The battles that are fought internally are the ones that usually leave the most enriching results for human beings, although they are also the most painful and demanding.

For Dave Cavalier, it was no different. The artist says “present” with “The Hold”, a deep song that hides among its notes the enormous responsibility of telling a story of struggle and triumph. while opening the door to a new stage in the life of Cavalier.

In this interview, he told us about his immediate goals, future plans, and music as a board to surf the waves of life, having grown in wisdom after prevailing over addiction

You have been through many experiences in your life, and once you overcame various -and serious- obstacles, “The Hold” came along. What does this song mean to you right now?

It reminds me a lot of a photograph if you could take a picture of an emotion or state of mind. To me, it encapsulates a specific period and time in my life that was really tenuous and difficult, so I listen to it and am reminded of this war I was fighting in my own head. We all have these internal battles we fight, right? Being stuck in the mud, just trying to get to the other side of some difficult situation. "The Hold" was like my last stand; some epic battle within myself where I was going to overcome or die trying. Looking and listening back, I'm just grateful I was able to overcome, so it gives me this really powerful sense of pride, even though sonically, it puts the listener very much in that tension of being in between.

You've been reasonably private about your struggles with sobriety before, but this song touches on that. Have these struggles kept you apart from music? What changed this time?

I’ve always placed a lot of energy in believing that sobriety wasn’t going to define me the way it can for some people. Being sober is simply one aspect of who I am. I’ve sort of tucked it away behind thinly veiled metaphors in older songs because it doesn’t take much to get looped into some rocker cliche when you talk about dealing with substance abuse. When I was drinking, I think it definitely disconnected me from music just as much as it disconnected me from myself and my relationships, I missed out on a lot of really great things about life. Sobriety is also an intensely personal decision that comes from really individual experiences, no one person has the same trauma. Talking about it can cause some people to actually look at themselves in a way they’re not prepared to or really want to, so they’ll get angry and shun somebody who’s sober like some twisted self defense mechanism. It’s also really beautiful because it opens the door for other people who are struggling to relate and be vulnerable about that. I realize that a lot more now, so I feel an obligation to share and be honest because, at the end of the day, that’s what music is supposed to help do."

The high profile press has had a lot of praise for you and your music. What do you enjoy the most about making it that perhaps critics and fans alike wouldn't normally consider?

Maybe that I don’t really feel like I’ve made it? Ha. I don’t really believe in that traditional definition anyways, genuinely. I believe in joy and playing music along with connecting with fans gives me that, whether it’s in a stadium or a coffeehouse. As long as I’m feeling that joy, I’m fulfilled and that’s what will help the next song become that much more genuine and artistic so the cycle can continue. The write ups and the business side validates a lifetime of hard work you put into it, for sure, but it’s not the goal. The goal is to connect, to share and to democratize the experience.

How do you describe this new chapter of your personal and musical life?

In a few words? Exciting. Unknown. Different. With this most recent record, I really came into my own as a producer, so where that skillset can propel me in the future as a songwriter feels limitless right now, which is so inspiring. Personally, with the birth of my first son, my priorities have really shifted and, quite honestly, I don’t really care what anybody thinks of me anymore, which is profoundly freeing. My goal for the moment is to aim my music in a direction that feels right and continue to create, try not to overthink, plant seeds and see what grows. I have a great relationship with Warner Chappell Production Music and am excited to see how I can work more with film and television projects. I would love the challenge of scoring a short film and moving my music into a new medium.

Where do you aspire to direct your musical career in this new stage? where's your energy focused on right now?

I’m very much a believer in trying to make 1,000 people profoundly happy as opposed to a million people moderately appeased. I’d like to take big ideas and focus them more intentionally, rather than worry about taking over the world. I want to continue exploring, seeing where my art can take me instead of trying so hard to take “it” somewhere. It’s really amazing to let go of trying to control things, which inherently helps each song to truly take on a life of its own.

How are you dealing with changing diapers and first steps vs Guitars and music? Did you find a middle ground between fatherhood and the artistic calling?

Haha, I absolutely love both. My family has grounded me in ways I’m so grateful for, and my wife is so supportive of my music, knowing I wouldn’t be the same man if I didn’t have it as a huge part of my life. I don’t have quite as much time as I’d prefer maybe, but sometimes having free time helps you procrastinate and now? When I have a window, I’m focused, I’m productive, I’m intentional. I believe I’m making better stuff because of that. I don’t know what my son will have a passion for when he gets older, but he sits on my lap in the studio sometimes as just listens. It’s the start of a lifelong journey we’ll share sharing music together and it’s amazing to me that I’ll have that opportunity.

What do you like to give as an artist to your followers? What do you want them to perceive about you?

If you were to have a conversation with me outside of music, you’d realize pretty quickly the only way I can make sense of the world and communicate it to other people is by reflecting on my own personal experiences. As an artist, I try to take the experiences I found to be the most challenging, the most fun or the most powerful and convey them in a way that is both personal as well as relatable. With The Hold, for instance, maybe getting an idea of my trauma can help you to better understand a friend, better understand yourself or find something unintentional to connect to. The best thing about music is that it doesn’t belong to me, it’s like a balloon you let go into the wind. You make it, but then it has the power to become something entirely unique that changes from person to person. IF you want to learn about me, the stories are there but if you want to learn about you? I hope those same stories do that, too.

You said that this song was the cornerstone of an album that, as a whole, will chronicle your journey into this new chapter of your life. Can you talk to us a bit about that coming album?

My new album, Civilianaire, was created unintentionally over two years and encompassed a really powerful, transitional period of my life. Each song is a snapshot of that time in its own, unique way. Everything that happened during those two years, however, was affected by my sobriety or lack thereof. To me, The Hold captures that struggle, whether directly in its lyrics or indirectly thanks to the tension and release within the music. I was in a fucking battle with myself that at some points I wasn’t sure I’d ever manage to overcome. I had a very real fear I would die if I didn’t find a way to make a change. I was broken inside by this thing called addiction, which thrives off your ability to stay low. It very literally had a hold on me, and thankfully, making this album gave me a way to deal with those incredibly complicated emotions. It was an outlet I desperately needed and am so grateful I had. I’ve said it before, but I like to think of The Hold like it was the sound of that war inside me. Thankfully, it was a war I won and I’m just so grateful we get to be here together to celebrate that.

Dave Cavalier won the battle and "The Hold" is his testimony.

©WAV RECORDS • POWERED BY SQUARESPACE