**Interview: Squid - Fiendish Fancies**
While the narratives presented on ‘Cowards’ may explore the darker sides of morality, Squid takes a different approach with their third album, emphasizing the glimmers of light amidst the darkness.
“An album about evil,” is how Squid described their latest record, ‘Cowards’ – featuring nine tracks told from the viewpoints of “real and imagined characters.” However, this characterization overlooks just how enjoyable these songs can be, even when tackling such sinister themes. Following the intricate and folklore-inspired ‘O Monolith’ from 2023, this third installment embodies the same vast ambition and exhilarating skill of their previous work – demonstrating Squid’s penchant for complexity simply for its own sake – but presents it in a much lighter manner. Compared to the dense layers of their last album, the new tracks feel almost like pop art; they are shorter, the arrangements move swiftly, and the whole experience is akin to a television blaring at maximum saturation. With instruments clang and whiz by, there’s barely any time to comprehend the sound before something new bursts forth. “It’s probably the most fun I’ve had recording,” smiles drummer and vocalist Ollie Judge, with bassist Laurie Nankivell affirming this sentiment. “We wrote our shortest songs ever, which was quite a challenge for us. It’s wonderful to hear it comes across as playful, because it truly feels that way – often we have contrasts, being a group of five who actively contribute to songwriting. I think especially in this collection of songs, there’s a notable contrast between the lyrics and the music.”
That’s not the only shift that has occurred. Departing from their long-time partnership with Dan Carey, who produced their previous albums and contributes additional instrumentation here, the band has instead collaborated with Marta Salogni, known for her work with a variety of artists including Björk, black midi, and Depeche Mode. “She has quite a versatile background,” Ollie explains. “We’re drawn to the more experimental projects, but she’s also worked with pop artists. That lack of genre bias – you need to approach it without pretension.” Guitarist Anton Pearson concurs: “It was a complete vibe shift. Dan prefers to keep things very condensed and high-energy, with numerous ideas bouncing around quickly, whereas Marta was much more thoughtful, giving things time to breathe.” The lineup, which also includes guitarist Louis Borlase and keyboardist Arthur Leadbetter, invited additional musicians to contribute as well – Clarissa Connelly, Tony Njoku, Rosa Brook from Pozi, among others, can be heard weaving in and out throughout the album. “We primarily wrapped up tracks,” Laurie explains, “but we created space for other instruments, vocalists, a string quartet. This was definitely the first album where we felt a bit more relaxed about individual contributions. I believe we’ve all improved at letting go of our precious ideas.”
This newfound joy – stemming from a fresh recording approach and the creative community around them – stands in stark contrast to the album’s darker subject matter; the songs tackle themes of cannibalism, arson, murder, religion, and insanity. At what moment did Ollie realize the direction of this new material?
He pauses thoughtfully. “Writing the music and the lyrics sort of exists on different levels. We were crafting three tunes simultaneously, all inspired by evil characters. I found that concept intriguing, so I just embraced it, although I wish we had chosen the term ‘morality’ for the press release. That’s more aligned with the theme – the struggle of morality on a sliding scale – from major moral choices to more routine decisions that everyone faces.”
‘Cowards’ also distinguishes itself through the more discreet nature of its tracks; while past works felt like one continuous epic poem, this album resembles an anthology series akin to Black Mirror. “I think it’s really episodic,” Ollie agrees, “but it’s amusing because when I’m writing lyrics, I use characters to reflect on my own personal feelings. I almost view them as vessels for my perspectives on events or how I’m feeling at that moment.” This perspective is particularly relevant considering the context of real-world evil against which the album is set. “The songs aren’t entirely grounded in all the horrific real-world issues occurring right now,” Ollie clarifies, “but they explore the guilt and shame of feeling like you’re a bad person for not doing more. It’s all intertwined. Even though the songs are more fantastical, that same sense of real-life guilt and shame about wanting to act but feeling too lazy to do so translates over.” A heavy silence follows, before Louis adds, “It’s quite frightening to sense that you’re becoming apathetic.”
It’s crucial to underline that despite the album’s lyrically dark focus, the music itself radiates a significant amount of joy throughout the creative process. Squid projects a distinct
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Although the narratives presented in 'Cowards' explore the darker aspects of morality, Squid's third album shifts its attention to the glimmers of hope found within the gloom.