Swamped in paperwork, longing for a brief escape, I plugged my headphones into my phone, searched ‘Pacific Avenue’ on Spotify, pressed play and closed my eyes.

The song, Drive Away, took me to summer by the ocean, where the sun sets late in the night.

It took me to the warm embrace of a new lover, eager to spend long afternoons by my side at the beach.

Whether the artists imagined the same scene as I did, lead singer Harry O’Brien, 19, admitted that romance had influenced their music.

“Our songs are all about growing up on the coast,” Harry said. 

“And about girls.”

The band formed in March, and has released two songs since.

With three of four band members studying at university, finances for studio time have been tight.

“We would like help recording our music,” Harry said.

“We’ve been scraping the last pennies together.”

But they have been resourceful, building a Facebook following of more than 1300 users.

In a positive sign of things to come for Pacific Avenue, they were the support act for widely-recognised  Australian indie pop band San Cisco at the Wollongong Unibar on June 3.

So far they have played gigs at Coledale, Cronulla and around Wollongong.

“We think being in the band comp will really help us to get more of a local following here in Kiama,” Harry said.