Single Review: EVENU - 'Drive'
Given the sheer quantity and accessibility of music available for fans to gorge on these days, the pressure for a band to immediately hit the ground running must be huge. Forget the raw-as-hell first album, with a steady trajectory until musical nirvana is reached around album number five. Nope, instant success is required RIGHT NOW, as seen in the depressing rise of plugged-to-death solo artists that plague mainstream radio.
Devon-based alt-rockers EVENU are still at such early days, having released the five-track ‘The Avenue’ EP in 2013 and follow-up ‘To Reprieve’ single in 2014. New release ‘Drive’, taken from the up-coming ‘Liaison’ EP, follows in the vein of their previous melodic rock anthems, bringing a clear comparison to Funeral For A Friend at their most accessible. Even after the first listen, one thing is abundantly clear - good grief this is polished. Great production, tight musicianship and custom-built for radio. This is by no means a criticism, it’s just almost surprising that a band so early into their recording career sound so focused and comfortable in what they are trying to achieve.
From the word go, all the elements of ‘Great Rock Track 101’ are pretty much nailed down, from the Claudio Sanchez-esque vocal delivery, drum-fill-heavy rhythm section, guitars that straddle a clear/distortion sound perfectly and lead work that permeates the song. Indeed, ‘Drive’ flies by at quite a pace (no car/journey reference intended..), giving the feeling that this comes easy to EVENU. Less so a clear verse/chorus make-up, more a blast of ultra-catchy, well-executed heavy rock, segmented by a brief mid-section pause.
Perhaps the question remains of how EVENU stand out from the number of bands doing something similar. Their bio states they are working hard on perfecting their live shows, which is already helping attract attention. However, a song of the calibre of ‘Drive’, released 27th November, deserves to be heard by a wider audience. Nice work indeed, already looking forward to what ‘Liaison’ delivers.
Words of DS_convertible