Nina and The Hold Tight is a relatively young band but they are already making a splash here in the Denver music scene. Hailing from Colorado Springs, the group has been picking up steam since their 2017 EP. If you caught their set on the main stage at the Underground Music Showcase (UMS) this year or any of their numerous shows played in the area, you would know that this is a band with the grit and fight needed to make it in this industry. Nina and The Hold Tight’s next step is their new single in anticipation of another EP which they plan to release sometime during 2019.

Nina and The Hold Tight Photo by Brittni Bell Warshaw

The single, “Salt And Blood” comes directly from the emotions of powerhouse singer-songwriter Nina de Frietas. The song carries the same fiery beauty that de Frietas presented in the group’s EP last year but somehow packed with even more emotion. The song refers to feelings that almost everybody can empathize with. De Freitas said, “‘Salt and Blood’ was written after I attended a friend’s engagement party back in 2013. I had so much social anxiety and felt so out of place that I stood against a wall the entire night and spoke to no one.”

In addition to feeling like the other in many situations, de Freitas explains how she often has fleeting thoughts regarding what the point even is, which is something that many can relate to. “It’s also inspired by how pretty much any large gathering [a party, concert, etc] always results in me stepping outside of myself for a good existential moment and thinking, ‘What’s this all for? What’s this about? Why is this even a thing?’ and then looking at all the people around me that are in the moment and musing on all of our inevitable deaths… how we will return to the earth and maybe eventually come back as like a plant or something, haha,” continued de Freitas.

The existential thoughts and feelings in the lyrics are well represented in the song’s flowing nature. As the track’s pace bounces from slow and melodic to faster and driving within moments, much like one’s mind can go from calm to racing existential thoughts just as quickly. 

While the song has a deep, almost dark sound to it, de Freitas explained how these emotional spirals are something that always should come to an end. “The ‘yeahs’ at the end signify, to me, an exhaling return to the moment I had previously been in — to the seemingly inane decadence that caused my initial observations because whatever it’s for, whatever it’s about, I’m there in it anyway and maybe even for a reason that I will eventually discover in one way or another, so I might as well stop overthinking and join in.” 

Nina and The Hold Tight plans to release a new EP in 2019 which should have a slightly different sound than what we are used to but will still hold true to the sound that has gotten the quickly rising group as far as it has.

The group has a show on December 15 at Globe Hall where they will open for Ivory Circle, for tickets and more information click here