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SQUID RECORD BRAND NEW RECORD STORE DAY RELEASE LIVE FROM METROPOLIS STUDIOS

DEBUT SQUID ALBUM / BRIGHT GREEN FIELD / 7 MAY 

The live to vinyl session was broadcast on the Steve Lamacq show on BBC 6 Music as part of the Record Store Day official launch event

The recording will be fast-tracked onto the presses by Sound Performance and released for the Record Store Day Drop on 17 July

On Wednesday 7 April SQUID took part in an exciting and extraordinary live to vinyl recording challenge. The Bristol-based experimental band recorded new songs onto a two track EP, live and direct to vinyl at Metropolis Studios, and the Steve Lamacq show on BBC 6 Music gave fans the chance to listen in on this unique live performance.

Recording ‘live to vinyl’ is the original process that artists used to record music for public consumption. There’s no modern technology, it’s simply playing and recording the songs in one take. In today’s digital age, the art of capturing music live to vinyl has long been forgotten but Metropolis have recreated the experience using their unique cutting lathes.

Part of the magic of recording music live to vinyl in this way is that SQUID had to get it right first time. Throw in the added pressure of an audience listening live at home via BBC 6 Music and it meant this was a recording moment unlike any other in recent history. Now recorded, these live tracks are set to be fast-tracked onto the presses by Sound Performance and fans will be able to a copy on 12” vinyl exclusively from independent record stores on Saturday 17 July. 

Ahead of the recordings, Arthur from SQUID said: “We’ve been busying ourselves away on some scores, arranging orchestral versions of two of our favourite tracks from Bright Green Field. The process is the same as ever, starting off with no clue of what we’re doing, stumbling along together, each inputting our ideas into the music until it starts to take shape. We’re so excited and also quite terrified to release this little gem for Record Store Day 2021.”

Not only did the live radio broadcast of the event make it an unparalleled moment in recording history, the studio and the band also had to navigate extraordinary social distancing measures due to Covid-19. Gavin Newman from Metropolis Studios said: “As you would expect, Metropolis has had to go above and beyond Covid protocols over the last 12 months in order to operate effectively and support our incredible roster of clients. Being able to provide that safe platform from which artists can create, perform and broadcast has been overwhelming. We sincerely hope that this live to vinyl experience with our friends at Record Store Day, Warp Records, Sound Performance and BBC 6 Music can help kickstart the wider live community with a newfound confidence for the year ahead.”

Record Store Day is the annual event which celebrates the unique culture of independent record stores. This year, more than 240 shops in the UK will be taking part in all corners of the country as thousands more celebrate around the globe. Due to Covid-19 the 2021 edition of the event will take place across two separate Drop dates on Saturday 12 June and Saturday 17 July.

ABOUT RECORD STORE DAY

Record Store Day is the annual celebration of independent record shop culture. Special vinyl releases are made exclusively for the event and many shops and cities host artist performances and events to mark the occasion. There are over 240 shops participating in the UK with thousands celebrating around the globe in what has become one of the biggest annual events in the music calendar. In 2021, Record Store Day will take place on Saturday 12 June and Saturday 17 July.

ABOUT SOUND PERFORMANCE

Sound Performance was established in 1994 and is a market leader in manufacturing vinyl, CD, box sets, print and packaging for the music industry. Based in Greenwich, London they are proud to work with many of the UK’s leading record labels and artists. They also have an office in New York working with USA record labels for local manufacturing needs. The Sound Performance group also includes The Flood Gallery, a pop and music culture publisher and retailer, and Transistor Music.

ABOUT METROPOLIS

The Power House building was originally built in 1901 to power the trams of West London before being decommissioned in the 1920s. It was redeveloped and launched as Metropolis Studios in 1989, quickly establishing itself as one of Europe’s major recording studios and home to the best engineers in the world. Facilities include state-of-the-art tracking studios, mix studios, mastering studios and a series of dynamic writing and production rooms. For three decades, artists have been coming to Metropolis to capture recordings and translate their ideas to connect with fans throughout the world.

ABOUT SQUID

The debut SQUID album, Bright Green Field, is already one of 2021’s most highly anticipated albums. Produced by Dan Carey, it will be released on 7 May via Warp Records. Bright Green Field is an album of towering scope and ambition; deeply considered, paced and intricately constructed. With all band members playing such a vital and equal role, it is very much the product of five heads operating as one.

BRIGHT GREEN FIELD track listing:

  • Resolution Square
  • G.S.K
  • Narrator feat. Martha Skye Murphy
  • Boy Racers
  • Paddling
  • Documentary Filmmaker
  • 2010
  • The Flyover
  • Peel St
  • Global Groove
  • Pamphlets

The album features field recordings of ringing church bells, tooting bees, microphones swinging from the ceiling orbiting a room of guitar amps, a distorted choir of 30 voices, as well as a horn and string ensemble featuring the likes of Emma-Jean Thackray and Lewis Evans from Black Country, New Road. However, for all the innovative recording techniques, evolutionary leaps, lyrical themes, ideas and narratives that underpin the album, it’s also a joyous and emphatic record. One that marries the uncertainties of the world with a curious sense of exploration as it endlessly twists and turns down unpredictable avenues.

NARRATOR video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=__zmVSREvxY

PADDLING video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xvisyj5CJg4

Pre-order BRIGHT GREEN FIELD here: https://squid.ffm.to/bright-green-field

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