Comprised of Adrian Acosta (guitar, programming, vocals), Jessica Huang (guitar, keys, vocals), Adrian De La Cruz (guitar). Carlos Michel (bass, sampler) and Danny Rossi (drums), the Los Angeles, CA-based shoegaze quintet of Draag began under rather humble circumstances – as Adrian Acosta’s solo recording project. In the middle of the recording process, of the band’s self-titled, debut full-length effort, Acosta recruited the current lineup to flesh out the project’s sound, which was heavily influenced by My Bloody Valentine, Primal Scream, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Aphex Twin, and Fugazi. 

And although the band as an actual band is relatively young, they’ve received quite a bit of buzz across the blogosphere – Buzzbands.la had praised one of the band’s early shows. And I suspect with the forthcoming release of Traci Lordz EP, produced by Jeff Byron, best known for his work in The Mae Shi, that you’ll hear quite a bit more about them over the next few months. Despite the band’s influences, the EP’s second single “Chair” bears an uncanny resemblances to the synth-based, more mainstream 80s rock; in fact, the song reminds me quite a bit of the likes of The Fixx and others, thanks to its use of sinuous and meandering synths, four-on-the-floor drums, angular guitar fed through gentle reverb and ethereal harmonies. 

And interestingly enough, the song possesses a rather complex song structure – it’s comprised of several distinct sections patched together by a motorik groove and a focus on evoking a particular mood.