The Driver Era - Girlfriend

There once was a time where everyone had to be one thing or another. Pick a creative endeavour and, unless you’re a supreme talent like David Bowie or Shane Richie (ask your parents - Ed), you stick in your lane. Thankfully, that kind of nonsense is long gone.

Today’s pop scene is blessed with all kinds of polymaths, able to extend their abilities across art, acting, music or whatever else takes their fancy. And Ross Lynch - alongside his brother Rocky - does it well. Cynics might see The Driver Era as ‘not a real band’, simply because there’s a bit of star power involved - but ‘Girlfriend’ belies this. A textured, smart modern pop rock record, it’s an album that understands the brief.

‘Leave Me Feeling Confident’ drips with self assured swagger, while ‘OMG Plz Don’t Come Around’ adds a bit of angular spice - at times coming across like a woozy, sleazier sibling of The 1975’s ‘I Like America & America Likes Me’. Though at times it might be a little slick for its own good, The Driver Era remain firmly heading in the right direction.