Bibio share new single ‘Potion'

I like contrast between my albums,” says Stephen Wilkinson aka Bibio. “When I finish an album, I crave doing something different for the next one.”

No more so is this made apparent with Wilkinson hitting a major milestone, releasing his 10th studio album. Over those ten albums he has gracefully glided between electronica, ambient, folk, pop, indie, funk, soul and just about any other sonic avenue he’s decided to turn down. After 2019’s Ribbons, an album he describes as “organic and woody sounding” with a “psych folk vibe”, for BIB10 he decided early on that he wanted to use more synths, drum machines, and electric guitars. “I wanted this album to sound more polished and slick,” he says. “But not ‘software perfect’. My influences for studio production mostly come from the 60s, 70s, and 80s where the craft was very different - getting a more polished sound, without ironing the humanity out of it, was part of the ethos.”

The result is an album heavy in grooves, be them looping guitar licks that lock into hypnotic swirls, buoyant funk beats, silky disco, texture-heavy soul explorations or that uniquely distinct tone that sounds like nobody other than Bibio. The tone here is rich, deep, resonant and conjures up a radiating warmth throughout.

While opening single ‘Off Goes the Light’ which showcases the electronic guitar side to the record, new track Potion (out today) sees him push his vocals into new terrain, with a nod to Prince (his self-titled second album was a particular influence on this album) via not just the vocal delivery, but the overall feel which emanates expansive futuristic electronic funk. St Louis wasn’t the only musician to contribute to the album. Drummer Ian Hendry plays on 4 tracks and he also introduced Wilkinson to other players who in turn opened up new sounds and avenues - with Conor Smith contributing a pedal steel guitar performance to Lost Somewhere and Davie Dunsmuir adding a guitar lick to Potion.

This underlying ethos has never been clearer than on his 10th album, a record that captures the essence of Bibio’s journey to date, with clear sonic characteristics and styles present and linkable to the past, while still exploring fresh ground and looking to the horizon. It’s a celebration record in many senses. “I think as ten is such a milestone album, I wanted it to be more of a party album,” he says. “It also has its dreamy and melancholy moments, but there’s a lot of fun and playfulness in this album. I hope people get up and dance to some of these songs.”

New track taken from upcoming album BIB10

Out 21 October 2022

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