text: dream days at the hotel existence dream days at the hotel existence is the sixth studio album by australian rock band powderfinger , released by universal music on 2 june 2007 in australia , 19 november 2007 in the united kingdom , and 11 november 2008 in the united states on the dew process label . it was released in australia with a limited edition bonus dvd , titled powderfinger 's first xi , featuring eleven music videos spanning the band 's career , from the first single , " tail " to " bless my soul " , the band 's latest single before the release of the album . a collector 's edition , including a cd and dvd , was released on 18 april 2008 . powderfinger reunited in late 2006 , after a three - year hiatus , to write songs for dream days at the hotel existence , which was recorded in los angeles , california , in early 2007 by producer rob schnapf . the first single from the album , " lost and running " was released on 12 may 2007 , and reached number five on the aria singles chart . three further singles were released ; " i don 't remember " , " nobody sees " , and " who really cares ( featuring the sound of insanity ) " , though they failed to equal " lost and running " ' s chart performance . the album received critical acclaim , with many reviewers commenting that the album was " consistent " and " distinctly australian " . the album encountered controversy relating to the song " black tears " with claims that it may have influenced the palm island death in custody trial . powderfinger released an abridged version of the song as a result of these accusations . background bernard fanning stated in television interviews in 2006 that powderfinger was working on a new album to be released the following year . on powderfinger 's website , guitarist ian haug said that the upcoming album was an " exciting new direction " for the band 's music . after a month of recording , on 2 march 2007 , fanning made an announcement on australian radio station triple j that tracking was complete , mixing the album was to follow , and the approximate release date was june . fanning also stated that several of the tracks on the album feature session pianist benmont tench . the title of the album was drawn from the book brooklyn follies by paul auster , which fanning had read during the recording . he stated the concept of the title related to escapism , and that he felt it an appropriate sentiment to attach to the music of the album . recording and production following their hiatus , which commenced after the release of fingerprints : the best of powderfinger , 1994 - 2000 , the band reconvened in late 2006 to write songs for dream days at the hotel existence . the band sought a new sound on the album , causing the recording process to be different from prior albums ; melbourne 's sing sing studios were not used and nick didia was no longer the producer . dream days at the hotel existence was recorded at sunset sound studio , los angeles , california , in early 2007 by producer rob schnapf , best known for his work with beck and the vines . powderfinger had already written most of the album before departing to the united states . in particular , powderfinger wrote songs in parts and brought them together ; some songs were written in pairs or trios , while others were written in parts by different people , and then combined . according to the band , this brought a " diverse " and " fresh " approach to songwriting . the band used different methods in putting the album together as " it comes back to the sound the five of us can make together " . powderfinger guitarist darren middleton commented that as a rule they preferred not to put together an album that was just " plain " . as the style of writing differed , the band identified the need for piano performances in many of their songs , enlisting veteran pianist benmont tench to play parts throughout . album and single releases the album was released in australia on 2 june 2007 , and in the united kingdom on 19 november of the same year . a " limited edition " version of the album included a dvd featuring a collection of powderfinger music videos , titled powderfinger 's first xi . the music video for " lost and running " was also included , and was dubbed the twelfth man . a collector 's edition , including a cd and dvd , was released on 18 april 2008 . several songs from the album were launched to perth fans as free music downloads via perthnow , a perth - based newspaper . fans were required to obtain a codeword from the newspaper , then submit it online to download the tracks . the first single from dream days at the hotel existence was " lost and running " and the video clip , which was directed by damon escott and stephen lance of head pictures , began showing in australia on 21 april 2007 . the single made its australian radio debut on 16 april 2007 , but had been available for several days beforehand on the powderfinger 's myspace web page . an exclusive early release of the song was played by triple j on 13 april 2007 . " lost and running " reached number five on the aria singles chart . the second single from the album was " i don 't remember " . the film clip for the song was created by fifty fifty films , who have created music videos for the group before including " passenger " and " like a dog " . the song was aired on radio on 9 july 2007 , the music video was released in july , and the cd single was released for sales on 4 august 2007 . the video was shot at samford state school in powderfinger 's home city of brisbane and features many of the school 's students . on 16 november 2007 , it was announced that the third single from dream days at the hotel existence would be the album 's sixth track , " nobody sees " . a video was released on the same day as the announcement and the single is set to be released as a digital single on 1 december 2007 . in february 2008 , powderfinger announced the release of the album 's fourth single , " who really cares ( featuring the sound of insanity ) " . in late may , " wishing on the same moon " was released as the album 's fifth single . surprisingly , the eighth track , " long way to go " was played on australian radio leading up to the release of the album in 2007 . response chart performance the album debuted in the aria album charts on 11 june 2007 at number one , becoming powderfinger 's fourth album to peak at the top spot . the album was certified platinum in its first week of sales , and its double platinum certification was announced later . a week after its release , the album achieved the highest first - week sales figures of any new release in 2007 , with total sales of 40 , 847 , thus making it the fastest selling album of the year in australia . in its first week of release , dream days at the hotel existence broke the australian digital album sales record , with over 3 , 000 digital sales . critical response sydney morning herald commentator bernard zuel described dream days at the hotel existence as powderfinger 's first dull album , noting that on numerous songs " it promises to become exciting but never quite gets there . " he complained that most of the songs were uneventful , or uninspiring , and that they do not " lift you as a listener . " perthnow 's jay hanna disagreed , claiming the album was " rippling with emotions " . he said the album contained some " incredible moments " , praising " head up in the clouds " , and calling " nobody sees " " powderfinger at their devastating best " , while giving the album four stars . cameron adams of herald sun hit stated that the album contained no new directions for the band , and was highly consistent . he noted that the album contained less " rough edges and attitude " than predecessor vulture street , and likening the album more to odyssey number five . sputnikmusic 's james bishop agreed , claiming the band should be concerned by the " lack of experimentation or ambition " on the album . he again stated that the album was consistent , noting that " there actually isn 't a bad song present " . the review , which gave the album three and a half stars , commented that it seemed the band were trying to move towards the bluegrass genre , and " edging their way into the adult - contemporary section " of a music store , something they had not shown on their previous works . allmusic 's clayton bolger drew comparisons to internationalist in his review , which gave the album 3 and a half stars . he said the album contained " all the trademarks of classic powderfinger " , praising fanning 's vocals , middleton and haug 's " twin - guitar attack " , collins ' basslines and coghill 's " powerhouse drum work " . while praising " i don 't remember " as an excellent anthem , and " surviving " for containing " a sonic blast of rock " , he was critical of " lost and running " , which he said felt " tired and sluggish " , while " ballad of a dead man " was described as " tedious " . " black tears " controversy on 2 may 2007 , " black tears " , the ninth song on dream days at the hotel existence , sparked controversy after claims that its lyrics could invoke prejudice in the palm island death in custody trial . lawyers for the accused , senior sergeant chris hurley , lodged a complaint to the queensland attorney - general relating to the lyrics of the song . according to hurley 's legal team , the initial lyrics dealt with the " death of a palm island man , mulrunji doomadgee " , in stating " an island watch - house bed , a black man 's lying dead " . bernard fanning made a media statement in response to the complaint , stating that the band had never intended for the song to contain " even the slightest suggestion of any prejudice " . he also said that the band would still release the album on the planned date , but with an alternate version of " black tears " . fanning later stated that he was not angry about having to change his lyrics , but lamented the lack of australian musicians willing to challenge the status quo . cover art dream days at the hotel existence 's cover art was designed by aaron hayward & david homer of debaser , a new south wales - based design organisation . the recipient of the 2007 aria award for " best cover art " , the album art features a photograph of a road leading into the australian outback horizon . in the centre , placed in the sky in relation to the background , there is a window with a crimson curtain . within this window is a hotel room , as per the name of the album , in which a man with no head in a suit is seated at the end of the bed while watching the television . above the window is the album title and at the top of the cover is the band 's name in a typeface more crafty than on previous album covers . though the general design of the cover is that of a 1930s hotel in style , the typeface juxtaposes the general design with being a rather futuristic , science - fiction styled typeset . this is the second futuristic style that the band has used for their name , the first appearing on vulture street . touring tickets for a nationwide tour of launch shows for dream days at the hotel existence went on sale on 10 may 2007 on the band 's website , with tickets to the general public being released a day later . powderfinger also toured in new south wales and northern victoria . australian pianist lachlan doley was enlisted to play piano and keyboard parts on their live performances in these shows . his performances were welcomed by critics and audiences , with commenting that " local ring - in lachlan doley added shimmering keys to the band 's richly textured sound " . powderfinger and doley performed the single " lost and running " on popular australian variety show rove on 17 june 2007 . the group performed at splendour in the grass on 4 august 2007 , and then followed it up by performing at triple j 's awol concert in karratha , western australia on 18 august 2007 . powderfinger announced the across the great divide tour on 12 june 2007 . the band were accompanied on the nationwide concert tour by australian rock group silverchair . the tour is not only featured in the capital cities , but in fourteen australian and new zealand regional centres as well . according to fanning , " the idea is to show both bands are behind the idea of reconciliation [ of indigenous australians ] . " personnel track listing " head up in the clouds " – 3 : 47 " i don 't remember " – 3 : 41 " lost and running " – 3 : 42 " wishing on the same moon " – 4 : 32 " who really cares ( featuring the sound of insanity ) " – 5 : 10 " nobody sees " – 4 : 14 " surviving " – 3 : 45 " long way to go " – 3 : 46 " black tears " – 2 : 30 " ballad of a dead man " – 5 : 29 " drifting further away " – 3 : 40 all songs were written and performed by powderfinger with performances by pianist benmont tench . bonus tracks : " down by the dam " – 4 : 29 [ a ] " glory box " – 4 : 32 [ b ] limited edition bonus dvd released under the titles powderfinger 's first xi and the twelfth man , the bonus dvd features eleven music videos by powderfinger spanning their entire recording career , and also includes the launch single to dream days at the hotel existence , " lost and running " . powderfinger 's first xi " tail " – 4 : 24 " living type " – 3 : 25 " pick you up " – 3 : 30 " passenger " – 4 : 39 " good day ray " [ c ] – 1 : 50 " don 't wanna be left out " – 2 : 18 " my kind of scene " – 4 : 31 " like a dog " – 4 : 41 " on my mind " [ d ] – 3 : 40 " sunsets " ( acoustic version ) – 3 : 57 " bless my soul " – 4 : 06 the twelfth man - " lost and running " – 3 : 52