Squid - 'Building 650'

Eccentric alternative rock is Squid’s signature sound and on ‘Building 650’ they showcase how well they’ve tailored that sound to their abilities. Punching, rocking, and rambling, it’s an addictive new release!

The British art-rock outfit are releasing their new album ‘Cowards’ on the 7th of February on Warp Records and ‘Building 650’ is a tasty teaser of the upcoming collection of strange rock compositions. They are the solution to bland indie tracks and bring an ever evolving, always surprising bunch of hooks to our speakers. On the new album they talk about evil, it’s compiled of nine stories whose protagonist reckons with cults, charisma, and apathy. ‘Building 650’ is the most dynamic and colourful track from the band to date, giving us punchy lines and clearcut lyrics, it’s a song that could easily be listened to on repeat. 

Ollie Judge said on the single, “It’s a song inspired by our first ever trip to Japan. We played the Summersonic Festival in 2022, luckily we were booked to play two days after the COVID travel ban had been listed, because of this we felt like some of the only tourists in Tokyo. On the plane I read in the Miso Soup by Ryu Murikami and watched Lost in Translation out of excitement and later decided to write lyrics about being an outsider visiting Japan, including a very particular type of loneliness one can feel visiting a country that is so different from their own. This loneliness feels exaggerated in Tokyo, on the surface it’s hectic and full of people but when you listen, it’s eerily quiet.”

They twist, turn, shimmy and instantly pull us into their latest story of relentless and unapologetic creation. The single comes with a video directed by longtime collaborator Felix Geen who shot the video in Japan alongside local directors Daisuke Hasegawa and Kuya Tatsujo. Here they are, back and again better than before!

Words by Laura Rosierse