For years, Mark Quon wrote folk songs for his folk band, Parlour, which gigged constantly throughout Central

Oregon in the 2010s before calling it quits in 2018.

But writing folk songs for a folk band is not necessarily Quon’s default mode as a songwriter.

“When I sit down and write a song,” he said, “this is more true to who I am.”

He’s talking about “The Innocents,” the debut full-length album from his new band, DRIFT, playing an album-release show Friday at Volcanic Theatre Pub in Bend. Made up of five veteran players from the local music scene, the group’s music is laid-back, soulful, electrified and introspective, and it leans more toward indie rock or alt-singer-songwriter fare than folk.

That’s by design.

“When we broke up Parlour, I decided that I wanted to go in a different direction and just do something completely different,” Quon said. “I had a ton of songs already written at that point, so I went to work getting a band together to bring ‘em to life.” (By the way, Parlour will reunite for a show at Bend Cider Co. 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. June 18.)

His first stop was his good friend (and Juju Eyeball member) Terence Neal, a local guitarist who could provide the smoldering plugged-in sound DRIFT needed, Quon said. He then recruited John Allen to play bass after Allen’s busy band Downhill Ryder dissolved.

Those three worked as a trio for a while until Quon decided he wanted more harmonies in the sound. That’s when his wife, Linda Quon, joined DRIFT.

With shows largely shut down because of COVID-19, Quon took advantage of the time off by getting DRIFT into the studio to record his tunes.

They worked with engineers Scott Baber and Matthew Fletcher at Central Oregon Recording; Fletcher — another member of Juju Eyeball — played drums and is now a member of the band.

The album was done quickly, with the band playing just a couple takes of each song, Quon said. The end result is “The Innocents,” a 12-track collection of pretty, lyric-driven songs about life, loss, faith, social issues and more.

The title track is a graceful tribute to the resilience of the Earth and its non-human creatures, who will thrive long after we’re gone, according to Quon. The song was inspired by a recent listen to Marvin Gaye’s 1971 hit “Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology),” he said.

“We’ve screwed (Earth) up for so many years, and it’s not going to get any better. I’m excited about the prospect of us being gone and giving nature a chance to heal,” Quon said.

Then, he chuckled and continued: “I’m a pessimist. If you look up ‘pessimist’ in the dictionary, my name should be there.”

It’s that kind of deep feeling and self-reflection that fuels not only “The Innocents,” but Quon’s songwriting in general. This is not the kind of band that will jam all night and fill the dance floor with good vibes. And that’s OK.

“This is pretty personal to me. A lot of the songs are about people I know from my life or they’re based on dreams that I’ve had. That’s what inspires me to write,” he said. “I’m proud of the fact that this band is about storytelling. That’s not true in every band, but in this band, the lyrics are important.”

What: DRIFT’s album-release show for “The Innocents”

When: 8 p.m. Friday

Where: Volcanic Theatre Pub, 70 SW Century Drive, Bend

Cost: $10

Contact: volcanictheatre.com