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Girlfriend (The Driver Era album)

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Girlfriend
Upside down black and white picture of the band members, with an overlapping green album title
Studio album by
The Driver Era
ReleasedOctober 15, 2021
Genre
Length51:53
Label
  • TOO Records
  • BMG
Producer
The Driver Era chronology
X
(2019) 		Girlfriend
(2021) 		Summer Mixtape
(2022)
Singles from Girlfriend
  1. "A Kiss / Forever Always"
    Released: October 25, 2019
  2. "OMG Plz Don't Come Around / Flashdrive"
    Released: April 2, 2020
  3. "Take Me Away"
    Released: July 10, 2020
  4. "Places"
    Released: August 7, 2020
  5. "Fade"
    Released: September 25, 2020
  6. "Heaven Angel"
    Released: July 9, 2021
  7. "#1 Fan"
    Released: August 13, 2021
  8. "Leave Me Feeling Confident"
    Released: September 27, 2021

Girlfriend is the second studio album from American music duo the Driver Era, released on October 15, 2021, by BMG and TOO Records.[1] It serves as a follow up to their debut album, X, released in 2019.[2]

The album was preceded by the release of ten singles: "A Kiss" with "Forever Always", "OMG Plz Don't Come Around" with "Flashdrive", "Take Me Away", "Places", "Fade" , "Heaven Angel", "#1 Fan" and "Leave Me Feeling Confident".[3]

Girlfriend was met with mixed to positive reception from critics, who complimented the album's vibe. Commercially, the album charted on the UK Independent Album Breakers Chart, The Driver Era's first entry on an official chart globally.

In 2022, The Driver Era embarked on a concert tour, The Girlfriend Tour, which ran for 25 shows across the US and Europe.[4]

To further promote the album, as well as the band's discography the band will embark on another tour, X Girlfriend Tour,[5] which is set to start on September 14, 2024, and end on October 27, 2024,[6] across Europe, and consiste of a total of 25 shows.[7]

Background and promotion

[edit]

What’s exciting about these songs is that they all have different creation times, in that some of them have been in the process for a year or two and some of them we just started making a few months ago [...] We didn’t just sit down and start making the album right here, right now. The songs all came from different points in our lives.

– Ross Lynch on developing Girlfriend, via interview for SPIN.[8]

On October 25, 2019, The Driver Era released the conjoined lead singles, "A Kiss" and "Forever Always".

On April 2, 2020, the band released another conjoined singles "OMG Plz Don’t Come Around" and "Flashdrive", from their then-upcoming second album, at the time expected to be released in the late summer 2020, which would later be delayed primarily due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which held back on the band's promotional schedule.[8]

On April 23, 2021, during a YouTube Live dedicated to MTV Friday Livestream's first birthday, The Driver Era announced their next single "Heaven Angel", to be released within the following month.[9] Weeks later, the band released "#1 Fan" and "Leave Me Feeling Confident" before finally announcing and releasing their sophomore album Girlfriend.[10] The album was followed by "The Girlfriend Tour" with concerts in the US, Asia, Australia and Europe both in 2021 and 2022.

Critical reception

[edit]
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
DIY[11]
Dork[12]

Girlfriend received mixed to positive reviews from critics. Bella Martin of DIY wrote that the record "possesses a slinky line in R&B-tinged, ‘80s-indebted pop", while noting that it felt a "little too two-dimensional" at times.[11] Dork's Stephen Ackroyd called it a "textured, smart modern pop rock record" and added that, although sometimes the album feels a little slick, the band "remain firmly heading in the right direction".[12]

Commercial performance

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The album debuted at number eighteen on the UK Independent Album Breakers Chart, marking the band's first entry on any official charts across the world. This was the only chart in which Girlfriend appeared.[13]

Track listing

[edit]

All tracks are written and produced by Rocky Lynch and Ross Lynch, except where noted.

Girlfriend – Disc one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Heart of Mine" 4:24
2."Cray Z Babe E" 3:13
3."Leave Me Feeling Confident" 3:49
4."Beautiful Girl" 3:04
5."#1 Fan" 3:06
6."Heaven Angel" 3:39
7."When You Need a Man"
3:27
Total length:24:42
Girlfriend – Disc two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Plz Don't Come Around Interlude" 1:10
2."OMG Plz Don't Come Around" 3:49
3."Places" 3:19
4."A Kiss"
4:32
5."Fade" 4:00
6."Flashdrive" 3:33
7."Take Me Away" 3:24
8."Forever Always" 3:18
Total length:27:26

Notes

  • "Cray Z Babe E" and "Flashdrive" are stylized in all lowercase.
  • "Plz Don't Come Around Interlude" is stylized in sentence case.

Personnel

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Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes.[14]

The Driver Era

[edit]
  • Ross Lynch – vocals, drum programming, guitar, bass
  • Rocky Lynch – vocals, drum programming, guitar, bass

Technical

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  • Phil Tan – mixing (1–10, 13, 14)
  • Erik Madrid – mixing (11, 15)
  • Aaron Mattes – mixing assistance (11, 15)
  • Bill Zimmerman – mixing assistance (1–10, 13, 14)
  • Julio Rodriguez Sangrador – mixing, mastering (12)
  • Colin Leonard – mastering
  • Michelle Mancini – mastering

Charts

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Weekly charts

[edit]
Weekly chart performance for Girlfriend
Chart (2021) Peak
position
UK Independent Album Breakers (OCC)[13] 18

Release history

[edit]
Girlfriend release history
Region Date Format(s) Label Ref.
Various October 15, 2021
BMG [15]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Paper Magazine (October 16, 2021). "The Driver Era's Track-by-Track Breakdown of 'Girlfriend'". Paper Magazine. Retrieved July 18, 2024.
  2. ^ Wright, Jake (July 14, 2020). "In Conversation: The Driver Era". Clash. Retrieved July 18, 2024.
  3. ^ THE DRIVER ERA - Girlfriend Album Reviews, Songs & More | AllMusic, retrieved July 18, 2024
  4. ^ Paul, Larisha (December 20, 2021). "Backstage on the Girlfriend tour, The Driver Era reflect on their evolution as musicians". The Fader. Retrieved July 18, 2024.
  5. ^ Forrest, Jo (May 17, 2024). "THE DRIVER ERA announce 'X Girlfriend' Tour". Total Entertainment. Retrieved July 18, 2024.
  6. ^ Stickler, Jon (May 13, 2024). "The Driver Era Confirm Autumn UK And European Leg Of X Girlfriend Tour". Stereo Board. Retrieved July 18, 2024.
  7. ^ Wescott, Andrew (May 13, 2024). "The Driver Era Have Announced UK and European 'X Girlfriend Tour' Dates". Dork. Retrieved July 18, 2024.
  8. ^ a b Chesler, Josh (April 1, 2020). "From Sabrina to the Stage: The Driver Era Move Forward With "flashdrive"". SPIN. Retrieved July 19, 2024.
  9. ^ DIY (July 12, 2021). "The Driver Era Reveal New Single 'Heaven Angel'". DIY. Retrieved July 18, 2024.
  10. ^ DIY (August 21, 2021). "The Driver Era Announce Sophomore Album 'Girlfriend'". DIY. Retrieved July 18, 2024.
  11. ^ a b Martin, Bella (October 15, 2021). "Album Review - The Driver Era - Girlfriend". DIY. Retrieved July 18, 2024.
  12. ^ a b Ackroyd, Stephen (October 15, 2021). "The Driver Era - Girlfriend". DIY. Retrieved July 18, 2024.
  13. ^ a b "Official Independent Album Breakers Chart - 21 October 2021 - 27 October 2021". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 18, 2024.
  14. ^ Girlfriend (Booklet). United States: BMG Rights Management. 2021. 538706482.
  15. ^ Girlfriend release formats:
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