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Yes, the Lebanon-based band OK to Drive got their name from the typical refrain of a bartender near closing time.

After band members would have a few drinks at a bar, "People there would say 'Are you OK to drive?' And we would say 'Yeah, we're OK to drive,'" said singer and guitarist Nick Baker.

The name stuck.

What might stick with people who hear OK to Drive, who play at Monroe's Froggy Blues Cafe today, May 9, is their unusual instrumentation. Andy Nickell, who plays percussion for the band, uses an African drum called a djembe on some numbers, producing a low-end sound that complements the conventional drums played by Chris Cox.

When OK to Drive covers "Stuck in the Middle with You," the djembe, "takes the drumbeat and flattens it out to separate it into two sounds. I provide more of an accent to the drum beat," Nickell explained.

Another distinct edge to the OK to Drive sound is the five-string bass played by Dave Pleasant, with the extra string allowing him to "just follow my own personal style with slapping and popping."

The band plays a few originals, plus covers spanning the decades from Ted Nugent and Steve Miller to the Red Hot Chili Peppers and the Stone Temple Pilots. Shawn Steele plays lead guitar.

"We try to cater to the crowd, but we don't try to do it in the usual way. The majority of songs we pick are fun for us, they have to have some sort of meaning to us," said Baker.

The band considers its look — or the lack of one — to be an asset, too.

"If a band has a crazier kind of look that usually means they're going to sound horrible," said Baker.

CONTACT this reporter at erobinette@coxohio.com.

how to go

WHAT: OK to Drive

WHERE: Froggy Blues Cafe, 10 S. American Way

WHEN: 8 p.m. May 9

COST: $3

MORE INFO: (513) 539-7150

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