After reshaping their sound back in July of this year, Victoria Draovitch and Steve Grzenda have been working towards their debut EP as a duo. SELF IMPROVEMENT is the reflective, raw and introspective fruit of their labour. Each individual track on the EP charts a different struggle with mental health, that both members of the band have suffered from.

The closing track of the EP, “BETTER,” was penned as a cathartic final track. Drauve wanted to end to this project with the question “What’s it gonna take to make it all better?”. Whilst they acknowledge that this may not be a “typically positive” way to conclude, the moody track is delicately beautiful.

With the aim to “support listeners who may be struggling alone”, “BETTER” is moody yet oddly uplifting in its frank honesty. It explores the feelings of hopelessness and exhaustion that oftentimes go hand in hand with battling mental health issues. Filled with rhetorical questions that only Victoria and Steve themselves can answer, it’s self-aware and philosophical whilst retaining a universal appeal; these are thoughts that we have all ruminated over in hard times.

Victoria Draovitch’s voice lends itself perfectly to the guitar-led backdrop. Light synths are scattered throughout the despondent soundscape, creating a brevity amongst the darkness of these circulating questions. Yes, we were craving for something more fun to conclude this catastrophic year but “BETTER” is the actual catharsis we were all needing.

After releasing three stellar singles back in 2019, with “Haunted” being one of our favourite tracks of that year, Pittsburgh-based quartet Drauve disappeared into the ether. However, this disappearance was fully warranted and justifiable. Now a duo comprised of original members Victoria Draovitch and Stephen Grzenda, Drauve have been reimagining their sound, drawing on more pop influences and gearing up to showcase their new direction. “LMK” – standing for “Let Me Know” – is the first glance into this new path forward.

With its laid back beat and languid vocals, “LMK” is simply infectious. The track sizzles along with the swirling guitars echoing some stabbing synths. Drauve describe themselves as “friends making hazy tunes in a hazy basement” and it’s pretty relevant as “LMK” possesses a truly foggy quality. This is to its praise though; the combination of the woozy, repetitive vocals and the straightforward beat is one of a cool mystique.

“LMK” is dream-pop with unprecedented danceable quality. It blends itself nicely into the chillwave genre, quite ironically when noting the subject of the track. “It’s a song about the anxiety of not knowing where someone close to you is, whether that be a friend or an estranged lover,” Drauve stated. The repeated refrain “You said you’d let me know when you got home last night” builds upon this tension.

Harsh and unpredictable, the end to the track acts as a dramatic climax. Suddenly ejected from the dreamy atmosphere, the listener is forced to experience the trouble and disempowerment of the character in the most efficient way.