Squid "O Monolith" Album Review

UK-based rock band Squid just dropped their sophomore album O Monolith via Warp Records. Altogether expansive and mesmerizing, Squid’s music has received stunning accolades. Following the release of their debut album Bright Green Field in 2021, the band garnered praise from the likes of Stereogum, Pitchfork, Paste, The New Yorker, and more. O Monolith was produced by long-time collaborator Dan Carey, recorded at Peter Gabriel’s Real World Studios, and mixed by John McEntire (of Tortoise). Unearthing a dark and vast fantasia, O Monolith is a staggering, off-center creation.

“Siphon Song” seamlessly builds on foundations of drums, waves of synth, and a choir of wailing harmonies. Dreamy and ominous, a robotic voice persists through the track, cutting through the ambient instrumental environment. At its peak, each element increases intensity and volume before tapering off, materializing a jagged, cacophonous finish.

“Undergrowth” pivots in rhythmic feel, introducing groovy, melodic guitar. Spoken vocals throughout are expressive and playful, alternating pitch in a catchy way. With bursts of brassy synth and a swell of ringing tones, this track pushes bright energy to its close.

“If You Had Seen The Bull’s Swimming Attempts You Would Have Stayed Away” opens with distorted guitar and quick, soft whispers. This chorus of voices follows close behind throughout, interspersed between spoken verses. Powerful, steady chants expand and grow louder, ending the track at its greatest height.

Squid has captured an immersive, experimental style on O Monolith. Many of its songs give a similar haunting, unsettling feeling as the monolith in Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey, a popular depiction of those formations. Each song absorbs you in its enormous musical landscape, endlessly revealing new details.

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