Ukrainian sludge metal band COLD SHELL has released their latest single, Nobody Wants to Die Alone, a track that shifts the band’s sound into new territory while remaining rooted in their familiar heavy resonance.
Emerging from Kyiv’s hard-edged music scene, COLD SHELL formed in 2016, with founding members Kostiantyn and Roman, both of whom have been deeply affected by their roles in wartime Ukraine. Roman currently serves in the Armed Forces of Ukraine, a reality that threads through the band’s compositions, embedding their work with a raw sense of urgency and a haunting reflection of a nation at war.
The single explores themes of isolation and mortality, capturing that quiet, often-overlooked fear in a world saturated with constant turmoil. “‘Nobody Wants to Die Alone’ is about those moments of loneliness that hit hardest,” explains lead vocalist and guitarist Kostiantyn, describing the song as a step away from the aggression of their previous work. Here, the band carves out more melodic and emotionally complex paths, contrasting sharply with their EP After the War, which was, in Kostiantyn’s words, “born out of anger.”
Built on intricately layered guitars and vocal harmonies, the track combines melancholy with powerful, reflective passages that give a new dimension to COLD SHELL’s sound. Each lyric and riff connects to a space of existential dread, exploring the fear of being alone in life’s final moments. These haunting lyrics come from bassist Oleksii, who wrote them years prior—a poignant anticipation of the band’s current artistic direction. Kostiantyn reflects, “Oleksii’s lyrics capture that universal fear in a very human way.” He adds that the words aligned perfectly with a riff he had developed during one of his moments trying to escape the emotional weight of the war around him.
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In shaping the track, the band emphasized collaboration. Drummer Dmytro, who joined COLD SHELL in 2022, lent his vocals to the track’s closing moments, crafting an interplay with Kostiantyn that adds another layer of introspection to the song. Kostiantyn describes the recording process as “like a mosaic,” where every part fell into place, naturally shaping the final sound. This process marks a shift for the band, moving from unrelenting aggression to a more nuanced expression without sacrificing the core heaviness that has defined them.
The release’s cover art, crafted by a friend of the band, mirrors this introspective shift. The artwork, as haunting as the song itself, reflects vulnerability layered with an uneasy beauty, encapsulating the fear and beauty of facing mortality. “It adds to the song’s weight, complementing the depth we wanted to reach,” Kostiantyn notes.
