Music / Premieres
Premiere:
Santa Fe Driving Range - Careless Hands
Santa Fe Driving Range - Careless Hands
Today we’re thrilled to premiere the debut single from indie-rock crew Santa Fe Driving Range - bursting with playful instrumentation and contagious charm, ‘Careless Hands’ is a breezy jangle-pop tune that suggests exciting things are to come from the coastal group.
Forming out of the ashes of a few other projects, it’s immediately clear on 'Careless Hands' that it’s not Santa Fe Driving Range’s first time around the traps. That said, they’ve somehow managed to sound equally excitable, combining their self-assurance with an endearing wide-eyed innocence that only comes from a new band.
Kicking off with some unassuming chords, the track quickly begins to worm its way into your brain as vocalist Ben Wade weaves a crafty melody with his unaffectedly emotive vocals before a charming clarinet line appears to finish the job. The track expands open with a steady beat and the track is casually filled out with a colourful arrangement and languid groove. It’s a comfortable ride, but just before we begin to settle in too much, SFDR kick things up another level with a chorus that sees them truly shine - packed with group vocals, triumphant chords and the perfect amount of do-dos, it’s a gloriously sweet way to wrap up a track that brims with spirit.
To celebrate the release of ‘Careless Hands’, we got in touch with SFDR to find out about the new track and what’s to come next.
Kicking off with some unassuming chords, the track quickly begins to worm its way into your brain as vocalist Ben Wade weaves a crafty melody with his unaffectedly emotive vocals before a charming clarinet line appears to finish the job. The track expands open with a steady beat and the track is casually filled out with a colourful arrangement and languid groove. It’s a comfortable ride, but just before we begin to settle in too much, SFDR kick things up another level with a chorus that sees them truly shine - packed with group vocals, triumphant chords and the perfect amount of do-dos, it’s a gloriously sweet way to wrap up a track that brims with spirit.
To celebrate the release of ‘Careless Hands’, we got in touch with SFDR to find out about the new track and what’s to come next.
TJ: Hey crew, tell us about Santa Fe Driving Range?
SFDR: Santa Fe Driving Range is a brand spanking new project comprising of a few mates that have been playing together for a long long long time, with a couple of new faces dropped in the mix.
We're all country kids that have moved to the city at various stages and essentially fell in love with the Melbourne music scene and its iconic sounds.. so we obviously just wanted to be part of it!
We’ve just had the pleasure of premiering your debut single 'Careless Hands' - what’s the story behind the track?
The first concept or foundation of the track was made a bit over a year ago while I was temporarily residing in Europe. I had no idea who the track was for as my band at the time had made the call to part ways upon my leaving. By the time I came home, a lot of things changed (had to get a real job, urgh) and the rest of this song just happened to really fit that. The lyrics really reflect this, looking forward while everything else just shifts around you.
You also had a few impressive names lend a hand on the recording and mixing side of things - what was working with Zac Barter and Steve Schram like?
Zac is a long time friend/mentor of me/my bands. He was actually my guitar teacher in high school (not to blame him for my measly skillset), which was awesome. Recording with him is always kinda funny - we all kind of look up to him like he's our music teacher still when we're trying to figure it all out.
As for Steve, it's definitely exciting working with him, especially given the track record. You think you've got an idea of the direction of tracks during the editing stage, and first mix comes back only to completely take you surprise. In a good way.
You’re gearing up for a pretty exciting few months - what’s coming up?
We've got a joint single launch for this track with our buddies KILNS April 27th at the Grace Darling, Collingwood. Before that though we've got another couple of treats, so eyes peeled!
How’s the rest of 2019 shaping up for SFDR?
We've got a solid year ahead. The single after this one is loaded and ready to go, maybe look to get an EP in before you year is out. As for gigs, we'll take our show up Sydney way when we get a minute later in the year!
SFDR: Santa Fe Driving Range is a brand spanking new project comprising of a few mates that have been playing together for a long long long time, with a couple of new faces dropped in the mix.
We're all country kids that have moved to the city at various stages and essentially fell in love with the Melbourne music scene and its iconic sounds.. so we obviously just wanted to be part of it!
We’ve just had the pleasure of premiering your debut single 'Careless Hands' - what’s the story behind the track?
The first concept or foundation of the track was made a bit over a year ago while I was temporarily residing in Europe. I had no idea who the track was for as my band at the time had made the call to part ways upon my leaving. By the time I came home, a lot of things changed (had to get a real job, urgh) and the rest of this song just happened to really fit that. The lyrics really reflect this, looking forward while everything else just shifts around you.
You also had a few impressive names lend a hand on the recording and mixing side of things - what was working with Zac Barter and Steve Schram like?
Zac is a long time friend/mentor of me/my bands. He was actually my guitar teacher in high school (not to blame him for my measly skillset), which was awesome. Recording with him is always kinda funny - we all kind of look up to him like he's our music teacher still when we're trying to figure it all out.
As for Steve, it's definitely exciting working with him, especially given the track record. You think you've got an idea of the direction of tracks during the editing stage, and first mix comes back only to completely take you surprise. In a good way.
You’re gearing up for a pretty exciting few months - what’s coming up?
We've got a joint single launch for this track with our buddies KILNS April 27th at the Grace Darling, Collingwood. Before that though we've got another couple of treats, so eyes peeled!
How’s the rest of 2019 shaping up for SFDR?
We've got a solid year ahead. The single after this one is loaded and ready to go, maybe look to get an EP in before you year is out. As for gigs, we'll take our show up Sydney way when we get a minute later in the year!
Have a listen to 'Careless Hands' above, and you can catch Santa Fe Driving Range launching the new single at the Grace Darling on April 27th alongside KILNS.
