THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Vancouver indie rocker and Juno-nominated artist-producer Young Friend (Drew Tarves) has just released his debut album Motorcycle Sound Effects. Recorded in 2022 and co-produced alongside David Marinelli (Finneas, Jawny), it finds Tarves singing about the nuances of growing up, capturing the people and experiences along the way.Tarves describes the sound as a “genre-bending fever dream album,” taking inspiration from a variety of sources — everyone from Wilco and Adrienne Lenker to The Strokes and Porches.
Tarves’ music as Young Friend feels classic and immediate all at once, capturing the nostalgia of post-adolescence while diving deep into a pool of self-reflection. His new project is bursting with big feelings and perfect golden light. It feels messy and raw, like long summer nights piling into the back of a pickup truck with all your friends, sprinting to catch the last summer sunset, taking off your shoes and dancing in the grass, falling, getting back up.
A trained dancer for most of his adolescence, the 24-year-old Vancouver native switched artistic disciplines after spending time jamming with his musician friends. “I found out very quickly that I loved it,” he recalls. “It was my favorite thing to do.” Armed with a guitar and a laptop, Tarves started hashing out early songwriting attempts on GarageBand as he found his own style that suited him: “It was all about experimenting while trying to find what worked for me.”
In 2022, Tarves released his indie-pop debut EP How Did We Get Here?, and quickly followed it up with a sophomore in 2023 titled Scaredy Cat. 2024 brought in his first Canadian and international touring, as well as a Juno nomination. With Motorcycle Sound Effects, Young Friend will take you along for the ride of your life. “This album takes notes from a lot of different artists and bands that I really love.”
