Big Words Release Debut Album 'Nightmares of a Stardom Dream'

Fast-rising Australian band Big Words have released their highly anticipated debut album Nightmares of a Stardom Dream via Believe. The album features latest singles “Summer Never Felt This Sad” and “Speed Racer” as well as lead single “You’re So Wonderful.”

The album also welcomes new tracks including “Tell Me That You Love Me,” a cry of unrequited longing dedicated to an idea of love that will only remain as such. Sonically inspired by the likes of Queen and The Beatles, the new single encapsulates the dream of idealism as it’s sometimes all we have.

“Tell Me That You Love Me” follows the recent release of singles “Summer Never Felt This Sad,” which wrestles with denying the love you have for someone and breaking their heart as you also break your own, and “You’re So Wonderful” an easygoing, short-distance sprint through what love has to offer that reminds us that all romantic relationships are beautiful, even when cut short.

“You’re So Wonderful” was followed by “Speed Racer,” a surreal, intoxicating memory whose glitchy, alt-R&B sound explores themes of intoxicating lust and the hollows of loss that follow abandoned desire.

Recorded over two years across three different studios, Nightmares of a Stardom Dream is an honest representation of the band’s lived experiences that sways from psychedelic-soul grooves to alt-R&B bops to cosmic folk to infectious indie-pop.

Capturing the existential melting pot of early adulthood - all the excitement, uncertainty, dread and hope at once – the independent album expands on the cult success and critical-acclaim that followed their EP Hollywood, A Beautiful Coincidence, Big Words have benefited from taking the long way around – giving their debut album time to breathe and develop a sense of unhurried yearning.

“We had to scheme on this record for so long that it made it better than what we could have imagined it to be,” shares Big Words’ Kieren Lee on Nightmares of a Stardom Dream. “If we had the budget and everything straight away, it wouldn’t have come out the same way as it did, with all the favors we pulled and experiences we had along the way.”

“It’s about what you feel in your 20s,” adds Will Scullin on the album. “A lot of the lyrical themes come back to the idea of being yourself.”

Writing songs that pull at the thread of life in your 20s to delve into their own experiences including love, doubt, anxiety, and courage, multi-instrumentalists and singers Will and Kieren and drummer Teon celebrate the poetry and authenticity of day-to-day life by embracing their unpolished, imperfect humanity. Documenting their coming of age through their music, Big Words lead with human connection at the forefront of their art to make memories.

Organically earning over 26 million global streams and earning acclaim from NME, Earmilk, Wonderland, Atwood Magazine, Flaunt, and more for creating music that soundtracks moments in people’s lives, Big Words released their mixtape Cherry – a lockdown induced diversion which embraced experimental imperfections – and their 2017 debut EP Hollywood, A Beautiful Coincidence which saw the band establish an international following with standout tracks “The Answer” and “Soul Jam.”

With their earlier raw and more acoustic songs, Big Words began melding their love of singer-producers, hip-hop beats, and obsession with melody with their influences which range from Feist to Frank Sinatra, Empire of The Sun to The Beach Boys, to Travis Scott and more.

photo credit: Kimberly Canales

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