Incubus are preparing to release their first album in seven years, with frontman Brandon Boyd revealing plans for Something in the Water to arrive this October.
The upcoming release marks the band’s first full-length studio album since 2017’s 8 and signals a renewed creative spark within the group. Speaking to People, Boyd shared that the album is tentatively scheduled for an October drop, and hinted at a fresh chapter for the alt-rock veterans.
“I definitely feel like it is a new era for us,” said Boyd. “Between the Morning View experience and Nicole, that was sort of the kickstart… it feels like our windshield got polished.”
The Nicole in question is bassist and vocalist Nicole Row, best known for her work with Panic! at the Disco and Miley Cyrus. Row joined Incubus on tour recently, and according to Boyd, her presence has given the band a new lease of life.
Morning View
The band’s decision to revisit 2001’s Morning View for a special live performance at the Hollywood Bowl was both a creative challenge and a source of inspiration.
“It was initially terrifying,” Boyd admitted. “But then we did the show… and it ended up being really fun. That was a big moment.”
That momentum, combined with Row’s addition and a post-pandemic sense of clarity, helped shape Something in the Water.
“There’s so much kind of in our history and our burgeoning legacy, if you will. But there’s also so much music in us that still has yet to see the light of day,” Boyd explained. “And this is still so much fun.”
A new era
Although the album doesn’t yet have a confirmed release date, October is the target. The band began teasing Something in the Water earlier this year with cryptic projections along London’s River Thames, including visuals beamed onto the Houses of Parliament and the Tower of London. These were shared via the band’s Instagram account.
Fans heading to Incubus’ O2 Arena show in April were met with large floor posters near North Greenwich station. Each poster featured a QR code that linked to a pre-order page for the record.
Boyd described the new material as part of a larger shift in the band’s dynamic:
“Even despite the scarier, darker parts of life that come creeping in… this thing that we do together is still a blast.”
