Vance Joy – Dream Your Life Away (Vinyl LP)

Vance Joy has had an unexpectedly long time to finish his debut album, Dream Your Life Away. There’s a simple reason why – his first single “Riptide” kept charming the world and its charming author followed it around the globe. Several times over. In Australia, “Riptide” moved from alternative to commercial radio, then commercial TV and got a second wind after it became the first song to top Triple J’s Hottest 100 countdown without an album to call home.

“Riptide” went worldwide, hitting No. 10 in the UK, and Top 10 in Austria, Belgium, Germany, Ireland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia. It has sold over a million copies worldwide, is being streamed over three million times a week and has cracked the American Top 100 after relentless touring. “Riptide” has gone four times platinum in Australia, with its award victory lap including the prestigious ARIA Song of the Year award.

“It’s taken on its own life,” the musician says of “Riptide.” “It’s definitely been a door opener. It’s running its own race now.” Naturally “Riptide” surfaces on Dream Your Life Away, kept company by another track from the God Loves You When You’re Dancing EP, “From Afar.” “’Winds of Change’ is the first song I ever wrote that I thought was any good,” Joy says. Good things came fast. He pieced together “Riptide” on a dirt cheap ukulele (he’s since upgraded) from a few songs sitting on his cerebral scrap heap. That area in the back of his head also gave rise to new single “Mess is Mine,” a charming construct of good sections he managed to shoehorn in one song.