We’ve all been trapped in bad relationships, caught in a perpetual cycle of anxiety and pain. Relief rarely arrives and every logical attempt to smooth over the conflict only causes the walls to close in. At a certain point, the only way out is to abandon the situation altogether, to pack up your shit and get the hell out of Dodge. And in that moment of escape, what is there but unhindered euphoria, an ecstatic reclamation of one’s self?

The new single from Jake Cook, aka Seal Pup, explores this intersection of solace and raw jubilation. Like much of the project’s material, it’s a driving tune built on exuberant melodies and forward-thrusting guitars. It’s a rocking, accessible song, but what different this time is around is Cook’s ability to tap into a broader emotional palette. “I’m too tired to try lashing out / All my words will stay inside my mouth,” he confesses on the second verse. But by the time the chorus arrives, exhaustion has been replaced by a resolve to get out: “Let’s escape the joint / Not to make a point / But to save our precious voice.”

“The song “Blow” is about the beauty and emotional catharsis of physically leaving a situation that is causing you pain,” Cook explains. “It’s a reflection on the relief one feels when they communicate a healthy boundary, execute that however they want, and truly don’t care how it will be received.”

Originally written as the closer to his forthcoming album Death is Free, “Blow” now occupies the opening slot of the LP. According to Cook, the record was developed conceptually over the past year and takes its inspiration from both the political tumult of the pandemic and the destabilization of the poor and working class. Whether or not that track’s verve is an anomaly or a defining feature of the album remains to be seen, but what’s clear is that it will be the work of an artist looking to push past their boundaries and expand their worldview.

“It’s all very bleak and it got me thinking about this concept that all of us are getting priced out of life itself,” Cook explains. “I’m trying to look more outward with my songwriting on this project and make it more about the human struggle in general while still maintaining the deeply personal emotional core of my past records.”

Listen below.

No release date has been set for Death is Free, although Cook says he hopes to have the album completed by the end of 2021.

More Info
Bandcamp: sealpupatl.bandcamp.com
Facebook: @jakecookmusic