Page 31 - Black Velvet Rock Magazine Issue 103

BV103 pg28-33 centre Dream State_BV103 pg31 23/12/2019 00:00 Page 4

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got to stand up and pull together, sort of do?’ And when we first started writing, we as ‘In This Hell’, ‘Solace’ and ‘Help Myself’,
thing. It was kind of me going ‘Hey everyone, put ourselves in a box mindset, like ‘it has to while the opening track ‘White Lies’ is about
listen. These are the things that I think are be this way’, which didn’t resonate with our surrendering to the fact you’re an addict.
fucked up in society. This is my truth. I’ve core selves, which, as a musician, you CJ says, “I’ve always been honest. I still
been quiet about it a long time now and I should be exploring lots of different avenues struggle now and then, but I’m in a good
want you to hear me out.’ It was going from and not being afraid to take risks and expand place currently, and I strive to be better in
feeling mad over that, that I couldn’t help my your sound. It’s the only way to grow profes- that sense. But yeah, when I first wrote
friend over that, and again, the pursuit of sionally and personally. So, at first it was re- ‘White Lies’, that was me being ‘Damn, the
perfection, that sort of way of thinking and ally intense, but the second we took those second I put this out there, that’s me, I have
how that’s detrimental to our mind. It was walls down, everything started free-flowing, to be real and step up with myself, ‘cause I’m
detrimental to my friend at the time and it an- and over the course of five weeks in the stu- letting the world in on my own little secrets.’
noyed me. And it still does now; she can’t When we put that out and we
look in the mirror and it wrecks me. She got signed and stuff, things
hates herself that much. She watches too started to happen and change,
many of these fucking programmes, seeing I was like ‘Holy shit.’ We got
these girls that are perfectly symmetrical thrown into tours and shows
and she compares herself even though she’s and I realized how unfit I was.
absolutely stunning. But anyway, it was just What I was standing for and all
making me mad. I would be on my phone a these people writing to me say-
lot and the next thing I know, I realize I’m liv- ing ‘I get it, I’ve been in your
ing behind this windowless thing. We use scenario, I’m sorry you’re
technology wrong. We have all this informa- going through that. I can relate.
tion to access to do all the studying we want Thank you for being so honest.
in the world. We’re using it as this artificial It’s helping me be honest in
kind of, I don’t know… glamorizing every- myself,’ and I was enlightened
thing. It was blowing my mind, so the song, by it. I was ‘I’ve really gotta
that’s why it was a bit mad. We wanted it mu- step up’. I half-dipped, that’s
sically to sound mad, ‘cause I was feeling why ‘Primrose’ was written. I
completely torn. It was stressing me out.” want to always be real and
honest. I’m not perfect – what-
nd this is ever perfect is! So I’ve made a
Ae x a c t l y lot of lifestyle changes. I’m
why we love less damaging to myself. I self-
Dream State. love more. I realize that’s the
They’re standing dio it all key: to self-love. Yeah, and trying to be more
up against the came to- healthy along the way. Trying!”
things that can gether re- We ask more about CJ’s lifestyle
ruin us. The ally nicely. changes.
pressures that It’s been “I’m allergic to life!” she exclaims. “Even
can make life so worth the now, my skin’s really bad and I notice it in a
taxing. The h o r r i b l e lot of videos and stuff. Yeah, I have to be re-
things you strive b l o o d , ally strict on myself. Even if I drink now it’ll
to reach that just sweat and flare me up really bad. My body’s just started
end up bringing tears.” to reject everything. Yeah, we try to be
you down. And S h e healthy on the road. You have to otherwise
the things that you’re not
ought to be going to sur-
done, but aren’t. vive. This one
In ‘Made Up tour, I drank
Smile’ CJ sings every day for
‘where’s the in- four weeks and
tegrity?’ and yes, it was really
CJ and Dream State have that integrity. One says the end bad. At the end
thing she says she tries to do is not be self- result made of it, I looked
ish. her smile. twice my age
“Yeah, just kind of being respectful to the F i n i s h i n g and just dead
world around us and less selfish and remem- the album inside. Oh my
bering that, like nature, everything has a and getting God. You’ve got
give-and-take relationship and it’s respect- the final to be careful on
ing that and remembering our place and p r o d u c t the road. You’re
being less selfish as humanity, as I find we brought a fed alcohol
can be and horrible to each other as well as huge rush. “I everywhere you
the world. I find it being too close to home had an go and the next
sometimes, it can even be in your own home. album in my thing you know
For us, it’s been important, yeah.” hands. I was you’ve got a
like ‘Wow, I problem and
he path to Dream State’s debut album created this don’t realize it.
Tcompletion was quite stressful for and it’s You get off tour
the band though – but in the end, worth it. “I going to live beyond me’. Yeah, just an ac- and are like ‘Oh my God.’ You tell yourself
find order follows the chaos, it’s the law,” complishment, you know, ‘cause I can be so ‘I’m going to detox now for a week’ and
says CJ. “It’s been emotional. I can only hard on myself and not consistent with cer- you’re craving alcohol in the evening. You’re
write from experience. I have to be real in my tain things. Music is something I can always like ‘Fuck!’”
lyrics and I always noticed it was an out- be consistent with. It’s my full-on passion,
stretched hand the lyrics acted as. Writing so… I think that those moments made me ne period in CJ’s life that saw her
that over the course of the album, it kinda smile, just at the end of it all, ‘We did it!’” Odrinking and smoking a lot was
just flowed out. You have your own experi- when she felt herself become disloyal whilst
ences that you tend to tackle. But at first it acktracking to the band’s ‘Recovery’ in a relationship. The song ‘Spitting Lies’ is
started off really stressful ‘cause the EP was BEP released in 2018, it was an EP about that. “I was in a relationship. I had met
so successful, we thought, ‘Oh my God, how that saw CJ reveal her demons to the world. someone else during that time and I was
are we going to raise the bar and what do we The five-track release includes songs such talking to them a lot. I knew I was being dis-
DREAM STATE