Instrumental Wizardry: More from D-Drive

And more women doing stuff they're not supposed to be good at

To paraphrase Kevin Alexander: What have you been listening to?

I’ve been bingeing D-Drive. The more I hear, the more captivated I am. They combine the catchiness and infectious beat of some of the great 60’s rock groups, especially surf-rock, with extraordinarily modern composition and technique. And they are freakin’ wizards at their instruments.

Many musicians can show off and take every opportunity to do so, but that gets boring. D-Drive flips that approach on its head: They pull you in with beautiful melodies and harmonies and set a mood, then they hit the accelerator. When they do, it serves to take the song to another level. If you didn’t see my previous post about them, here it is.

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When Seiji and Yuki decided to take the plunge and start a band, they needed to recruit a drummer and bassist. They posted a video of themselves playing something they had written together, accompanied by programmed drum and bass tracks. On the strength of that, they were able to complete their lineup. The next clip is that original video.

Note for those of you who like the little details: At 2:07, they start a sequence of lightning-fast harmonized riffs, and if you watch their hands, you will see that Seiji is tapping (hammer-ons and pull-offs) while Yuki is sweep-picking. I can’t remember seeing two guitarists doing something like this in perfect synchrony.

The original lineup were: Seiji and Yuki on guitar, Chiiko on drums, and Shimitaro on bass. The next clip is one of the last things they released with that lineup. It’s a high-energy rocker that could have been the soundtrack to an action film.

The song has an unconventional structure, with an extra bridge and an extra round of verse and chorus. Nothing repeats — each of the verses is an improvisation on the previous one, and each of the choruses is more dense and complex than the prior one. The song keeps building in intensity while staying catchy and melodic.

I’ve been following this band for a while now. They have been evolving before our eyes, and none more than Yuki, who has become a true guitar hero. Here she is covering Judas Priest’s most iconic song, “Painkiller.”

For those not familiar with Priest, they were one of the earliest bands to feature twin lead guitarists (Glenn Tipton and K.K. Downing), who were famous for their dual shred fests. Yuki actually plays both of their lines in this cover (except for a few spots where it would be physically impossible). She makes it look absurdly easy.

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If you want more D-Drive, let me know. Thank you for reading!