No Dream Explained

No Dream
Type:studio
Artist:Jeff Rosenstock
Cover:NO DREAM cover.jpg
Recorded:February 2020
Studio:The Atomic Garden Recording Studios
Length:40:14
Producer:"Grammy Jack" Shirley
Prev Title:Post-
Prev Year:2018
Next Title:Ska Dream
Next Year:2021

No Dream (stylized as N OD R E A M[1]) is the fourth solo album by American singer-songwriter Jeff Rosenstock. It was released on May 20, 2020, without any promotional lead-up. The album was released on Polyvinyl Record Co. in the United States and by Specialist Subject Records in the United Kingdom. It is also available directly from the artist through Quote Unquote Records and Really Records.

Ten percent of proceeds from any digital sales made from the album are being donated to the Food Not Bombs mutual aid network.

On April 20, 2021 Rosenstock released Ska Dream (stylized as S K AD R E A M), a fully rerecorded rendition of the album as a ska album.

Critical reception

No Dream was met with universal acclaim reviews from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, this release received an average score of 85, based on 7 reviews.

In the review for Exclaim!, Adam Feibel wrote that the album was "probably the most Jeff Rosenstock of all Jeff Rosenstock records thus far. It's fun, loud and boisterous. It's packed to the brim but sounds so simple. It's sneakily cheeky and curiously charming." Writing for Pitchfork, Ian Cohen claimed that the album was "quintessential Jeff Rosenstock—an album formulated around evergreen sociopolitical concerns yet sounds like it could’ve been written 30 minutes ago." Talking the album in a review for Under the Radar, Caleb Campbell stated that "[Rosenstock] is just as self-effacing, funny, and principled as ever. He is still creating quality additions to one of the most consistent punk discographies out there. Most importantly, his music is still an absolute blast to experience, looking towards an uncertain future with a beautiful collective spirit."

Kyle Kohner was slightly more reserved when appraising the album for Beats Per Minute, claiming that "NO DREAM can be rather skin-deep when it comes to commentary on society-at-large, it’s a little more complex and tender when the record veers to Rosenstock himself as the subject. Through every desire to watch it all crash and burn into rubble, Rosenstock also throws in instances that are disarmingly human." Reviewing the album for AllMusic, Mark Deming called it a "passionate and kicks out the jams, not suggesting he wants to reinvent the wheel but that he knows how to get it to roll and pushes it fast and hard in the right direction."

Accolades

Accolades for No Dream
PublicationAccoladeRank
PitchforkThe 35 Best Rock Albums of 2020
StereogumStereogums 50 Best Albums of 2020 – Mid-Year
The RingerThe Best Albums of 2020

Personnel

Death Rosenstock

Additional personnel

Ska Dream

Ska Dream
Type:studio
Artist:Jeff Rosenstock
Recorded:2021
Length:39:30
Producer:Jack "Metal Guy" Shirley
Prev Title:No Dream
Prev Year:2020
Next Title:Hellmode
Next Year:2023

Ska Dream was announced through Twitter on April Fools' Day, 2021, and was released on April 20.[2] Due to the lack of other promotion, many assumed the announcement was a joke.

Although the song titles are all altered to contain puns and references to ska culture, the lyrics are identical to the original album (with the exception of a rapped guest verse by Boboso on the third track and a few additional lines sung by Anika Pyle on the final track). Two tracks' new arrangements contain brief quotes from songs by other artists: the first track quotes "Our Time" by The Suicide Machines, the seventh quotes "Nite Klub" by The Specials.[3]

Personnel

Death Rosenstock

Additional Personnel

Notes and References

  1. jeffrosenstock . 1265142153082056704 . May 26, 2020 . FYI it's "N O D R E A M" you would not believe how tough it was to try and get that to display properly on the internet things hahahaha.
  2. jeffrosenstock . 1377670986581995522 . April 1, 2021 . 4/20.
  3. News: Pearis . Bill . April 20, 2021 . Jeff Rosenstock releases Ska Dream, a ska version of No Dream . BrooklynVegan . October 18, 2022.