DRUUGG – Lost (EXAG’ Records)

The global garage rock scene is thriving right now, with many exceptional bands popping up from all possible sides of the globe. DRUUGG is unquestionably one of those bands you should pay attention to, as these excellent Belgian rockers sound superb from the start. With their upcoming debut album slated for release on April 4th, these profoundly creative musicians are more than ready to amaze longstanding garage rock fans and even those picky music enthusiasts who are looking for flawlessly written, composed, arranged, recorded, and produced music. “Lost” arrives with nine incredible compositions, suitable for any mood and occasion. As soon as your press play, you’ll notice that these folks are not joking around with their music. Besides the dominant presence of garage rock music, you’ll notice how some of the finest properties borrowed from punk rock, noise rock, and psych rock found their way into this sonic equation. With the impressive amalgam of styles at their disposal, they use the majority of them as more than necessary enhancements that elevate particular segments or even entire songs to new heights while the band remains loyal to the primary sonic direction. Although their music resonates with all those qualities that define modern garage rock music, you’ll undoubtedly notice how they incorporated a subtle touch of nostalgia, paying homage to nineties and noughties music.

From the onset, it becomes apparent that DRUUGG are pushing the boundaries and breaking the rules of so many music genres at once. Their music is raw, abrasive, gritty, heavily distorted, aggressive yet calm, soothing, relaxing, ethereal when necessary. They continuously levitate between different sentiments, moods, situations, and circumstances with precision and finesse without losing the essence that defines their sound. The guitar reigns supreme throughout the entire album. You’ll hear how many impressive interplays between various guitar layers create a perfect backdrop for all the vocals to shine upon. One side delivers immensely distorted, fuzzy chord progressions and powerful riffs while the other shines with catchy, memorable, engaging leads, themes, melodies, harmonies, accentuations, and other sonic maneuvers. The generous servings of reverb and delay effect create that colossal, ethereal, echoic sound, usually hearable on shoegaze recordings. It’s nearly mindblowing how all these layers articulate together without overwhelming each other. Everything is so nicely assembled and incorporated that you’ll easily hear everything DRUUGG intended to achieve with their debut full-length album. The vocals are also heavily drenched in reverb effect, making it so melancholic, echoic, and powerful at the same time. You’ll hear how soulful, passionate, sincere, confident, and emotional vocal performance elevates this album to new heights, commands attention, and guides the listening apparatus from scratch to finish. The continuous levitations between clean, melodic singing and aggressive screams and shouts make this album even more interesting. You’ll hear how a skillful singer effortlessly glides over low, mid, and high notes during each song, emphasizing everything the remainder of the band intended to achieve. Besides decorating all those segments and instrumentations, these vocal harmonies contribute more emotional depth and complexity to already intricate song structures.

Of course, the immense power comes from a rock-solid rhythm section. You’ll notice how equally impressive, audible, warm-sounding basslines rumble beneath the guitar layers, contributing more heftiness, clearness, and deepness to those songs while serving as a glue between all those orchestrations and rhythmic patterns. These low-ends are rich, deep, dense, and heavy, providing more power, groove, and detail to the entire material. Whether keeping all orchestrations in line or dictating the pace, the rhythmic patterns sound remarkable. You’ll stumble upon the entire amalgam of impressive, cleverly arranged, flawlessly performed beats, breaks, fills, and other percussive acrobatics, offering dynamics and accentuating these songs. You’ll hear how every hit of the snare, kick of the bass drum, and splash over cymbals cuts the ambiance, giving more details and complexity to even those calm moments. It’s difficult to pick any standout moments on “Lost” when the entire album is one big standout that brings only the finest elements of garage rock, noise rock, punk rock, and psych-rock music. These profoundly creative musicians poured heart and soul into this material, making it one of the finest releases you’ll hear this year. Therefore, head to their Bandcamp page or EXAG’ Records, and purchase this gem on vinyl.