Siblings always have a special bond; it’s a kind of sixth sense, something that provides that something that nothing else can. When you meet siblings, cousins, you always are driven by the intrigue of the similarities but also the differences. For six Norwegian guys in their late teens, oscillating around one familial spine, a labour of passion and instinct has formed something very special.
Norway is evocative. Musically, culturally, there is a sense of difference. The Well are without a doubt special. When you meet them there is that warm sense of familiarity. When you hear their music you can imagine it filling both the biggest arenas and the most intimate of club spaces. You almost have to stop and ask yourself, why you don’t know about them already?
The Well are TJ (drums), Andrew (bass), Chris (guitars), Olly (keys), Stan (guitars), led by Freddy (lead singer). Born and raised on the west coast of Norway just outside the buzzing city of Bergen, as much as The Well’s story begins now it began a decade ago.
Influenced by both music from the past and the present, from Arcade Fire and Haim to The Beatles and The Rolling Stones, their bond formed early, growing up together and going to the same school.
The seed of an idea led to the guys forming a band with little experience of playing instruments. Fast forward 2006 and the guys started their first gigs around Norway and then in 2012 were spotted by seasoned Norwegian music manager, Geir Luedy, of MADE, one of Scandinavia’s leading music management agencies.
Seeing the raw potential, Geir guided and let the band grow within – the result, epic pop – authentic, true, with the potential to have that seismic moment as AHA did three decades ago. Confident but vulnerable, this is a band that dreams big.
Their first single, Separate Ways, is a bold confessional story of heartbreak. Big, emotive and heart warming. It’s everything The Well are about.
Separate Ways is released on October 20th on indie label Conflict Of Interest.