It’s been a big year for Squid, the modest English group that has managed to infatuate music fans and critics around the world with a style of rock that falls well outside what anyone else is doing right now. With their full-length debut Bright Green Field – a strong contender for album of the year – the band incorporated influences ranging from XTC and Devo to the Minutemen and Talking Heads into the mix while still sounding totally new. They also aren’t afraid to inject a dose of jazz and post-punk. Somehow, their sound has resonated in a big way, and on Monday, November 22nd, Squid came through Portland, Oregon for a show at the Doug Fir Lounge that was sold out months in advance.
The first thing that was striking about Squid’s set in Portland was the placement of the drum kit front and center. While lead singer and drummer Ollie Judge isn’t a flashy performer – nor is the rest of the band – he is without a doubt one of the most intriguing vocalists in rock music right now, and in Portland it was a thrill just to see this young, seemingly shy fellow radiate such intensity. Opening with “The Gleaner,” it was also striking to see a band unleash a torrent of cow bell – an instrument that is often the subject of mockery – right out of the gate. This tune carried loads of spunk, amplified by funky keyboard and edgy guitar. “G.S.K” carried sinister guitar riffs and a doubling down on percussion, not to mention what appeared to be a piccolo trumpet. The band members would frequently switch instruments throughout the night, adding an impressiveness to the performance that came not from rock star bravado but rather from an abundance of musical talent. “Undergrowth” would be a standout of the set as the band careened into a jazzy, trumpet-laden groove with punkish Thom Yorke vocals before drifting into ambient space. “Fugue” took things into a different direct with its shoegaze meets post-punk sound, while “Paddling” showcased nearly every member on vocals playing to a manic and danceable beat swaying with big blasts of synth. Their frenetic style was on full display with “Boy Racer,” stretching out an instrumental interlude that brought to mind the wonky electronic soundscapes of Aphex Twin. This built suspense and anticipation for their best-known song, “Narrator,” a funk-meets-punk exercise that had the whole crowd bouncing along in what may have been the most explosive moment of the show.
Closing out with plenty of left field trumpet action on “Documentary Filmmaker” and segueing into the upbeat, guitar-driven groove of “Pamphlets,” singer Ollie Judge belted out the pandemic-relevant lyrics of “That’s why I don’t go outside” backed by a driving beat. Here, at the climax of the show, the band showed their glorious weirdness with bizarre tempo changes, wavy synths and yelled vocals, all over a pulsating dance jam. With the crowd hungry for more, the band abruptly left the stage after just over an hour. For a band on the rise who is clearly moving onto bigger venues after this tour, it made sense to leave the audience hungry for more without so much as an encore. As Squid continues to expand their audience and their stage show, it will be fascinating to see how they evolve.
