Holy Demon. Drens

"I don't wanna go to the record store", is the main message of Drens' single 'Record Store', with which the band found its place on this blog for the first time. It is a strange message for a band wanting to sell records. No matter how much happens online these days.

'Record Store' is a song that brings together alternative and punk rock together successfully. Expect more of that quality on the album, Holy Demon. Ten songs long the power and energy fly around working hard towards either exorcising these demons or making them work for you. My guess is that whatever option the band chose to follow, it worked. Holy Demon is a nice album showing a few sides of Drens.

Drens is a four piece from Dortmund. It released its first EP in December 2019 called 'Pet Peeves'. The band must have had totally different expectations at the time, just like we all had in that month, just before the first messages of a new disease started to reach us. This setback did not deter it from working on new songs, recording them and release them.

With Holy Demon Drens brings together a host of influences from the past and present and incorporates them into its own music. Pop elements can be found in handclaps and the strong use of dynamics. Punk music from the past 30 years comes by. The strong bass sound of Mike Dirnt e.g. is present. Britpop vocal melodies mix with West Coast punk bands or The Cure with The Vaccines, in 'Bloody Knees', to name a specific example. The four young Germans have soaked it all up and created a bunch of songs with their own inner power and melodic prowess.

Promo photo: Leonie Scheufler

Drens shows constantly that it chooses the option that suits a song best and not what could be most popular. In 'No Need To Hide' the band goes full out. Most is made of the tempo and the dirtier sound. It's not for nothing the song is one of my favourites on the album. Instant appeal it has. Over the whole album Drens has made the right choices constantly. The result is an energetic album, interspersed with different accents and sounds, giving the album as a whole the diversity it needs to make a difference.

With Holy Demons as a full-length debut album, Drens has made its point, perfectly caught by producer Sebastian 'Zebo' Adam. The band will be welcomed far beyond its German borders on this basis. Fun and dancing guaranteed.

Wout de Natris

You can listen to and order Holy Demons here:

https://glitterhouserecords.bandcamp.com/album/holy-demon