London duo The Itch have shared their Drugdealer EP via Fiction Records and I OH YOU, featuring alternative versions and remixes of the standout track from their April debut LP, It’s The Hope That Kills You. Tracing the song from a raw Brockwell Park voice note to reworks by Ghost Culture and 1-800 GIRLS, the project lands just as the band headlines London’s Club Cheek tonight.
The new collection offers an intimate look at the evolution of “Drugdealer,” a track that frontman Simon Tyrie notes was a major departure from the band’s usual sound. Originally inspired by the metaphorical songwriting of Elton John and a sudden flash of inspiration at Wide Awake festival, the song went through numerous iterations before making the final album cut. By packing the EP with its earliest demos and electronic remixes, Tyrie and bandmate Georgia aim to pull back the curtain on their creative process for a song they are collectively proudest of.
On the release, Tyrie states,
“’Drugdealer’ is one of the songs we’re proudest of from the record – it was a departure from our usual sound and went through many very different forms, including the demo that’s on this EP. We actually had a hard time deciding which version to use for the album so decided to make this EP to show the evolution a song can go through”
Tonight’s hometown show at Club Cheek in Brixton marks a major milestone in a busy May tour that has already taken the duo through Leeds, Glasgow, Manchester, Amsterdam, and Paris. Delivering their signature vocoder-topped tracks with a distinct sense of candid conviction, the group continues to serve as a perfect sonic antidote to modern pessimism. As they bring their underground basement energy to a wider audience, the Drugdealer EP serves as a testament to a band entirely secure in their experimental identity.
