# Perseverance & Draag Draag began when Adrian Acosta (songwriter, vocalist, guitarist) revived songs he recorded on his karaoke tape deck when he was 10 years old. Growing up in the northeast San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles, there was nothing for kids to do. Adrian was deeply involved in the DIY punk scene there as a preteen; backyard shows happened every weekend by word of mouth and through flyers at school, with some shows ending in drive-by shootings from rival gangs. As a kid, Acosta purposely used warped tapes and dissonant sounds without understanding what he loved about it, but upon discovering artists such as My Bloody Valentine, Boards of Canada, and Throbbing Gristle, he realized he wasn’t the only one. Adrian met Ray Montes (guitar), Nick Kelley (bass), Eric Fabbro (drums), through many years in the music community in LA, who also took the craft of music seriously, running their own labels and going on tours at a young age. He met Jessica Huang (synth, vocals) through an ad on Craigslist. She had a different musical upbringing, classically trained in piano and played the alto sax in marching band, and was on tumblr instead of at backyard shows. Draag gained a reputation for their sonically immersive live shows, mostly by word of mouth. Following two EPs, 2018’s Nontoxic Process and 2020’s Clara Luz, and their first full length LP, 2023’s Dark Fire Heresy, Actually, the quiet is nice explores the liminal space between albums, and the far reaching corners of Draag’s sound. Inspired by TikTok slides of anonymous Flickr uploads of someone’s friends, neighborhood on a summer day, their bedroom, etc. it struck an obsession with a particular feeling in childhood, while knowing you could go back, but no one would be home. The EP is also influenced by the experience of growing up with immigrant parents in the suburbs during the 90s. Pre-order [_Actually, the quiet is nice_](https://draagdraag.bandcamp.com/album/actually-the-quiet-is-nice) EP coming out on May 17, 2024 on Julia’s War. Check out Draag’s visualizer for [_Orb weaver_](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B9P2lECK2aA). All ticket links to West Coast tour dates with Wednesday can be found [here](https://www.draagband.com/shows). # Tracklist ## PERSEVERANCE | artist | song | | --------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------ | | Pale Saints | Porpoise | | Modern Charms | Falling Sun | | 79.5 | Sisters Unarmed | | Sonic Youth | I Dreamed I Dream | | Gouge Away | The Sharpening | | GIRL PUSHER | where the fuck is my ambulance | | Melvins | Honey Bucket | | Cro-Mags | Street Justice | | MANNEQUIN PUSSY | OK? OK! OK? OK! | | Smashing Pumpkins | There it Goes (2012 Remaster) | | Johnny Cash, Tennesse Three | One Piece at a Time | | The Police | When The World is Running Down, You Make the Best of What’s Still Around | | Meat Beat Manifesto | Forced To Lie | ## DRAAG | artist | song | | ------------------- | ----------------------- | | Chanel Beads | I Think I Saw | | Nourished by Time | Poison-Soaked | | Truth Club | Uh Oh | | Vegyn | Time Well Spent | | Ministry | Hizbollah | | Solvent OS | Cliquey | | Rob Crow | Forced Letter | | Cindy Lee | Kingdom Come | | A Country Western | Sidewalk | | Chanel Beads | Unifying Thought | | feeble little horse | Heavy Water | | Rob Crow | Scalped | | Louke Man | Toes Down | | Solvent OS | Bug | | full body 2 | blue trio | | Rob Crow | Taste | | Nourished by Time | Hell of a Ride | | Vegyn | The Path Less Travelled | | Pearly Drops | Call For Help |