Owen & The Eyeballs Too is the gloriously off-kilter second album from Owen & The Eyeballs - a band of internationally acclaimed illustrators turned theatrical garage-pop oddballs. Released on super-limited red and white marbled vinyl via Lost Map Records, this eight-track collection captures the group’s infectious blend of catchy, wonky songwriting and psychedelic mischief. Following a string of cult-favourite singles, the album was recorded live over three days at Total Refreshment Centre, with production from Kristian Craig Robinson (The Comet Is Coming, Alabaster DePlume, Thurston Moore), resulting in a loose, energetic set that thrives on spontaneity and charm.

Formed 15 years ago from the live drawing and music night Heavy Pencil, the band - Nick White, Andrew Rae, Jim Stoten and Owen Gildersleeve - have long balanced their visual art careers with sporadic but memorable musical outings. Known for their wildly imaginative live shows (think papier-mâché hats, balloon-covered lab coats and giant fruit costumes), they’ve built a reputation for turning gigs into surreal, joy-filled happenings. Owen & The Eyeballs Too gathers together songs written in that same spirit - often conceived for one-off performances, now captured in their most vibrant form.

Musically, the album swings between garage rock, art pop and something approaching joyous chaos, “combining the self-indulgence of jazz with the incompetence of punk.” Lyrically, it celebrates the everyday and the absurd in equal measure: love, sleep, procrastination, animals - and even having a moon for a head. Highlights include the stomping opener ‘Moonhead’, the swing-set-and-pub anthem ‘Valentine’, the dreamlike repetition of ‘Baby’, and the danceable existential shrug of ‘What Did You Do Today?’. Closing track ‘American Werewolf’ delivers a howling, Halloween-ready finale that’s become a live favourite.

At its heart, Owen & The Eyeballs Too is a document of pure creative freedom - music made for the joy of it, away from the constraints of commissioned work. It’s playful, heartfelt and gloriously unpolished in all the right ways. As the band themselves put it: these are songs to blast out loud, dance around your living room to, and maybe - if the mood takes you - sing along to in your pants.