Squid O Monolith LP (Transparent Blue Vinyl)

Teeming with melodic epiphanies and layered sounds, Squid's second album, O Monolith, is a musical evocation of environment, domesticity and self-made folklore. Like its predecessor, 2021's critically acclaimed, UK number 4 album Bright Green Field, it is dense and tricksy - but also more warm and characterful, with a meandering, questioning nature. A sense of open conversation is cultivated: this is unmistakably music made by friends, but it's not exclusionary - they're inviting you in to listen with them. Expansive, evocative and hugely varied, O Monolith retains Squid's restless, enigmatic spirit, but it still holds surprises for those familiar with Bright Green Field. It's a reflection of the outsized progression of a band always looking to the future. Like its namesake, O Monolith is vast and strange; alive with endless possible interpretations of its inner mysteries.

...a more streamlined, though still Squid-like sophomore set that nurtures their innate curiosity while still feeding their appetite for chaos....The most immediate shift in their sound is an increased emphasis on melody and harmonic structure. That's not to say frontman/drummer Ollie Judge has abandoned his idiosyncratic singsong shouting, but located within the woozy prog rock of 'Swing (In a Dream)' and the pulsing dirge 'After the Flash' are carefully built tunes that signal something of a sea change for the band.