New York art-punk ensemble BODEGA have kept the creative tap flowing since their 2022 LP Broken Equipment, following that release up with a collection of re-recorded material in 2024 and a set of new songs set to tape under the ripping punk moniker NODEGA a year later (to say nothing of frontman Ben Hozie’s production work, most recently on the new Diary LP). The band returns this fall with their first proper album in four years with All Inside Aquarium, a characteristically heady take on post-punk that explores outside-of-the-tank ideas both musically and lyrically.
Today the project is sharing a new single from the collection titled “Literary World,” a breezy cut that recalls the emotive guitar-pop of Dehd after opening with the more classical-indie stylings of The Magnetic Fields. The welcoming exterior also happens to house a philosophical dialog in its lyrics, with Hozie explaining the track’s—and BODEGA’s—MO: “Regardless of neoliberal propaganda, I believe in the dignity of the artist. I also believe it is the duty of an artist to emerge new ways of thinking and being, which extends far beyond ideological didacticism. This isn’t an argument for apolitical art—the modern artist should work alongside the rising global political consciousness (brought about by new tech and the revelation of extreme injustice) not only through practical action (such as sharing information or raising money with their audience) but through empathetic honest works that imagine alternative modalities.”
The music video for the track leans into the simplicity of the song, rather than the density of the lyrics, with Hozie and co-vocalist and co-songwriter Nikki Belfiglio performing “Literary World” on the Staten Island ferry. Check it out below, and pre-order All Inside Aquarium—out October 9 via Chrysalis Records—here. Additionally, BODEGA will be hosting a week-long free exhibit dedicated to the album’s artwork at Millennium Film Workshop in Brooklyn. Check out the event’s poster beneath the music video, and learn more by joining the band’s mailing list.
