Squid
Cowards
Warp Records [2025]
“Harpsichords, horns, and hypnotic grooves—Cowards finds Squid as adventurous and compelling as ever.”
Album Overview: Squid emerged from the same scene as bands like black midi and Black Country, New Road, quickly carving out their own niche with their impressive 2021 debut Bright Green Field. Building on that momentum with their excellent sophomore LP O Monolith in 2023, they’re back less than two years later with their third album Cowards, a nine song collection that takes their sound in some surprising directions while maintaining the core elements of what sets them apart.
Musical Style: Squid combine the sonic textures of new wave and the hypnotic, rhythm-heavy drive of krautrock, but chop those elements up in imaginative and complex ways. It’s not quite prog or math rock, but it’s adjacent, and with each subsequent album they seem to be drilling deeper into their own signature sound.
Evolution of Sound: Compared to the band’s earlier work, Cowards takes a more subtle approach, at least on the surface. There’s more space in the arrangements, but also a bigger, more cinematic feel. There’s a bigger emphasis on keyboards, but surprisingly the harpsichord often takes center stage, and the sonic palette is expanded further with strings and horns adding some orchestral textures on several tracks. This is still Squid, though, so there are also plenty of interlocking guitars, head-nod-inducing drumming, and charismatic singing (the latter two from drummer/vocalist Ollie Judge).
Artists with Similar Fire: The album’s prominent use of harpsichord and other keyboards along with some symphonic touches recalls some of the quirkier 70s prog bands like Gentle Giant, while the funky grooves call to mind bands like Can and The Smile. Some of the more abstract moments are even reminiscent of the dreamy, surreal psychedelia of bands like Circulatory System.
Pivotal Tracks: The album’s singles—“Crispy Skin,” “Building 650,” and “Cro-Magnon Man”—are some of its strongest tracks, but that’s not to say the others don’t stack up. Tracks like “Blood On The Boulders,” the two-part “Fieldworks,” and the title track are right up there with the band’s best work.
Lyrical Strength: With its focus largely on “evil people” according to Judge, it’s easy to draw parallels between Cowards’ lyrical concerns and those of The New Sound, black midi frontman Geordie Greep’s debut solo record from last year. But while that album’s songs feature sordid tales of insecure creeps told in an over the top manner, the approach on Cowards is much more oblique, only hinting at the larger narratives behind the impressionistic imagery.
Final Groove: With Cowards, Squid continue to develop their songwriting chops while refining their signature sound. The expanded range of musical textures allow them to explore new directions, but they never fail to play to their strengths as well. It’s another great entry in their quickly expanding catalog, which we can only hope will continue to sprout new tentacles.
SQUID REVIEW HISTORY
O Monolith (2023) / Bright Green Field (2021)
SQUID LINKS
Official Website | Facebook | Instagram | Bandcamp | Warp Records
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