Sydney indie rock three-piece Crystal Cities continue to build momentum as they release “The Strangest Dream”, the 3rd single from their forthcoming 3rd LP, I Should Have Known That This Was War. The single marks a return to the band’s earlier more dark and brooding material with lyrics like:
“Yeah, I had the strangest dream
Yeah, the one I’ve had a million times
Yeah, the one where I wake before I die”

Spacey dreamscape verses turn into thundering choruses as the track unfurls. New drummer Neel Shukla makes his presence known as he digs deep into his rolling chorus pattern, gradually building in intensity and complexity. Jared King’s bass also gets a moment to take centre stage in verse three as the instrumentation is pared back to just a synth pad, bass and vocals. A beautiful moment ensues as the bass and lead vocal dance around each other before the song explodes once again into an anthemic but ominous chorus that The National would be proud of.

“'The Strangest Dream' is about a recurring dream I was having where I was fighting for my life against some kind of foe. Some nights the dream would become so intense that I felt like there was no escape and that I was looking death right in the eyes. It was always then that I would be awakened.”
⁣- Geoff Rana (vocals/guitar/keys)


Lead vocalist and guitarist/keyboardist Geoff Rana has been spending days on end in his self-made studio where he’s been writing, producing and engineering the band’s latest material.

While the band’s previous effort - their sophomore album Hold Me Close Hold Me Tight - was an exercise in hard-hitting alternative rock that could rattle a live audience, the band’s third LP, I Should Have Known That This Was War, feels more explorative and colourful (at least from the two singles released from the band thus far, the first being “Love Don’t Live Here Anymore” and the second being “I Should Have Known That This Was War”).

This new album also marks the departure of previous drummer Daniel Conte and the arrival of new drummer Neel Shukla. Neel, Geoff and Jared have a long-standing relationship that spans all the way back to when they all studied Contemporary Music Performance together at The Australian Institute of Music in Sydney.

Long-time Crystal Cities collaborator Paul Lani (David Bowie, Prince) was once again tapped to handle mixing and mastering duties for the recording.

Since the band’s formation in 2016 they have released a highly praised EP - Who’s Gonna Save Us Now (2017) - and two critically acclaimed albums - Under The Cold Light of the Moon (2019) and Hold Me Close Hold Me Tight (2021). There is no scheduled release date for the band’s forthcoming third album.