I've found myself caught in Cove Pond's Undertow, and I'm in no particular hurry to swim back to shore.
The latest single from the Paradise-based alt-folk-rock trio has completely captured my imagination. It is moody, evocative and thoroughly engaging. It's the sort of song that, just like the title suggests, draws you in and holds you there.
I've found myself caught in Cove Pond's Undertow, and I'm in no particular hurry to swim back to shore.
According to band member Laura Penney, the song was inspired by an attempted murder on Signal Hill. That's certainly a dark starting point, but Cove Pond have taken that sinister inspiration and turned it into something surprisingly beautiful. There's an almost haunting quality to the song, with its darker elements feeling more metaphorical than menacing. I think it's touching, relatable and oddly lovely… Or maybe I'm just a psychopath.
But I don't think so. I’m you'll agree that Undertow is a beautifully crafted piece of music.
There's something wonderfully atmospheric about Cove Pond's sound, blending folk-rock with almost ambient textures. The band describes its music as being shaped by fog, forest and the pull of memory. That's a description that feels particularly fitting here. There's something distinctly of-this-place about Undertow, even if I didn't know where it came from, it would make me think of Newofoundland.
Cove Pond brings together singer-songwriter Laura Penney and percussionist Scott Yetman, a husband-and-wife musical partnership, with bassist Desmond Smith rounding out the trio in 2024. Penney has been writing songs for more than two decades, earning a Newfoundland and Labrador Arts and Letters Award for her debut song, Papercuts, in 2009.
Cove Pond's debut album, Moose Waltz, is due in April 2027, and if Undertow is anything to go by, there's plenty to look forward to.
I, for one, can't wait.
PS. Moose Waltz? What a great title!
