Relentlessly intimate: The Drive. share new single ‘shelley.’
The Cork-based four-piece is back with a self-produced hypnotic surge.
Photo: Lia Qin
Hailing from Cork and armed with a serious case of sonic dexterity, The Drive. are the grungy-shoegaze hybrid who are back with a visceral intensity, offering their new single: shelley.. Having earned plenty of local devotion, Eoin Murphy (vocals, guitar), Aaron Kenny (guitar), Alex Galligan (drums), and Matthew O’Reilly (bass) are no strangers to captivating audiences across the Irish grassroots circuit. Praised for their highly cathartic live show, the drive. are riding the wave of their previous singles’ success and now aim to conquer indie lands further afield.
Whilst being previously compared to the likes of The Cure and Deftones, the band honour their musical founding fathers, but don’t fail to solidify themselves as an individual and distinctive act. They are projecting their own voice with an urgency, and shelley. does all that and more.
The song plays out with relentless energy, broaching the subject of emotional unease and dread. Lyricist Eoin Murphy comments, “shelley. explores anxiety, fear and retroactive jealousy in a relationship — and the mental turmoil that comes with those feelings. I struggled for a long time with how to communicate that until a rewatch of Sin City sparked something. Clive Owen’s character and the love triangle dynamic became the catalyst for the lyric.”
Drawing you intimately into its depths, the cascading interplay of echoing melodies are enveloped by its grungy beating heart. Coursing with palpable tension established by the rhythm section, the vocals blend in a seamless tidal wave, with a climax that feels earned and essential. The single feels hypnotically close, whilst also balancing an echoey space, and with a production that’s primarily live in feel, shelley. groans and drones with a release that’s hard to ignore.
the drive.’s new single shelley. is out now. the drive. play The George Tavern in London on 26th June and celebrate the release with a hometown headline at Coughlan’s in Cork on 21st June.