Nick Driver

Nick Driver is an American rock and Americana singer-songwriter, based in North Carolina.

Not to be confused with N. Driver, a DJ of the same name
Nick Driver
Background information
BornZebulon, North Carolina, United States
GenresRock, acoustic rock
Occupation(s)Singer-songwriter
InstrumentsGuitar, vocals
Years active2010–present
LabelsTalkback Records
Associated actsNick Driver Band
Websitenickdrivermusic.com

In 2010, he released his debut solo album, Warm Is Your Color, which had a top-ten song hit on Sirius XM's The Coffee House radio station.[1] Wildy's World stated about Warm Is Your Color that "Driver looks to bring the energy of punk to the finesse and precision of pop music."[2] He has released several full-length albums and singles since, and his songs have been featured on the television shows Bad Girls Club: Atlanta, Kourtney and Kim Take Miami, The Real World: St. Thomas, and The Real World: Portland.[1] On September 9, 2014, he released the EP Staring at My Ceiling in the Dark.

Driver tours and records as part of The Nick Driver Band, which has appeared at festivals such as FloydFest.

In 2011, he was nominated at the John Lennon International Songwriting Contest for folk, and in 2012, he was nominated for Humanitarian Songwriter of the Year at the Las Vegas Music Awards.

Early life, education and early career

Driver was born in Zebulon, North Carolina,[3] where he grew up on a farm. Driver has stated that "I wanted to play music for as long as I can remember. I guess around 1999 it hit me that [making music] is what I wanted to do. I never really turned back, and I never really had a back up plan." He started a rock band in high school, before moving to Raleigh, North Carolina, to attend North Carolina University.

While a student he studied classical vocals and guitar.[4] He also played in a number of post-hardcore punk bands, which in both 2007 and 2009 were featured on the Vans Warped Tour.[1]

Music career

Warm Is Your Color (2010)

After playing heavy rock styles for close to a decade, Driver began writing music in a primarily acoustic style. His debut solo LP Warm Is Your Color was self-released on January 1, 2010. He toured the United States in support of the album, which had a top ten song hit on Sirius XM's The Coffeehouse, titled "Let's Stay Together."[1]

Wildy's World gave Warm Is Your Color a positive review and 3/5 stars, calling it an "adroit turn" and stating that "turning to word-heavy light acoustic pop (ala Jason Mraz) and balladry, Driver looks to bring the energy of punk to the finesse and precision of pop music". The review praised the creativity of several songs in particular, but criticized others for not suiting Driver's style. "The more up-tempo acoustic pop songs work very well for Driver, whereas the slow ballads find Driver losing energy, focus and sound."[2] Music Spectrum also compared Driver's style to Mraz, and stated, "Aside from the Mraz comparison, I also hear what's called Speedwood by the group Lost & Found. What they mean are some hard acoustic guitar lines—kind of a punk energy to folk music. Driver displays this on 'Young Beautiful,' with the guitar accentuated by congas."[5]

Recent years

Driver went on to release several more solo albums after Warm Is Your Color. A Kinda Love This World Could Never Burn, his next, was released on April 12, 2011, on Talkback Records. His single off the album, "Spare Me Some Change", led to Driver being a finalist in the John Lennon Songwriting Award for Folk in 2011.[1] Later that year, he released the EP Coffee House Hero: Live & Rare Acoustic B-Sides on Interscope Digital Distribution.

Driver self-released Poet's Corner, Vol. One on September 25, 2012. It received a positive review in Indy Week, which stated the album lacked adventure and is instead "a record of simple and openhearted tunes, and when it works, Driver offers the kind of amiable pop that Matt Nathanson would be proud to call his own, as with the endearing 'Collect the Rain'".[6] Jonah Matranga sang backing vocals for Driver's song "Universal Love" on the album Poets' Corner Volume One in late 2012. In 2013, he independently released two albums: Folsom Prison Blues and The Nicky D LP.

Driver's songs have been featured on television shows, including Bad Girls Club: Atlanta on Oxygen Network, Kourtney and Kim Take Miami on E! Network, The Real World: St. Thomas, and The Real World: Portland.[1]

On September 9, 2014, he released the EP Staring at My Ceiling in the Dark.

The Nick Driver Band
The Nick Driver Band
GenresAmericana, rock
Years active2010 (2010)–present
WebsiteNick Driver Band on Facebook
MembersNick Driver, Darren Abbacchi, Mike Chidsey
Past membersJade Werth, Elijah Ott, Billy Hinnant, David Arn Jr., Jared Pyle

Formed to record on Driver's studio albums and perform live, early on The Nick Driver Band included Driver, Darren Abbacchi, Elijah Ott, Billy Hinnant, and Jared Pyle.[3] Other past members include Jade Werth on guitar, keyboards, and harp.[7] In 2012, The Nick Driver Band won "Best Rock Band in the Triangle" by The Independent Weekly in Raleigh.[8]

The band has toured extensively throughout the United States,[3] and opened for groups such as Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, North Mississippi All-Stars, Pat Benatar, The Lumineers, Jonas Brothers, Demi Lovato, Less Than Jake, and Creed.

The band has performed at festivals, including the Warped Tour, The American Music Festival, Celebrate Fairfax, and Floydfest 2013.[8]

Members as of 2014[7]
  • Nick Driver – vocals, guitars, songwriting
  • Darren Abbacchi – drums
  • Mike Chidsey – lead guitar

Style

Driver uses few effects in his solo material, and mostly relies on acoustic instruments.[9] While he incorporates the stylings of multiple genres, much of his music has an "Americana, singer-songwriter feel".[4]

According to Driver, "Jamie King from Swift is a big influence on me and my music. He's the most talented producer I've ever worked [with]." Driver has also cited poets such as Sylvia Plath as influences on his lyrics, stating "She was intense. I make loads of sunshine type songs, but a lot of my influences have a tendency to be a little bit on the darker, edgier side of things." About his message, "I guess...I want to express that the simple things in life are the best. I want to make love and relationships sound like an interesting concept like they truly are."[4]

Personal life

Driver is based in Raleigh.

Discography

Solo material

Albums
Full-length studio and live albums by Nick Driver
Year Album title Release details
2010 Warm Is Your Color
  • Released: January 1, 2010
  • Label: self-released
  • Format: CD, digital
2011 A Kinda Love This World Could Never Burn
  • Released: April 12, 2011
  • Label: Talkback Records
  • Format: CD, digital
2012 Poet's Corner, Vol. One
  • Released: September 25, 2012
  • Label: self-released
  • Format: CD, digital
2013 Folsom Prison Blues
  • Released: June 30, 2013
  • Label: self-released
  • Format: CD, digital
The Nicky D LP
  • Released: December 31, 2013
  • Label: self-released
  • Format: CD, digital

EPs
EPs by Nick Driver
Year Album title Release details
2011 Coffee House Hero: Live & Rare Acoustic B-Sides
2014 Staring at My Ceiling in the Dark
  • Released: September 9, 2014
  • Label: self-released
  • Format: digital

Singles
Incomplete list of songs by Nick Driver[8]
Year Title Album Notes
2010 "Let's Stay Together" Warm Is Your Colortop-ten artist on Sirius XM's The Coffee House radio station
2011 "Spare Me Some Change" A Kinda Love This World Could Never BurnNominated – 2011 John Lennon International Songwriting – Folk
"Fragile Hearts" The Real World: St. Thomas, episode "Paradise Found"
"Everything Is Going to Be Just Fine" The Real World: St. Thomas, episode "Roommates Become Bed Mates"
"Bad Bad Leroy Brown" single onlyInterscope
2012 "You Should Learn to Love Someone" self-released
"Universal Love" (featuring Jonah Matranga) Poets' Corner, Vol. OneNominated – Humanitarian Songwriter of the Year by Las Vegas Music Awards
"Collect the Rain" Kourtney and Kim Take Miami, episode "Dragon Me Down"
"It's a Beautiful Day" Bad Girls Club, episode "Gone with the Weave" and "Anger Mismanagement"
"Out Alive" The Real World: Portland, episode "2808"
"My Game Is Tighter than an Emo Kid's Jeans" The Real World: Portland, episode "2807"

Further reading
  • "Gimme Five! Nick Driver Interview". Carrboro Citizen. August 10, 2011.
gollark: This was partly ironic. It is horrible and inconsistent. The rules vary and are not obvious. There is an unofficial standard but not everything supports it, most things add extra stuff on, and you need 3000 lines of parser code to support it.
gollark: It's so consistent, and there are obvious simple rules which let you know exactly what it'll look like, plus it can be easily published on the web and viewed at arbitrary screen sizes.
gollark: This is why I do all my documentation as Markdown.
gollark: Somehow designing the CLI is harder than writing the actual archiver code.
gollark: Discord bots are easy, machine learning is less easy.

See also

References
  1. "Nick Driver Biography". MTV. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
  2. "Nick Driver – Warm Is Your Color". Wildy's World. June 21, 2010. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
  3. "Nick Driver Band: Touring". Ourstage. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
  4. Melzer, Ashley (August 10, 2011). "Gimme Five! Nick Driver". Carrboro Citizen. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
  5. "Mraz-style Singer/Songwriter: Nick Driver's Warm Is Your Color". Music Spectrum. June 3, 2010. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
  6. Melzer, Ashley (April 2012). "Nick Driver's Poet's Corner: Volume One". Indy Week. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
  7. "Nick Driver Band Bio". Facebook. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
  8. "Bio". Nick Driver Music. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
  9. Hardee, Sue. "Album Review". Raleigh Music.
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