Dreams Tonite
{{short description|2017 song by indie pop band Alvvays}}
{{Infobox song
| name = Dreams Tonite
| cover =
| alt =
| border = yes
| type = single
| artist = Alvvays
| album = Antisocialites
| released = {{Start date|2017|07|25}}{{cite web | title=Dreams Tonite - Alvvays - Releases | website=AllMusic | date=July 25, 2017 | url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/dreams-tonite-mw0003080262/releases | access-date=October 5, 2022}}
| recorded =
| studio =
| genre = Dream pop
| length = {{Duration|m=3|s=16}}
| label = *Royal Mountain
- Polyvinyl
- Transgressive
| writer = * Alec O'Hanley
- Molly Rankin
| producer = {{hlist|Alec O'Hanley|John Congleton}}
| prev_title = In Undertow
| prev_year = 2017
| next_title = Plimsoll Punks
| next_year = 2017
}}
"Dreams Tonite" is a song by Canadian indie pop band Alvvays. It was released on July 25, 2017 as the second single from the band's second studio album, Antisocialites.
Background
"Dreams Tonite" forms the basis of the album's "fantasy breakup arc,"{{cite web | last=Bartleet | first=Larry | title=Q&A: Alvvays' Molly Rankin on Oasis, MGMT, and new album 'Antisocialites' | website=NME | date=September 7, 2017 | url=https://www.nme.com/blogs/nme-blogs/alvvays-interview-antisocialites-2135157 | access-date=October 5, 2022}} with the protagonist questioning whether or not they would still be attracted to their significant other if meeting in the present, rather than the past. The song first became a part of the group's live setlist in early 2016.{{cite web | title=Alvvays: Antisocialites | website=Pitchfork | date=September 7, 2017 | url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/alvvays-antisocialites/ | access-date=October 5, 2022}} The band debuted the song online as a pre-release single for Antisocialites on July 25, 2017.{{cite web | last=Rettig | first=James | title=Alvvays – "Dreams Tonite" | website=Stereogum | date=July 25, 2017 | url=https://www.stereogum.com/1953893/alvvays-dreams-tonite/music/ | access-date=October 5, 2022}} The band promoted the song with a performance on CBS Sunday Morning in the U.S.{{cite web | last=Gray | first=Julia | title=Watch Alvvays Play 3 Songs On CBS This Morning | website=Stereogum | date=June 3, 2018 | url=https://www.stereogum.com/1999503/watch-alvvays-play-3-songs-on-cbs-this-morning/news/ | access-date=October 5, 2022}} "Dreams Tonite" became one of the band's most popular tunes; as of September 2024, the song has over 105 million streams on Spotify.{{cite web | last=Olivier | first=Bobby | title=On Alvvays' Thrilling Blue Rev, Nostalgia Spurs Indie-Rock Triumph | website=SPIN | date=September 25, 2024 | url=https://www.spin.com/2022/10/alvvays-blue-rev-album-review/ | access-date=October 5, 2022}}
Music video
File:Expo 67, pavillons Ontario, Canada, Provinces-de-l'Ouest, et le Minirail..jpg utilizes stock footage of Expo 67.]]
The song's retro-futuristic music video was directed by Matt Johnson, and uses archival footage of Montreal's 1967 International and Universal Exposition. It was released on September 13, 2017.{{cite web | title=Watch Alvvays' New "Dreams Tonite" Video | website=Pitchfork | date=September 13, 2017 | url=https://pitchfork.com/news/watch-alvvays-new-dream-tonite-video/ | access-date=October 5, 2022}} In the clip, the band's members are inserted into the footage digitally.{{cite web | last=Rettig | first=James | title=Alvvays – "Dreams Tonite" Video | website=Stereogum | date=September 13, 2017 | url=https://www.stereogum.com/1962264/alvvays-dreams-tonite-video/news/ | access-date=October 5, 2022}} Mark Byrnes of Bloomberg described the proceedings: "While "visiting" Expo, the members ride the automated Minirail, gape at Buckminster Fuller's geodesic dome, and perform on an outdoor stage for fairgoers."{{cite web | title=Montreal's Expo 67 Lives On (In Music Video Form) | website=Bloomberg | date=September 13, 2017 | url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-09-13/alvvays-relives-expo-67-in-video-for-dreams-tonite | access-date=October 5, 2022}} The band were pleased with the video, given their disdain for the format, especially due to their respect for Johnson.{{cite web | title=Molly Rankin of Alvvays Talks Influences and Inspiration with KEXP | website= KEXP 90.3 FM - Where the Music Matters | url=https://www.kexp.org/read/2018/7/30/molly-rankin-alvvays-talks-influences-inspiration-with-kexp/ | ref={{sfnref | KEXP 90.3 FM - Where the Music Matters }} | access-date=October 5, 2022}}
Reception
Amanda Wicks from Pitchfork suggested the song "looks at the liminal space between [...] two frames of mind, questioning the forces that separate lovers, be they self-made or circumstantial."{{cite web | last=Wicks | first=Amanda | title=Alvvays: "Dreams Tonite" | website=Pitchfork | date=July 26, 2017 | url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/tracks/alvvays-dreams-tonite/ | access-date=October 5, 2022}} Its readers polled the song among the year's overall best.{{cite web | title=Pitchfork Readers' Poll Results 2017 | website=Pitchfork | date=December 22, 2017 | url=https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/pitchfork-readers-poll-results-2017/ | access-date=October 5, 2022}} Tim Sendra from AllMusic praised the "lovely new wave ballad" for "its melancholy nostalgia."{{cite web | last=Sendra | first=Tim | title=Alvvays - Antisocialites Album Reviews, Songs & More | website=AllMusic | date=September 8, 2017 | url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/antisocialites-mw0003057897 | access-date=October 5, 2022}} Randall Colburn at Consequence called the song "relentless in its romanticism,"{{cite web | last=Colburn | first=Randall | title=Alvvays share heart-swelling new single "Dreams Tonite": Stream | website=Consequence | date=July 25, 2017 | url=https://consequence.net/2017/07/alvvays-share-heart-swelling-new-single-dreams-tonite-stream/ | access-date=October 5, 2022}} while Anna Gaca of Spin dubbed it "light, literal dream pop that’s almost too pure for this world."{{cite web | last=Gaca | first=Anna | title=Alvvays – "Dreams Tonite" | website=SPIN | date=July 25, 2017 | url=https://www.spin.com/2017/07/alvvays-dreams-tonite-stream/ | access-date=October 5, 2022}} Mike Gatzig of NPR found the tune "sleek and gauzy,"{{cite web | title=Review: Alvvays, 'Antisocialites' | website=NPR.org | date=August 31, 2017 | url=https://www.npr.org/2017/08/31/547013497/first-listen-alvvays-antisocialites | access-date=October 5, 2022}} while Ethan Sapienza of Vulture found the song "somber", if "slightly clichéd".{{cite web | last1=Jenkins | first1=Craig | last2=Bastién | first2=Angelica Jade | last3=Ebiri | first3=Bilge | last4=Willmore | first4=Alison | title=5 Best New Songs of the Week: Lana Del Rey, Tyler the Creator | website=Vulture | date=July 26, 2017 | url=https://www.vulture.com/2017/07/best-new-songs-of-the-week-lana-del-rey-tyler-the-creator.html | access-date=October 5, 2022}}
Certifications
{{Certification Table Top|caption=Certifications for "Dreams Tonite"}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=Canada|artist=Alvvays|title=Dreams Tonite|award=Gold|type=single|relyear=2017|certyear=2022|access-date=December 3, 2022}}
{{Certification Table Bottom|streaming=true|nosales=true|noshipments=true}}
References
{{Reflist|30em}}
External links
- {{YouTube|id=ZXu6q-6JKjA|title="Dreams Tonite" (music video)}}
{{Alvvays}}
{{authority control}}