Bicep Set Jan. 29 Release for First Album in Five Years

By Elena Vasquez

Bicep’s first album in five years, Slug, arrives January 29 via Ninja Tune. The Northern Irish DJ duo has now shared six tracks from the record. The six songs make up one-third of the announced 18-track sequence.

Bicep shared three last month: “Air,” “Lemonder” and “Viper.” Today’s announcement adds “Gas,” featuring Lauren Duffus and Soarr. It also adds “Ultra,” featuring Eartheater and Saskia, and “Equarium,” featuring Kehina.

Slug follows Isles, released in 2021. The announcement also points readers back to Ben Cardew’s review of Isles.

For listeners, January 29 is fixed, and six of the 18 tracks have been shared.

What does Bicep say it is changing?

According to the announcement’s press materials, the title Slug was inspired by “the stark contrast between the land slug most people immediately picture and the extraordinary colours, shapes and intricate forms of their underwater counterparts.”

In an accompanying statement, Bicep said: “For this album we really wanted to massively broaden what we do,” and added: “We wanted to make a much more varied album than our previous ones and push what people might expect BICEP to sound like.”

The statement frames the five-year return as a deliberate expansion of Bicep’s sound, asking listeners to expect more variety than on previous albums rather than a direct repetition of familiar patterns.

In plain terms, Bicep presents Slug as its most varied album to date.

What is on the 18-track album?

The full sequence contains 18 tracks. Additional contributions come from Clark, George Riley and Sassy 009, among others. The complete running order is:

1. “Gas” [ft. Lauren Duffus & Soarr]
2. “Air” [ft. Soarr]
3. “777” [ft. Eartheater]
4. “Lemonder”
5. “Ultra” [ft. Eartheater & Saskia]
6. “Cielo”
7. “Edmeno” [ft. Clark]
8. “Pole II” [ft. Kehina]
9. “Equarium” [ft. Kehina]
10. “Viper” [ft. Clark & Saskia]
11. “Curb” [ft. George Riley & Kučka]
12. “Horses”
13. “Janus” [ft. Sassy 009]
14. “Lamb” [ft. Rowena Fysx]
15. “Honda”
16. “Xy”
17. “Rose” [ft. Kehina]
18. “Tides” [ft. Soarr]

Across the 18-song running order, featured names appear on 13 tracks, or about 72 percent of the sequence, while five cuts remain without a listed collaborator.

Soarr and Kehina lead the list with three appearances each. Eartheater, Saskia and Clark appear twice each. Lauren Duffus, George Riley, Kučka, Sassy 009 and Rowena Fysx each receive one credit.

The five tracks without a listed feature are “Lemonder,” “Cielo,” “Horses,” “Honda” and “Xy.”

In plain terms, 13 tracks name collaborators, while five do not.

Why do the new videos centre on pigeon fanciers?

Music videos for “Gas,” “Ultra” and “Equarium” were directed by Young Replicant. Together, the three videos form a short film about pigeon fanciers.

By presenting the clips as one short film, Young Replicant’s direction turns three individual song releases into a linked sequence with a shared narrative about pigeon fanciers.

In plain terms, the video package forms one short film rather than three isolated clips.

Where can Bicep perform in 2027?

Bicep has scheduled two new live dates in 2027.

• March 21: Knockdown Center, New York.
• July 31: Old Royal Naval College, London.

The two venues provide the live component of the announcement, with New York scheduled 132 days before London and both dates falling within Bicep’s newly announced 2027 run.

The announcement fixes the next milestones: 18 tracks on January 29 and two confirmed live dates in 2027.