Squid
Photo by Ken Sears
We've been covering Squid since March 2020, but for obvious reasons the UK band hasn't been playing too many shows in Boston over the last four years. It finally worked out to check them out, and despite it being Valentine's Day, I had to check them out.
One thing I didn't realize until I saw Squid live is how close they are to being a jam band. On their recordings I always heard them as more post-punk, New Wave, indie rock, etc., and they still are that live. But a Squid live show gets pretty jammy with extended intros and jams. That being said, Squid are an incredibly tight band, even during their jams. This was art rock at its absolute finest, being equal parts noise, dance friendly post-punk, with some oddly bleak hippie vibes.
I'm sure it being Valentine's Day cut into the number of people that would have normally attended the show (the band joked that they're a terrible date band), but those that were in attendance were thrilled to be there, and knew every song as soon as it started. It seemed like they rewarded the audience for sticking through the jams with their most beloved songs. ("The Cleaner" received a particularly great reaction. It's not many artists that can make art rock fun and combine it in a way that inspires party vibes at a show, but Squid are one of those rare bands.
Brooklyn's Water from Your Eyes opened the show with a delightfully varied setlist. The opening song, "Buy My Product," was more of a electronic noise kind of song, so, since I hadn't really heard the band before Wednesday night, that's what I expected for the rest of their set. However, songs cycled through a variety of genres throughout their set. Some were noise rock, some sounded like party jams, some were more psych rock, and others sounded like the more melodic side of Britpop. Sometimes the best opening bands are the ones that make you want to check out their catalog immediately, and that's how I felt about Water from Your Eyes.
Water from Your Eyes
Photo by Ken Sears
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