San Francisco's progressive/doom/stoner rock band GIANT SQUID, who have completed the studio work on their upcoming, self-released album The Ichthyologist with Matt Bayles (MASTODON, ISIS, PEARL JAM), have posted online the album artwork (at left), full tracklisting and an mp3 of the song, 'Blue Linckia'.

In a posting online, singer/guitarist Aaron Gregory reveals: "Everyone in Giant Squid has been waiting for the day when we'd finally be able to post a song on line that was truly us, in the now, representative of all who are in the band. So, we've posted a track off our new record, The Ichthyologist, on our MySpace page. The song is called 'Blue Linckia' and it's the eighth track on the album. Though it's a very thorough sample of all things currently Giant Squid, it's definitely the most hopeful - dare I say cheerful - song on the whole record. Don't be alarmed! By the time you get to the eighth track on The Ichthyologist, you might just need some cheering up!! The theme and lyrics of the song are the epitome of the whole concept of the record, so we saw it as a fitting first taste to hopefully excite some fans and intrigue some new listeners."

The tracklisting of The Ichthyologist is: 'Panthalassa - Lampetra tridentata', 'La Brea Tar Pits - Pseudomonas putida', 'Sutterville - Vibrio cholerae', 'Dead Man Slough - Pacifastacus leniusculus', 'Throwing A Donner Party At Sea - Physeter catodon', 'Sevengill - Notorynchus cepedianus', 'Mormon Island - Alluvial Au', 'Blue Linckia - Linckia laevigata', 'Emerald Bay - Prionace glauca', 'Rubicon Wall - Acipenser transmontanus'.

We've also posted the album cover art (a larger version than seen above) on our MySpace as well, though it won't really appear exactly like it does on the site. The nature of the really cool, very unique foldable packaging we're using, called an Arigato-Pak made by Stumptown Printers in Portland, OR, has the image wrapping around all sides of the album. Imagine a digi-pak size match book. We'll announce all the incredible guest appearances on the album, along with some studio footage of most of these lovely people, as well as a pre-order option in just a couple weeks."

Giant Squid will be touring heavily in 2009 to support the release of the record.

More info: http://www.giantsquidlives.com, http://myspace.com/giantsquid.