If you take the history between Marcel Veenendaal (vocals), Frans Spike van Zoest (vocals/guitars), Bas van Wageningen (bass), Jamie Westland (drums), and Paul Jan Bakker (guitars) into account, its a remarkable thing to consider; a collection of colorful individuals that isnt just operating at the height of their creative powers, but doing so with unprecedented success. They won a Dutch Edison Award for their 2017 album Rolling With The Punches and played their biggest shows yet at Pinkpop and AFAS Live. Ever since scoring a number one hit with Times Are Changing in 2009 sparked by Veenendaals charismatic voice DI-RECT have come to define success as something bigger than just metrics or awards could explain. They are a band perpetually driven by the prospect of why not?, performing sweeping arena-sized romps and intimate house shows alike. No matter the setting, you can always count on DI-RECT to provide a dynamic, combustible mix of crowd favorites and daredevil experimentalism.
Their latest single Devil Dont Care was recorded last year in Berlin with producer Niels Zuiderhoek and mixed by Cenzo Townshend (who worked with indie pop goliaths Editors and Florence + The Machine). This time, DI-RECT unpacks with a technicolor synth-pop sprawl, gleefully kickstarting it with a familiar-sounding deep note and a powerful mantra: Youll never exist again. The accordingly vivid music video and artwork for Devil Dont Care were made by visual artist Jamel Armand, further invigorating en echoing the piercing fortitude of Veenendaal's words. Devil Dont Care truly punctuates DI-RECTs current mission statement: having the audacity to surrender to the vision of another can lead to an enriching exchange. Live or die, if the only direction left is to go forward, then you might as well embrace all comers.