Squid Announce New Album Cowards, Share “Crispy Skin”

Genre-blending English quintet Squid have announced a new album on the way. Cowards, their third LP, is set to arrive on February 7th via Warp, and they’ve offered a first look at the album with “Crispy Skin.” Watch the sprawling music video below.

“Crispy Skin,” the album opener, sees an opening of synths quickly descend into a driving rhythm. The eerie music video was directed by Takashi Ito and acts as an adaptation of his short film, Zone, centered on a faceless individual.

“I couldn’t eat another thing/ No more pages and pages of crispy skin,” lead vocalist Ollie Judge sings. In a statement, he shares that the theme of the track was inspired by the novel Tender Is the Flesh, in which a virus has contaminated all meat, leading to the normalization of cannibalism. “Humans are manufactured and sold in supermarkets,” he explains. “The track was written about how the reality of having a moral compass in these stories of desperation and horror would be extremely difficult.”

To celebrate the album announcement, Squid will play an intimate, sold-out show at DROM in New York City. Early 2025, the band will then embark on a tour throughout Europe and the UK; tickets for all dates will go on sale on Wednesday, November 20th.

Cowards Artwork:

Cowards Tracklist:
01. Crispy Skin
02. Building 650
03. Blood on the Boulders
04. Fieldworks I
05. Fieldworks II
06. Cro-Magnon Man
07. Cowards
08. Showtime!
09. Well Met (Fingers Through the Fence)

Squid 2025 Tour Dates:
02/17 – Liverpool, UK @ Invisible Wind Factory
02/18 – Manchester, UK @ O2 Ritz Manchester
02/19 – Glasgow, UK @ Old Fruitmarket
02/21 – Newcastle, UK @ NSU Domain
02/22 – Sheffield, UK @ Leadmill
02/24 – Cambridge, UK @ Junction 1
02/25 – Norwich, UK @ The Adrian Flux Waterfront
02/27 – Oxford, UK @ O2 Academy Oxford
02/28 – Southampton, UK @ Engine Rooms
03/01 – Margate, UK @ Lido
03/02 – Brighton, UK @ Chalk
03/04 – Birmingham, UK @ XOYO
03/05 – Bristol, UK @ Bristol Beacon
04/09 – Paris, FR @ Cabaret Sauvage
04/10 – Cologne, DE @ Club Volta
04/11 – Dresden, DE @ Polimajie Festival
04/12 – Berlin, DE @ Lido
04/14 – Schorndorf, DE @ Manufaktur
04/15 – Amsterdam, NL @ Melkweg
04/16 – Antwerp, BE @ Trix
04/18 – Rotterdam, NL @ Motel Mozaique Festival
04/19 – Nijmegen, NL @ Doornroosje
04/26 – London, UK @ Roundhouse