New York City quintet BODEGA have shared their latest single, Literary World, offering another glimpse into their forthcoming fourth studio album, All Inside Aquarium, which arrives October 9th via Chrysalis Records. The philosophical yet infectious track marks the latest chapter in a period of creative reinvention for the band, who have spent the past decade developing a sound that has frequently been associated with post-punk while consistently refusing to remain within its boundaries.
Bodega
Literary World is, according to guitarist and vocalist Ben Hozie, something of a thesis statement for the new record. Rather than focusing exclusively on political consciousness, the song explores what he sees as a need for a deeper literary and poetic perspective — one rooted in empathy and the ability to understand experiences and viewpoints beyond our own. “If there’s one thesis song, it would be Literary World.”
For Hozie, that perspective is particularly important in an era in which political awareness has become increasingly widespread. He argues that art can go beyond simply communicating an ideology, instead creating space to imagine different ways of living and understanding one another. That idea represents a shift for BODEGA, whose previous records — 2018’s Endless Scroll, 2022’s Broken Equipment and 2024’s Our Brand Could Be Your Life — often approached contemporary social and political issues with a distinctly direct lyrical voice.
All Inside Aquarium, by contrast, is set to embrace a more poetic and personal approach while simultaneously pushing the band towards a bigger, warmer and more expansive rock sound. “I never thought of us as a post-punk band,” Hozie explains. “I just thought of us as a conceptual rock band.”
While the band’s angular approach has naturally placed them alongside the genre’s history, BODEGA are deliberately looking elsewhere for All Inside Aquarium. Their stated ambition was to return to melodic songwriting and become “more of a proper rock band”, drawing inspiration from the late-1980s and early-1990s meeting point between The Stone Roses and Jane’s Addiction. That influence is particularly evident in the band’s renewed emphasis on guitar riffing and solos, with Hozie citing Jane’s Addiction as a long-standing favourite and describing the record as having something of a “Lollapalooza ’91 Main Stage” atmosphere.
The album was produced by Matt Peel at The Nave in Leeds, a studio housed within a deconsecrated church, before being mixed in Brighton by Theo Verney. The recording process has allowed BODEGA to expand their palette without abandoning the restless energy that has characterised their music to date.
For percussionist and vocalist Nikki Belfiglio, that eclecticism is central to the band’s approach. “The way that we listen to music is so eclectic, and that’s how we approached this album too.”
That means All Inside Aquarium can move between contrasting styles without worrying about whether they fit neatly together. Among its more unexpected moments is BODEGA’s radical reworking of Bob Dylan’s Slow Train, complete with a glam-inflected, Navarro-inspired guitar solo that Hozie counts among his favourite moments on the record.
The change in musical direction is matched by a shift in lyrical perspective. Hozie has increasingly sought to bring emotional directness into the band’s faster, louder material, rather than reserving personal subjects for their ballads. “I had this epiphany that on earlier LP’s, I thought of my rock tunes and my ballads as two separate categories,” he says. “I realized that I mostly only delved into personal material on ballads.”
All Inside Aquarium therefore represents not only a sonic evolution but a willingness to challenge BODEGA’s own established creative habits. The result is an album concerned with maturity, accountability, empathy and the freedom to continually reinvent.
Literary World arrives alongside news of an ambitious art installation in BODEGA’s Brooklyn home. From October 6th to 13th, the Millennium Film Workshop in Bushwick will host an exhibition centred around the All Inside Aquarium album-art sculpture, alongside additional work from Belfiglio and local artists involved in creating the piece.
Throughout the week, BODEGA will host a series of events at the gallery, including a private view, film screening and closing party. Visitors will also have the opportunity to hear All Inside Aquarium in full ahead of its official release. Details of the events will be shared through the band’s mailing list.
The installation provides a fitting extension of an album that increasingly treats BODEGA’s music as part of a wider artistic conversation. Their approach to All Inside Aquarium encompasses music, visual art and ideas, with Literary World providing an early indication of the conceptual territory the record intends to explore.
The band are currently touring Spain in advance of the album’s release, before returning to the UK for a full run of dates in November. Their London appearance at the 100 Club on September 15th is already sold out, while Manchester’s two-night run at The Abbey has also sold out. BODEGA will also appear at Sister Ray Records in London on September 15th for a special signing event before their 100 Club show.
With All Inside Aquarium, BODEGA appear determined to move beyond the labels that have followed them throughout their career. Literary World suggests a band increasingly interested in the space between politics and poetry, anger and empathy, and punk’s urgency and rock’s expansive possibilities.
Upcoming UK Live Dates:
NOVEMBER
19th – Glasgow, Mono
20th – North Shields, King Street Social Club
21st – Manchester, The Abbey
22nd – Manchester, The Abbey
24th – Bristol, Electric Bristol
25th – London, The Garage
26th – Leeds, Irish Centre
27th – Birkenhead, Future Yard
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