The Drums

A few years back, there was a band called Elkland. The members were all from the US, but somehow they were able to perfectly channel the best of the A-ha, Erasure, Bronski Beat, etc. Their best track, Everybody's Leaving, could easily have been mistaken for an original 80s synthpop lost gem. Luckily, although some time has passed, the members have not all gone on to coulda-been/shoulda been status. The lead singer has re-emerged with a new band: The Drums.

The Drums' first single, (video below) "Let's Go Surfing," is out now and it is a bonafide earworm. Much like Peter Bjorn and John's "Young Folks," the track utilizes the power of the simple whistle as its real hook, and then proceeds to bores its way into skull. But unlike PBnJ which aged particularly quickly, the rest of this track is so well crafted that I can't see that happening here. For me, this track is so formidably based in the art of a simple rock song, that it just stands up much better. It doesn't rely so heavily on the strength of the instantly recognizable whistle, but instead takes it's real strength from the rest of the song's clean and straight forward pop music craftsmanship. More reminiscent of the Everly Brothers and Ricky Nelson than their common indie rock peers, The Drums could actually be one of 2009's greatest newcomers.

Maybe Elkland's demise was worthwhile after all.



Download "Let's Go Surfing" and other tracks at RCRDLBL now.