O Monolith Out Now via Warp; Water From Your Eyes to Support the Tour
by Mark Redfern
Squid. Photography by Alex Kurunis
British experimental post-punk five-piece Squid have shared a new song, "Fugue (Bin Song)," ahead of their North American tour dates next month (for which they will be joined by Water From Your Eyes). Listen to the song below, followed by the tour dates.
Squid released a new album, O Monolith, last June via Warp. "Fugue (Bin Song)" was recorded during the O Monolith sessions with Dan Carey at Peter Gabriel's Real World studio in the spring of 2022, but didn't make the album. John McEntire (of Tortoise) then re-mixed and edited the song in the later half of 2023.
Previously Squid shared O Monolith's first single, album opener "Swing (In a Dream)," via a music video. Then they shared its second single, "Undergrowth," as well as an accompanying video game. "Undergrowth" was one of our Songs of the Week. They also announced some new 2024 North American tour dates. Then they shared its third single, "The Blades," via a music video that starred British actress Charlotte Ritchie (of the original UK version of TV's Ghosts). "The Blades" was also one of our Songs of the Week.
O Monolith is the band's sophomore full-length and followed 2001's debut album, Bright Green Field.
Squid features Louis Borlase, Ollie Judge, Arthur Leadbetter, Laurie Nankivell, and Anton Pearson. Long-time collaborator Dan Carey produced O Monolith, which was mixed by John McEntire (of Tortoise).
Squid started working on O Monolith just two weeks following Bright Green Field's release. At the time the band was on tour, playing seated and socially distanced shows, as the pandemic was still very much a factor. On that tour they tested out some new material. "Without that tour we wouldn't have any of these tracks," said Judge in a previous press release. "People were so looking forward to seeing live music that we thought we could just play anything, even if it was unfinished. In some form or another we played about 80% of O Monolith, mostly without lyrics."
Of the themes on the album, Borlase said: "There's a running theme of the relation of people to the environment throughout. There are allusions to the world we became so immersed in, environmental emergency, the role of domesticity, and the displacement you feel when you're away for a long time."
