University Drive
First Stage Separation EP
Photo: Amanda Anderson Photography
First Stage Separation feels less like a polished product and more like something caught in motion. University Drive didn’t want to clean things up. They wanted it real, tape hiss, human timing, room noise and all.
The EP was recorded straight to tape at Electrical Audio in Chicago, a studio built by Steve Albini. That decision wasn’t just about sound quality. It was a kind of statement, a way of saying: this is who we are when you strip everything else away. For the first time, every member shaped the songs. No demos emailed around, no over-cooked arrangements. Just a band in a room figuring things out together. You can hear that in Hollow Sweetness, where the edges aren’t rounded off, and in Decades Lost, which builds its weight slowly rather than pushing for a quick payoff.
The EP was recorded straight to tape at Electrical Audio in Chicago, a studio built by Steve Albini. That decision wasn’t just about sound quality. It was a kind of statement, a way of saying: this is who we are when you strip everything else away. For the first time, every member shaped the songs. No demos emailed around, no over-cooked arrangements. Just a band in a room figuring things out together. You can hear that in Hollow Sweetness, where the edges aren’t rounded off, and in Decades Lost, which builds its weight slowly rather than pushing for a quick payoff.
Edward Cuozzo started University Drive as a solo project. Now it doesn’t sound like one. You hear five people pulling in the same direction but not in lockstep. There’s tension, mess, air. The drums land where they land. The guitars spill out. Some parts feel like they could come apart if you breathed the wrong way, but they don’t, they stay on track and keep your ears fully engaged.
They’ve toured, changed lineups, and played in places where the monitors didn’t work. This EP reflects all of that, not in the lyrics, necessarily, but in the feel. It’s not perfect. That’s the point.
They’ve toured, changed lineups, and played in places where the monitors didn’t work. This EP reflects all of that, not in the lyrics, necessarily, but in the feel. It’s not perfect. That’s the point.