There is a level of darkness that emerges from CLOVES’ latest single, ‘Dead’, within the first few seconds of synth-heavy, atmospheric pop. The building string-like samples, ghostly whistling melodies and airy vocal push this forward, but at the same time, bouncy bass lines and winding vocal melodies give off something creepily pseudo-happy. The accompanying music video launches us into a surrealist horror video game, leveling up while running out of life. The idea behind the track, CLOVES explains, was the “journey through anxiety and how that leads to self-deprecating actions. I was in a hard place in myself at the time, and I’m very aware that it sounds cliche but I genuinely found creating this track very cathartic”. This track comes from her second album, an upcoming musing on the many layers of mental health. -Dan Peeke