Artists / Dear Tracks

Dear Tracks
Soft Dreams

Catalog Numbers: TNF015 / FH-038 / FH:VI-015
Release Date: February 26, 2016
Genre: Dream Pop
Radio Friendly: Yes
Type: EP
Purchase: Bandcamp
Links: Discogs Info | Spotify

pressing information

Digital: Worldwide
Vinyl: Furhoof: Sixth Man and Track & Field Records

• 1st Press (2016): 250
  – ”Violet” x 125 (Furhoof)
  – ”Mint Green” x 125 (Track & Field)
  Solid “Violet” (only available from Furhoof mail-order) or solid “Mint Green” (only available from Track & Field mail-order) 10” vinyl with full-color matte jacket and greyscale A/B labels. All hand-numbered. Furhoof hand-stamped.

Cassette Tape: Furhoof: Sixth Man and Track & Field Records

• 1st Press (2016): 200
  – ”Mint Green” x 75 (Furhoof)
  – ”Violet” x 75 (Track & Field)
  – ”Carnation Pink” x 50 (Dear Tracks tour)
  Solid “Mint Green” (only available from Furhoof mail-order), solid “Violet” (only available from Track & Field mail-order), or solid “Carnation Pink” (only available on tour from Dear Tracks) cassette with black ink A-side imprint, full-color 4-Panel J-Card (two-sided), in clear plastic Norelco case. Hand-numbered.

Release Biography

Dear Tracks is quite a departure from frontman Matt Messore’s former band, You Blew It!, but moving from Florida to Grand Rapids, Michigan can change your perspective and your sound. Messore says, “I moved to Michigan in 2013 with some bedroom recordings and the hope of forming a dream pop project with a friend I've known since 2007. I felt Michigan was a good place to move since I had always played good shows there on previous tours, and I felt it would be easier for me to focus on music there.”

Messore joined with Victoria Ovenden (synth/keyboards/backing vocals), Jacob Juodawlkis (bass) and Alex Militello (drums/percussion) to build the band that became Dear Tracks. Their first official release was a 7” single on Track & Field Records for the song “Wildflower” in early 2015 and they spent the rest of the year writing and recording 4 new songs for an EP enittled ‘Soft Dreams.’ The resulting jangly guitars, dreamy synths and drowned out vocals nod to The Jesus and Mary Chain, but much is owed to current bands like DIIV, Beach Fossils and Real Estate. Dear Tracks sounds like the way you feel after a long Michigan winter, when you can finally sit outside on a sun-soaked, neverending summer day. The first single “All the Outs Are Free” premiered via My Old Kentucky Blog.

The band's EP, ‘Soft Dreams,’ was released digitally worldwide on February 26th 2016, as well as on limited edition 10” vinyl and cassette via Furious Hooves (violet vinyl, mint tape) and Track & Field Records (mint vinyl, violet tape). Dear Tracks toured the EP release in March 2016 throughout the midwest and east coast including a date at Savannah Stopover festival. They also filmed and recorded a live session for Daytrotter. This EP ended up being the final release under the Dear Tracks moniker, before changing their name to Houseplants and releasing one more self-titled EP in 2017 on Yellow K Records.

Since then, Dear Tracks’ founding member Matt Messore moved back to Florida and started a new project called Cathedral Bells in 2019. They have released multiple singles, an EP, and two full-lengths: ‘Velvet Spirit’ on Good Eye Records and ‘Ether’ on Spirit Goth Records, all in the short span of two years.

Press & Accolades

• “Soft Dreams” from ‘Soft Dreams’ EP was included in BIRP!’s February 2016 Playlist.

• ‘Soft Dreams’ EP has over 32.9K streams on Soundcloud.

• Filmed and recorded a live session for Daytrotter in 2016 featuring all songs from ‘Soft Dreams’ EP.

“Think John Hughs meets Beach House topped with whipped cream, a cherry, and that mix tape your imaginary boyfriend would have made you in the early 90’s.”
– Audio Femme, Playng Detroit feature and review.

“Opener ‘Moment of Clarity’ is the aural equivalent of a faded film of vacation snaps, bleached by light or time or both so that all blemishes are removed, while ‘All The Outs Are Free’ is like Nirvana on a tropical cruise, the vocals decidedly low against the soaring instrumentation.”
– Various Small Flames, review of ‘Soft Dreams’ EP.

"Laced with tight guitar melodies and hanging synths, the comedown song feels right as the moment the sun starts to fade on a vibrant day.”
– My Old Kentucky Blog, premiere of “All the Outs Are Free.”

“‘Soft Dreams’ is laced with star-lit hooks and sparse arrangements while still applying the hazy veil used by shoegaze stalwarts (My Bloody Valentine, Slowdive, Cocteau Twins). Cereal Pairing: Hershey’s Cookies ‘n’ Creme.”
– Cereal and Sounds, review of ‘Soft Dreams’ EP.

“The title track of the quartet’s forthcoming effort is also a fitting finale, with aqueous guitar textures trickling through a hazy, c86-indebted soundscape that serves as a beautiful composite of Dear Tracks’ lush aesthetic. with dreamy vocals that sit just right in the mix, it’s hard not to get lost in this one.”
– Dimestore Saints, review of “Soft Dreams.”

“We needed something jangly and shoegaze-y – like cowbell, you can never have enough of either. Fortunately for us, Grand Rapids, Michigan residents, Dear Tracks recently shared their wicked new single, ‘Soft Dreams.’ The track is a dreamy, laid-back gem that brings comparison to bands like Real Estate or DIIV. The jangly guitars, light and airy vocals keep you wanting for more and will be the perfect track to play on a sun-soaked summer or even wintry day.”
– The Revue, review of “Soft Dreams” featured on their Saturday Sampler.

“The Midwest dreamers at heart Matt Messore, Victoria Ovenden, Jacob Juodawlkis, and Alex Militello continue ahead on their chosen paths of creating music that brings the endearing aspects of their moniker like gazing with a naturalist wonder and care at tracks left in the wake from deer trotting through the wooden sanctuary of a forest.”
– Impose, Week in Pop feature review and interview with Dear Tracks.

“For fans of dream pop, these past few days have been exciting. With new music being released from all-time favorites DIIV and Wild Nothing. But there’s one lesser known band from Grand Rapids, MI who is deserving of your ears.”
– Indie Current, review of “All the Outs Are Free.”

“…four songs that found a loophole from the Eighties straight into the 21st Century. ‘All The Outs Are Free’ is pushed forward by a simple but really catchy motif and ‘Alive’ with guitar lines that could played by The Cure back in the day…”
– Here Comes The Flood, review of ‘Soft Dreams’ EP.

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