With Courtney Bailey’s debut album In Dream, the Tokyo-born, Berlin-based artist translates her many years of experience as a DJ into an autonomous, highly sensitive sonic language. From the first track to the last, the album traces a search for self and for a personal aesthetic – in an intimate, almost introspective way. Bailey weaves together influences from ambient, New Age and club music with a gently yearning spirituality that recalls her Japanese roots. In Dream thrives on gossamer synth landscapes and blurred Japanese vocals. Bailey invites her listeners to drift along and fully immerse themselves in her small, personal world.
The first half of the album unfolds within a meditative, floating space, as exemplified by the title track »In Dream«. A distinctive melodic line carries a form of Japanese spoken song, resting harmoniously atop ethereal textures and soft, almost choral background vocals. »Kokoro No Koe« works with whispered fragments of speech layered over a softly pulsing yet richly detailed backdrop, further intensifying the dreamlike atmosphere.
With »Under the Water«, the album reaches its atmospheric peak: bubbling sonic fragments rise like air bubbles slowly making their way to the surface. The muted vocals recall the singing of mythical sirens dwelling in the depths. The sound feels dense and slightly constricting, yet never threatening – more like a veil that wraps itself protectively around the listener. »Like A Heaven« then brings a more danceable turn, while also surprising with an acid-leaning breakdown that never undermines the groove’s effect.
In Dream
