COLD SEAS: Dead Wells Release Grunge-Inflected Single
Oli Mellor and Ed Warrington lead the band through a guitar-driven exploration of toxic attraction.
Macclesfield four-piece Dead Wells have released a new single, COLD SEAS, out now on Home Taping.
Following the release of their debut single Stain in May, Macclesfield four-piece Dead Wells return with Cold Seas, a darker, expansive return that pushes their sound into the tension and frustrations that marked out the sound of 90's grunge, while retaining the theatrical weight and palpable unease that marked their first outing.
Where Stain showed its hand with stark immediacy, receiving support from 6 Music's Guy Garvey and Chris Hawkins, complete with on-air comparisons to Joy Division and Nadine Shah, Cold Seas' uneasy marriage of mill town gloom and explosive live energy allows for a convulsing concentration of sonic pressure. A track that 'leans into the exhilarating drop of chasing someone you know is going to burn you', the scene that is set is one of forbidden desires and burned fingers.
The dark blossom of a totemic, recurring guitar and bass riff propels the track incessantly, while cloudy atmospherics envelop the subdued intensity of singer and guitarist, Oli Mellor's vocal delivery. Quiet/loud dynamics shift the song's balance throughout, leaving verse after verse to arrive in waves of renewed force.
It's an exercise in guitar-led kineticism, as guitarist Ed Warrington explains: 'The sounds of the guitars are inspired by the spanky spring reverb sound used in early garage rock, but with a thick layered fuzz sound underneath to give them an edgier, grungy sounding kick.'
The result is a track that feels deliberately direct. Cold Seas centres lyrically, as Mellor explains, 'on the pull of a dangerous attraction: the point at which temptation becomes difficult to resist despite knowing where it may lead.'
The accompanying video visualises the song's central ideas yet flips perspective by featuring a femme fatale figure wandering a liminal pedestrian tunnel. Rather than depicting the male narrator, the video focuses on her erratic, haunting behaviour. The back and forth pacing and frantic movements mirror the cyclical habits and inevitable doom associated with a toxic attraction.
Recorded at Big Red Studios with producer Jake Evans, Cold Seas continues Dead Wells' developing sound, with a full EP planned for early 2027.
Having continued their selective passage through independent live venues since May, including a debut headline date at YES Manchester, Dead Wells confirmed the following upcoming on-stage appearances:
Tour Dates
Fri 18 September – London, The Social
Sat 3 October – Manchester, The Abbey
Fri 4 December – Manchester, Rat and Pigeon
Dead Wells are Mellor (vocals/guitar), Warrington (guitar), Dan Smith (drums) and Kevin Lujano (bass).
Photo Credit: Dead Wells
Photo Credit: Dead Wells
