Dreams So Real: Trent Allen Reminisces about the Band, the Scene and the Dream E126

Athens, GA didn’t just produce great bands; it produced a whole value system. When Trent Allen from Dreams So Real joins us, we get into why Athens carried “artsy credibility,” why Atlanta bands sometimes got brushed off, and how those scene politics affected real careers, real audiences, and real opportunities.

We also zoom in on the moment when underground experimentation started turning into something more intentional: tighter songwriting, bigger goals, and the push to tour and get signed. That’s where the “selling out” debate gets messy. We talk about why wanting radio play and a broader audience isn’t automatically a compromise and why making music that connects can be its own kind of integrity.

Along the way, Trent shares the influences that shaped him, from The Beatles to XTC, plus stories that only happen when you’re close to the heart of a scene. If you love Athens music history, ’80s alternative rock, and the behind-the-scenes truth about how bands survive, hit play, then subscribe, share the show with a friend, and leave us a review.

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Transcript

Welcome And Trent Allen Joins

SPEAKER_01 0:33

That was Victoria, kicking off episode 126. I'm thrilled to be here with you. Let's start something new or remember something old. A couple of episodes ago, Kevin Kinney was on the show with Johnny Hickman, and he was talking about Atlanta bands struggling to make it in Athens and Athens bands being able to break in Atlanta. And the first band that he mentioned was a band called Dream So Real. And we're so lucky today to have Trent Allen, who was in Dream So Real, joining us on Music in My Shoes. Welcome, Trent. How are you today?

SPEAKER_02 1:10

I'm doing great. Thank you for having me. Love talking about it. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 1:14

Yes, thank you for being part of it. Thanks so much. Yeah, so real quick, you know, Kevin brought that up. He brings up Dream So Real, and we just thought, hey, we we need to track it down. We need to get it on.

SPEAKER_00 1:27

Oh, the funny thing was, I was on a text, like an unrelated text with Trent anyway. I'm like, hey, Kevin Kenny happened to say this, and he's like, oh, I should come on the podcast. So here we are.

SPEAKER_01 1:36

And here we are.

Athens Vs Atlanta Scene Divide

SPEAKER_01 1:38

So what are your recollections, you know, as an Athens band going to Atlanta? Did you find that it was something that was easier to do than the Atlanta bands that were coming out to Athens?

SPEAKER_02 1:51

You know, it's funny to look back on this now. I suppose it's a lot clearer or it seems clearer now than it probably did at the time. But I I think, you know, when when uh Jimmy mentioned this on the on the text thread, my my thought was that, you know, in Athens, we think about the Athens bands from the early um era of, you know, the new era. B52s, you know, REM, Pylon, Love Tractor, these are all artsy bands that sort of had this kind of artsy credibility that, you know, and I think Athens was a good big part of that, just the ability to kind of had no expectations over here and and and sort of incubate and just anything was accepted. But then once the success of of those few bands happened, you know, going over to Atlanta was was um, you know, what's what's next from from Athens. Where you know, I remember not feeling the same way about Atlanta, and and you know, the the bands were a little different. I mean, at one point it was, you know, the producers or there was this band, The Surf. I don't know if you guys remember that them. I don't. And and and and then, you know, he had swimming pool cues and some of those guys, but but it it it was it seemed like a little more traditional stuff, not as experimental, not as not as you know, funky and wild. And and another thing I remember is is some of our like when I first came to school here, it was like the Atlanta kids had mohawks and like, you know, you know, purple hair or that kind of stuff, whereas the the Athens or the sort of what the Athens music kind of people were a lot more sort of straight Bohemian, you know, kind of not trying too hard. Um, so I I think that uh what without overanalyzing it here, which I've already done, I suppose, is is that there probably was some truth to it. I mean, it's like you come over here and and and and an athlet Atlanta band maybe was just discounted a little bit, dismissed a little bit. And I think another thing that was happening was during that time that that Driving and Crying and Dream So Real were coming along was right when things were changing in terms of the music a little bit, right? It was going from this completely experimental, almost, you know, you think of Pylon, you know, some of the guys weren't even really musicians, or once they were musicians, they didn't realize they were musicians until they started playing instruments. The idea of doing anything more than recording for the fun of it, and like actually having a record contract or or going on tour and those kinds of things were you know, it sounded fun. It wasn't like a goal so much. And by the time we came around, that that was a lot, that had changed a little bit. There was a lot more um uh a lot more, you know, songwriting was a little more intentional, I would say. And and what you were trying to do is a little more intentional. So that that probably changed a little bit, and I don't think Atlanta had the reputation yet for that.

SPEAKER_00 5:11

Yeah, and I think there back then everybody was looking for the next REM, you know, and you guys were mentioned in that breath a lot, and so you know, you were in a band that was really getting to that next level, in my eyes at least.

Intentional Songwriting And The Sellout Label

SPEAKER_00 5:28

I was I was in a band that was down on the lower level, but you guys really had some success.

SPEAKER_02 5:33

We did, we did, and um, you know, and again, it was we we we we probably got criticized a little bit as almost like the first band that was coming in here trying to have success. I mean, of course, we we didn't move here, we we met here, you know. Um, I came up from South Georgia with my drummer buddy, and we met um Barry, and uh, you know, he was a bit older, he already had some experience. He was more of a songwriter, and so it was it was we still had the same, I think, ideals of being alternative and trying to do something different, but it was again a little more intentional. We were musicians already, you know, and that was almost um not allowed in in Athens. That but that was how kind of artsy we were. But really, REM was were kind of that way too. I mean, they I guess Michael Sack went to art school. I don't know how many of the other guys were actually art school guys, but but uh, you know, they they knew how to Peabuck certainly knew how to play guitar.

SPEAKER_00 6:38

Right. And I felt like you know, there was such an anti selling out aesthetic in Athens that it really discouraged sometimes bands from really pursuing making music that's accessible or potentially has commercial potential because you didn't want to be considered a sellout.

SPEAKER_02 6:58

Yeah, that and it's kind of ironic because it's like really it wasn't our goal to be a sellout. It was our goal to be able to be and you know, get the music out to the as many people as possible.

Radio Gatekeepers Before 99X

SPEAKER_02 7:11

One of the things that kind of held us back, and I think Driving and Crying, of course, well, they you know, he was a little more committed, I suppose, than we were, but at that time, airplay was literally 96 Rock. There was no 99X yet. Or, you know, out in LA, I think where we recorded Rough Night in Jericho, we were all impressed because they had this essentially a 99X like and I'm referring to the Atlanta station, you know, from the 90s or whatever. Um, they already had that station out in LA, and we were like, wow, this is great. They're playing Robin Hitchcock, you know, they're playing the Smiths, whatever. Um uh and it it was it was refreshing and different. We didn't have that here. We were playing, you know, we were getting airplane on 96 right along with Leonard Skinnard and Journey. Yes. You know, and and uh that wasn't that wasn't easy. I think the smithereens kind of got some could kind of fit in there, and we were fitting in there a little bit, but it was it was awkward, I would say.

SPEAKER_01 8:10

Yeah, for me, Trent, I grew up in New York and I had the ability to listen to radio station WLIR, which was playing whatever alternative, what was hot at the moment, or coming, you know, over from um from London or anywhere actually in England as a as a import, and they were playing all that, and that was what I was listening to. And I'm sure you're referring to KROQ in in Los Angeles, which was very similar to what I was listening to. And we've talked about it on the show, how you didn't get a lot of that music throughout the entire country. And if you didn't listen to a college radio station or have an older brother that suggested you listen to it, or or older sister, I guess it was really tough, like you say, that airplay of not being mixed in with all these other different bands that maybe didn't really fit with what you know you were putting out. And I was fortunate enough to to be able to hear stations where I heard REM right from the Chronictown uh EP all the way through um Let's Active and you know just all these different bands that was really cool to be a part of.

SPEAKER_00 9:29

Yeah, and you heard them on a mainstream commercial station in the 80s, right?

SPEAKER_01 9:35

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 9:36

And for us in Atlanta, we had album 88, but it was hit and missed. Sometimes you'd hear really great emerging alternative stuff, and sometimes it was just kind of experimental things that they felt like playing, but you were lucky to have a station like that.

SPEAKER_02 9:50

I was gonna say that sort of the same thing, it's just like, you know, UOG here and and and RAS and Atlanta, they they they had that, they were playing that stuff, but they were also sort of obligated, I guess you would say, to play even crazier weird stuff. And it was at some point trying to gain more listeners, of course, wasn't their wasn't their mission anyway, but trying to gain more listeners wasn't what they were doing. So, you know, it was but but the different thing about ROQ is that what you said it was KRQ. Um K Rod. They were, you know, it was it was they weren't going so experimental that they would lose listeners. So I mean that was I think that was what we were trying to do is like broaden the base here, you know, get more people into this, and uh um and and let it grow and be bigger.

Label Leverage And Career Hiccups

SPEAKER_02 10:47

So it wasn't uh I guess the way I look at it was we weren't trying to be successful to be successful. We were trying to be successful to spread the gospel, sort of in a way.

SPEAKER_00 10:57

Yeah, and it makes me think of one time I read a quote from Peter Buck that throughout times in REM's career, people would accuse them of selling out, especially in Athens, you know. Oh, now they've gone over the top, now they're too commercial. And uh Peter Buck said something to the effect of, I'll put my job up against anybody else's, and I guarantee you I make fewer concessions than you do. And it's like, you know, you you held to a different standard when you're a musician sometimes.

SPEAKER_02 11:26

I think that they, I mean, if if they have any legacy, it is that they did what they wanted. I mean, probably to the point of detriment, you know, they not that they could have been bigger, faster. I mean, I think that they did the the right thing, but you know, I again I don't know, I forget what you know, they were on IRS and they did a record deal with Warner later, but I mean, when the the the thing at the time for record deals when we came along were like these really long contracts, like 10 albums. And really the the artist had very little leverage with that. And so, you know, it wasn't a it wasn't good to have a 10 album deal. I mean, part of REM's success was they had a four or five or whatever album deal with IRS, and then they were ready, you know, to be able to kind of cash in, if you will. But, you know, there there are trade-offs, and it's very difficult. They were they were in a better position, but but I don't care who you are, you're you're constantly making the the trade-off, unless you already have this leverage, of trying to please someone else, you know, to to get to continue, continue on. And and I think we kind of hit that. We had this initial success, and then we, you know, as soon as a hiccup came and some people moved around in the record label, you know, then we were having to kind of reconsider what we were doing. And it's you know, if we weren't going to continue on with the label, were we going to continue on as a group? And and that's where I give Kevin and you know, the driving and crying guys, who we were we mirrored each other, you know, we were together um literally at the same time, kind of getting bigger, getting signed, all of that stuff. And and I I forget what their story is, is they if they I'm sure they've eventually lost a record deal with whoever they were with. And uh, in fact, I was trying to remember who they were with, Electra or someone. But um, I mean, back then, if you didn't have a record company, you didn't have a chance, right? You know, and and it was very difficult to get a record deal, you know, back then.

SPEAKER_00 13:40

Yeah, the interesting thing for me is, you know, a lot of my friends that were in kind of uh what I'd say maybe like a mid-tier band that got some sort of a record deal. Whereas my band got we had a guy, you know, we had a guy that had his own label at air quotes with the greatest guy ever, and we're so lucky we had him. But the cool thing now is that we own all of our masters and we didn't sign these kind of contracts that kind of screwed us. And some of my friends that, oh, they they got a major label deal, but they don't own those songs anymore. They can't actually even put them up on Spotify.

SPEAKER_02 14:13

Yeah, I mean, ours were lost for a while, and we finally got them, we got them up, but yeah, they're not there, the recordings aren't owned by by us. You see a lot of bands kind of re-recording their stuff to make it sound as much like the original as possible so that they can just kind of get get more off of that. Um, yeah, that's that's an another interesting part of the of the of the old way uh of record deals and so forth. I mean, I don't think that we felt like we got a bad record deal or anything. I mean, other than just in general, that at the time um, you know, uh they weren't really basically the label had every option to drop you every time. I mean, you were you were kind of earning a a new record deal each record, but if you were successful, they had you for 10 records. Right. Yeah.

What Selling Out Really Means

SPEAKER_01 15:05

So, Trent, let me ask you a question. I'm not a musician, that's why I do a podcast. But as far as the selling out part, you know, you want to sell records, you want your songs on the radio. So isn't there part of it that in order to make money to be able to continue to do this, that you have to have some concessions of doing things to make it better for a broader audience?

SPEAKER_02 15:35

I mean, I I absolutely it's almost uh comical that we're we're having to to even debate that in essence. But yeah, I mean, that's that's my feeling. In fact, I'd probably even take it further. I I have such great respect, even like now looking back on what was considered manufactured music, you know, like the monkeys or the partridge family. It's like I don't care. I don't care who it is, it's difficult to have a hit song. And if you can put it together, however, you can put it together, and you can you can argue about the quality of the music or something, but but still, it's very difficult. I've been listening to this um, and uh you guys have probably heard it too, this um podcast, uh the history of rock music and 500 songs. This guy, have you heard this? This guy is amazing. Uh the the detail. Uh there'll be like three-hour, well, three-part episodes that are an hour and a half each on you know, um, sympathy for the devil. And it's really not about the song Sympathy for the Devil, but it's kind of about the Rolling Stones during that era. But um, but it it's really interesting here. Some of the there's some episodes on the monkeys and that sort of thing. But to kind of go back to the question, it it's again, I I feel like there's an achievement in producing music, you know, whether you're the artist himself or the producer, and in the in this case, I don't mean literally the record producer, like like um, you know, your George Martin, but but actually George Martin's probably a good example. I mean, he was an integral part of figuring out how to take this stuff and make it great, you know, and listenable. And and and you know, uh that's not easy to do. And and I think I think that people dismiss that dismiss it as a sellout. Or I saw Henry Rollins on a on a thing on Instagram. It was, I guess he was on uh um Howard Stern, where he's like just saying Bono was you know complete trash. And you know, Britney Spears was okay because that was different. They're not trying to, you know, think of themselves as so important. I guess maybe that's a different level of criticism, is when you're when you're um self-important on top of creating music, right?

SPEAKER_00 18:03

Huh. I saw um Henry Rollins used to have a show that was on. I can't remember what network that was on, MTV maybe, I'm not sure. But uh he had Gene Simmons on one time, and Gene Simmons said, I never cared anything about the music. It was always just about getting money and girls. And Henry Rollins just nodded right along with him, didn't call him out on that at all. So I uh Henry doesn't have a leg to stand on criticizing Bono, in my opinion. That's true.

Influences From Beatles To XTC

SPEAKER_01 18:30

So Trent, tell us a little bit about who influenced you when you were younger? Who did you listen to? What bands, what artists?

SPEAKER_02 18:38

Well, you know, I had an older brother, and so uh, you know, he he was a Beatles freak, and so Beatles for sure, you know, were were even though they were a little before my time, you know, I was five years old basically when they broke up, but um, but but they of course were a big impact, and really he had an impact on me. He came to Athens and he was the one feeding me, you know, this music, B52s, and and like right when it came out. I mean, I had the I had the REM single 45, you know, when it came out. Um, in fact, I probably have two or three copies of that thing still, um, the original hip tone thing.

SPEAKER_03 19:19

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 19:19

So, you know, a lot of the stuff that he he gave me an appreciation for kind of the hit you know, again, the history, almost the history of music, rock music. And so that was a nice grounding in the who and whatever, um, you know, Rolling Stones, that kind of stuff. But but that was also the time period where like XTC was coming up. And and actually, by if if if I were talking about, I was, you know, a bass guy for Dream So Real, and you know, I was a big Grandfunk Railroad, you know, when we were in high school, and there was an older guy we were jamming with, and he knew Grandfunk Railroad, and we knew Grandfunk Railroad, so we were we would we in their trio, you know, we would play that stuff. But then, um, but then, you know, when when XTC and and some of that stuff that was before I came to college was was was really part of the late, late 70s and early 80s, the police, that kind of stuff, all of that stuff was really, you know, activating me. And and the and honestly, the the artsy part of Athens, realizing that some of these bands, like the side effects.

SPEAKER_00 20:28

Oh, they were so great. I love them.

SPEAKER_02 20:30

Yeah, it's like they don't, it's like you got the sense that these people, it's not even it's not about being a great musician. And actually, that's something that I'd rather I'd rather be a sellout than be like this virtuoso musician that can just play that all he knows how to do is play, you know, you know, all over the guitar. I cannot, I can't sometimes when there's although I will say I'm a I'm a big rush fan, and if you call them virtuosos, then I'm then I'm contradicting myself. But but um the overplaying is is a problem.

Tasteful Playing Without Overplaying

SPEAKER_02 21:07

I think, I think to me, that's a biggest thing, and kind of as taste goes, is if you're that good, the ability to to not overdo it and and make it about the song, make it about the um the performance, and not make it about the you know the number of notes you can play in 60 seconds.

SPEAKER_00 21:26

Yeah, I heard that about Elliot Easton, that he used to just you know solo all the time. He was such a great guitar player for the cars, and that Rick was you know producing the records and he was like, All right, Elliot, you got eight bars, here you go. And then go to town and he would do these searing little short solos, but he he got had to be kept in its place a little bit.

SPEAKER_02 21:46

The cars, you know, it it turns out he lives in Atlanta, I believe, right? And and uh I think Ben Orr lived in Atlanta when he died. And I was I was thinking, wow, he had this um Rickenbacker base that I don't know if he had just Taken the the pick guard off of it or or or what, but it was his weird looking bass because it didn't, it was the Rick 401 401 bass, I guess, but it didn't have the pick guard, so it looked different. And I was like, I was kind of a big fan of his. And I I I know he's probably well, he's he's the ultimate rock star, and he's probably there's a little bit of cheese factor with that, but he was a great singer, tasteful player, and I mean, uh, you know, and such a rock god. I mean, that that guy. I'd like I'd like to find that bass and buy that bass from somebody, whoever owns it.

SPEAKER_00 22:40

Oh, that's a good one to know. Let's let's find it.

Million Dollar Guitars And Music Collectors

SPEAKER_01 22:43

Yeah, you know, speaking of that, the other day, David Gilmore's guitar, I believe it was the his black guitar, sold for 14, I believe 14 and a half million dollars. Whoa.

SPEAKER_02 22:56

I saw that.

SPEAKER_01 22:57

Is that not insane?

SPEAKER_02 22:59

That is insane. That is insane. I mean, I guess that's where we are. It's and it I mean you wonder if it'll keep getting keep getting more and more and more valuable given that um, you know, I suppose I suppose the people that are most interested in it probably are at the point in their lives when they have the most money. That's true, yes. Will that continue? You know?

SPEAKER_01 23:23

Well, then Jerry Garcia's guitar was sold, I believe, for 11, 11 and a half million. And the next night, I think Derek Trucks was playing it with uh the band and just wailing away on it. And I absolutely love that. I love that it's not going and sitting in a museum, even though I would love to visit it. But the fact that someone's actually playing it and using it for what it's supposed to be used for, I think that's really cool.

SPEAKER_02 23:56

You know, you you guys know Peter Stroud that he played in our band and he's Cheryl Crowe's guitar player. Oh, yeah. I didn't realize he played in your band. Yeah, yeah. He was uh he was towards the end, you know, we had we did our second album and we were going on tour and we kind of hired him as a second guitar player, but then he, you know, he kind of became a band member for a bit. So it was just kind of at the tail end. But um he was, you know, he's playing with this band Close Enemies Now, right? And and it's made of these legend guys, and the drummer was the I forgot his name. Um, I hate that, but he was uh Rod Stewart's drummer. He was like the drummer in the babies, and and we so so Peter's son got married over here in Athens, and um I went and matter of fact, matter of fact, I sang a song. Peter asked me to sing a song, he and I played a song um at the at the wedding because we know I know Dylan, um, his son Dylan as well. And uh, but anyway, this guy, the drummer, was telling the story about you know, you know, he's got an accent. He's like, Oh yeah, I saw Doringo the other day. Oh, yeah, really? Okay, cool. Um uh yeah, he said that you know the the get the drums kit he played on on um um Ed Sullivan, he he sold it this guy, and the guy just died. And so it was and I'm like, what? Well, okay, why you know whatever. It turns out, you know, it was Jim Ursay, the Colt's owner. And I don't know if you knew that he was a huge you know collector of music instruments. You can find a picture on the internet. There's he had this room where he literally had um Ringo's drums. Oh, he he paid like some a million dollars or something, you know, for the drum set, and then he paid another million dollars for the for the bass drum head that said Beatles. That was he didn't get that with the original drum kid, so he paid another million dollars for that. Um, but he's got an amazing um display of all his memorabilia and stuff that he's purchased.

SPEAKER_01 26:09

Um that's what was the collection that was just sold. That was part of the David Gilmore guitar. Yes. Um the guitar that was used, Nirvana's smells like Teen Spirit video. I actually have a picture of myself in front of that drum set. It was at a museum in New York City, and I got a picture in front of it, as well as the guitar, Jerry Garcia's guitar, that Derek Chuck is now playing all around.

SPEAKER_00 26:38

Well, here's a here's a little full circle moment. You mentioned the Smells Like Teen Spirit guitar, which I believe was a Fender Mustang. Well, I walked into Atlanta Discount Music in 1991, I guess it was, it was 92 that album came out. And Peter Stroud was there. And uh Peter Stroud had one of his work there. Yeah, he had he had this old guitar, and I don't know if it had been his or if another person had brought it in or whatever. But I'm like, let me look at this one. So Peter Stroud sold me a fender Mustang that I ended up playing for years, and then I'm so mad that I sold it, but I sold it at a garage sale.

SPEAKER_02 27:14

I I I'm mad about just about every guitar I ever sold.

SPEAKER_00 27:18

Right. The guy showed up, you know, the yard sale started at 8 a.m. and he showed up at like 7 15 ringing my doorbell. Okay, full price gone.

SPEAKER_01 27:30

Yeah.

Athens Memories And A B-52s Jam

SPEAKER_01 27:31

So, Trent, what are some of your you know, fun memories of being in an Athens and playing with some of these other bands? And tell us a little bit about that.

SPEAKER_02 27:42

Hmm. Well, I remember some memorable shows with um Love Tractor. Um they were we were kind of crossing paths a bit when they were still established, but maybe getting a little burned out, and we were still kind of up and coming, and so we were excited, um, not worried about whether we were opening for them or or not. And uh I I remember that. Oh, I'll I'll I'll tell you a good story, and it wasn't in Athens, but um so through my brother, who was not only here you know, during the early Athens music scene era, the modern music scene era with the B52s, you know, he ended up being friends with with um Keith Bennett and Cindy Wilson and and really the rest of the band. And he and I I don't know if y'all know him, Terry, he's um a photographer, so he's kind of well known. He's got these, he's got images of all these bands, um, not just live, but like, you know, studio portrait shots or or whatever. And so so when we were playing, and you know, and our our we were we were very focused on trying to get signed, right? Because that was the only way. And so we were going to New York um and trying to have these showcase gigs. Well, we were literally sometimes we were, I mean, you know, just like everybody, you probably did this too. You stayed at stayed at somebody's, you know, one bedroom apartment on the couch or whatever. Well, well, we were going over, so Keith and Cindy at that time lived in New York. And so I don't know. I mean, maybe we already signed at this point, but there was one night that there was a jam session. And if you know anything about the BPG2s, you know that the way they write is literally just jam sessions. You know, they all get together and start playing, and Fred Snyder starts singing, and or you know, the girls start just saying words, you know, and singing words, and and then they they record it all and then they kind of piece it together, or or it comes together, and and you know, that's what it sounds like, you know, it's like you know, just to pick pick any song, and it's like they're jamming along and they're saying crazy, you know, sentences that are sort of sometimes disjointed, right? They're not even connected to each other. So we were in there, and you know, we were playing, and it didn't sound like the B52s because we were playing the music, um, Barry, Drew, and I, and maybe, maybe, maybe Keith or somebody else was playing guitar or something. But Fred Snyder was there and and Cindy was there, and and and Fred started started his thing, you know, and we we started looking at each other like, oh my god. And and so we we ended up having a song out of it. So because he's he sang this, and you know what? There there may be a tape of this somewhere, I'm not sure. But um he he started, we were playing some kind of jam, and he he started saying, I'm waiting for the day when love falls down from the sky. And so, and that's exactly what it sounded like, right? And we all look at each other like, oh my god, that's hilarious. And so we ended up with the song Love Fall Down um on Rough Night Deercoat. Um, Barry took that as the inspiration. Doesn't really sound anything like it, or the words aren't really the same, but uh it's the same concept, right? But I want to hear that tape. Yeah, I want to find it as well. That's a pretty cool thing that you wouldn't normally get to do, I guess.

SPEAKER_00 31:36

Yeah, for sure.

SPEAKER_01 31:37

Yeah, I got to meet Cindy a few weeks ago and was just talking to her, so down to earth. I had some great conversations. You know, we were talking about the B-52s and just you know, how long they've been around and how many songs and just covers that other bands have done of them. And it was a great conversation with a real fun person.

SPEAKER_02 32:01

Yeah, yeah, and we we recorded with her. She she came and recorded and sang on you know, on our Glory Lion album um on a song, Stand Tall. Um, did a great job. But yeah, I mean, uh it's it's really, I suppose as we you know get into this 2020s, you know, here we are looking back now, how incredible, you know, the B52s and how unique. And and I mean, and and and really REM2, and you gotta give them a lot of credit for I probably just I mean, I was a big REM fan, don't get me wrong, but I probably didn't consider them as unique um, you know, of a thing. They were kind of more of a straightforward rock band to me, but you know, the B-52s were truly breaking new ground. I mean, it just it just wouldn't have happened any other way. But I will I will say, you know, REM, I think they're uh they're not I I don't really know their songwriting exactly, but it it's it's it's it's not like uh my my sense is there's not one you know songwriter, right? It's it's like everyone that that's the thing about REM is they bring they make each other better. None of them by themselves necessarily can are are as good as the the four guys together, and that's not meant to be criticism of them individually, obviously. Yeah, it's magic. They've had lots of projects that have been successful, but but um you know everybody relied on each other. You know, I I I've got a new, I've got uh some chords and maybe a melody, and you know, the I've got the lyrics and more melody and right it whereas a lot of bands, you know, Springsteen, even even us. I mean, Barry was a principal songwriter for Dream Sun Real, and he he brought things to me that I helped him work on, you know, but they were pretty formed, mostly formed. It wasn't, hey, I've got a new couple of chords. What do you let's jam on this and see if we can develop something out of it? It wasn't really like that.

SPEAKER_00 34:14

Right, right.

Farewell Stories And Final Thanks

SPEAKER_00 34:15

Well, Trent, thank you so much for coming on. This has been really fun chatting about all this old Athens history and dream so real, and uh, we really appreciate it, man.

SPEAKER_02 34:24

Uh, I love it too. I and I'll join you guys anytime.

SPEAKER_01 34:28

Well, thank you. Yeah, I appreciate it. I'm so glad that you and Jimmy happen to be on a text thread.

SPEAKER_00 34:34

Yeah, it's all thanks to Mo. Mo was at a bar in Chicago, and Michael Shannon was sitting at the end of the bar, and he texted us all a picture, and it started from there. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 34:44

So, real quick, let me tell a quick story about Mo. We were with Mo in Athens last year. We were at, what was it, the Manhattan? And Mo, I think, took out a $20 bill to figure out where he could hide it because like his nephew was coming and he wanted him to be able to get the money.

SPEAKER_00 35:05

You're never seeing that 20 bucks again.

SPEAKER_01 35:07

I think his nephew ended up picking up.

SPEAKER_00 35:10

Hats off to the Manhattan for all the honest people there because plenty of people saw him hide the 20 bucks.

SPEAKER_01 35:16

That is true. But yes, Trent, thank you so much. We really do appreciate it. It's really cool to put some things in context. And again, with Kevin bringing up about the differences in the scenes and then mentioning dreams so real to have you on here is a dream that is real.

SPEAKER_02 35:35

Well, I'm glad to do it. I like making dreams come true, baby.

SPEAKER_01 35:39

We appreciate it.

SPEAKER_00 35:40

Hope to see you soon, buddy.

SPEAKER_02 35:41

All right, yes, great to see you all.

Contact Info And Sign Off

SPEAKER_01 35:49

If you'd like to reach out to us regarding anything on the show, you can at musicandshoes at gmail.com. Please like and follow the Music of My Shoes Facebook and Instagram pages. That's it for this episode of Music and My Shoes. I'd like to thank Trent Allen of Dreamstone Real. We really appreciate you coming on the show today. Jimmy Godfrey, show producer and owner of Arcade160 Studios, located right here in Atlanta, Georgia, and big thrill for our podcast music. This is Jim Boge, and I hope you learned something new or remembered something old. We'll meet again on our next episode. Until then, live life and keep the music playing.