Multifaceted English Combo Squid Stays Slippery on ‘O Monolith’

Checking in with guitarist Anton Pearson ahead of the group’s visit to The Basement East

“Someone asked us to sign their passport a couple days ago,” Squid guitarist Anton Pearson tells the Scene with a laugh. “We told them that was a bad idea, but they insisted. I hope they’ve had trouble-free border crossings.”

It was a curious thing to ask. Formed in 2016, Squid was on the verge of becoming a full-time touring and recording concern when COVID caught the members off-guard and trapped them at home indefinitely. This time four years ago, Squid — who hail from Brighton, U.K., and consist of guitarists Pearson and Louis Borlase, bassist Laurie Nankivell, synth player Arthur Leadbetter and singer-drummer Ollie Judge — had been readying their Warp Records debut Bright Green Field for a 2020 release.

Eventually issued in May 2021, the final product was stellar. One hour’s worth of anthemic, mercurial songs that build up and break down circuitously and unpredictably, it garnered praise from NME, NPR and beyond. Having cleared that first-album hurdle, and with momentum back on their side as bands returned to the road, Pearson and his cohorts got right to finishing their second LP, 2023’s O Monolith.

“We tried to use what had happened [in 2020 and ’21] to take advantage in any way we could … and were keen to think of O Monolith as one thing all together,” explains Pearson. He cites a triad of exploratory rock greats — Neu!, Stereolab and Godspeed You, Black Emperor! — as influences on his and his bandmates’ heady sonic approach.

On Monolith, Squid gracefully threads the needle between dreamy and dissonant — its bookend tracks “Swing (In a Dream)” and “If You Had Seen the Bull’s Swimming Attempts You Would Have Stayed Away” in particular showcase this skill. Its centerpiece “The Blades” is a post-punk crusher that Pearson describes as both a catalyst for the way the group crafted the rest of the record and a lightning-in-a-bottle moment: After writing the song, he and his bandmates surprised themselves by being able to play it. “Cracking that one was exciting,” the guitarist remembers. “It’s one of the most dynamic parts of the current set.”

In tandem, Field and Monolith function as a double album of sorts — an extended serenade of ear-tickling synth, string and brass tapestries, slick time-signature shifting and interlocking dual guitars. Squid never panders to the listener and scores high for grooviness and grandiosity; one could easily see their catalog serving as a stepping stone for prog or krautrock novices, or a second chance for those who foolishly got off the Radiohead train post Kid A.

Pearson & Co. belong to a loose cadre of avant-garde upstarts from across the pond who, pandemic be damned, have kept things organic and unconventional. Others in this discussion include inward-gazing post-rock ensemble Black Country, New Road (whose alto sax player Lewis Evans guests on Field), acerbic South London post-punks Shame and genre-smashing music-conservatory miscreants Black Midi — a collection of acts united less by shared sonic traits than a never-do-the-same-thing-twice mentality.

Squid’s two full-lengths so far slot nicely into this canon. Pearson promises attendees of the newly road-tested group’s gig Monday at The Basement East — their first in Music City, with support from Water From Your Eyes, a Brooklyn duo recently signed to Matador Records whose dead-eyed, synth-fueled post-punk serves Gonerfest vibes — an immersive experience.

“We keep the live show interesting, and leave enough up to chance on the night so that every one is a little different and things can happen that surprise us. Your whole mindset changes when you’re up there — things we’ve practiced in rehearsals come out totally differently. It’s fun to take an audience along on that ride.”