Today marks the release of That Wasn’t A Dream, the highly anticipated new album from Pino Palladino and Blake Mills, out now via New Deal / Impulse! Records. Following their acclaimed 2021 collaboration Notes With Attachments, the Grammy-winning duo returns with an exploratory, genre-defying project that critics are already hailing as one of the year’s most innovative works.
Critical Praise for That Wasn’t A Dream
The album has drawn early acclaim from across the music press:
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The New York Times praised the single “Taka” as “nimble, unpredictable… a global-funk instrumental that seems to take shape on the spot like a Weather Report composition.”
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KCRW called it “expansive jazz bliss,” urging listeners to “sit back, relax, and listen to masters at work.”
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Esquire highlighted its playful virtuosity, naming “Taka” one of the Best Songs of 2025 So Far: “a slithery slab of math funk…a game to even figure out who’s doing what.”
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The FADER declared, “With That Wasn’t a Dream, they canonize themselves in the tradition of L.A. legends whose cool brilliance will endure for generations.”
A Meeting of Masters
Palladino, one of the most revered bassists of his generation, has expanded the role of the instrument across genres—working with everyone from D’Angelo to Nine Inch Nails, Erykah Badu to John Mayer. Mills, a Grammy-winning guitarist, producer, and songwriter, has worked with Alabama Shakes, Fiona Apple, Bob Dylan, and Perfume Genius, in addition to his acclaimed solo work.
Together, they dissolve traditional musical hierarchies, weaving soundscapes that balance intricate detail with wide-open space. Pitchfork once described their collaboration as “the sound of consummate collaborators imagining a world where there’s no such thing as a lead performer.” On That Wasn’t A Dream, that vision expands further—quietly audacious, profoundly cohesive, and always surprising.
Inside the Music
Recorded at the legendary Studio A at Sound City in Los Angeles, the album features contributions from longtime collaborator Sam Gendel and drummer Chris Dave (on the track “Taka”), among others. But at its core, this record deepens the intuitive chemistry between Palladino and Mills.
Highlights include:
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“Contour” – the starry, slow-building opener that sets the album’s immersive tone.
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“Taka” – a kinetic, global-funk experiment with shifting grooves and dazzling interplay.
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“What Is Wrong With You?” – showcasing Mills on the fretless baritone sustainer guitar, an instrument he helped develop, producing sounds somewhere between woodwind, brass, and bowed strings.
Palladino explains that much of the record is about restraint and space: “If we could make something work with the least possible ingredients, space could become the centerpiece.”
Beyond Genre, Beyond Expectation
From deceptively minimal sketches to swirling, layered improvisations, That Wasn’t A Dream rewards deep listening. It is at once intimate and expansive, disordered and precise, a testament to two artists pushing each other into new territories while redefining what modern instrumental music can be.
Experience It Live
Pino Palladino & Blake Mills will bring That Wasn’t A Dream to audiences live this fall with a series of tour dates, offering fans a rare chance to hear this music in the moment of its creation.
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