with life and positive energy
But I dream
Despite the hardships and negative thoughts, I still have hope for a better future
In spite of me
I may not believe in myself, but I still believe in the power of dreaming
I can almost see it
I can envision a better future and a new beginning
I can almost go within
I can feel myself coming closer to achieving my dreams and finding inner peace
Dying is wide awake
Death can come at any moment, and I fear not being able to fulfill my dreams and live my life to the fullest
Counting the threads that break
I am mindful of the obstacles that may prevent me from achieving my goals
Wrapped in the wool of time and
I am constantly limited and restrained by the passage of time and life's circumstances
All I resist is mine
I am the only one who can overcome the obstacles in my way and achieve my dreams
'Til the seam starts to break
I will continue to dream and pursue my goals, even when the road is difficult or uncertain
Will it break and begin?
I wonder if the obstacles in my way will ever break, allowing me to begin my journey towards my dreams
Contributed by Jonathan D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
kulesa
Finding it hard to sleep
Afraid of the dreams I keep
Wrapped in the dust of my bed
The liver is where we met
But I dream
In spite of me
I can almost see it
I can almost go within
Dying is wide awake
Counting the threads that break
Wrapped in the wool of time and
All I resist is mine
But I dream
In spite of me
And I dream
Wide Awake
'Til the seam
Starts to break
Will it break and begin?
I can almost see it
I can almost go within
Ron yanai
Can't get this out of my head. Still can't
Rocio Jazmín
<3