Samia Distorts Expectations on New Single, “Bovine Excision”
Photo: Youtube
Ahead of her new album, Bloodless, Samia has released the first single, “Bovine Excision,” on a seemingly random Tuesday. Leading into the new year, Samia posted a number of clues, hinting at new music in 2025. Finally, the indie alternative singer-songwriter officially announced her third album, set to hit streaming on April 25.
This first peek into Bloodless takes a mystifying turn, fitting for Samia’s cryptically eerie yet honest lyricism. Samia has teased “Bovine Excision” for nearly a year, performing it live and promoting it on social media for months now. But finally, fans can blast the track on repeat, taking in the cow mutilation anthem whenever they please.
For those who don’t know, the term bovine excision refers to the inexplicable mutilation of cattle that has dumbfounded people for decades. Transfixed by the phenomenon, Samia turned to songwriting. “I was drawn to the phenomenon of bloodless cattle mutilation as a metaphor for self-extraction,” she said in a statement to Rolling Stone.
Blood is an ever-present theme across the single. With a deep literary reference to the American writer Raymond Carver’s untimely death introducing the song and lines like “Doll eyes red in the litmus,” Samia proves yet again that she is not only one of the strongest songwriters of the generation but she also breaks boundaries with her word choice. Each of these niche references to blood is complemented with the outro where “drained bloodless” cycles out into the ether.
Samia finds herself pushing and pulling, trying to balance the more provocative lyrics with the tender ones. Both paint an equally vivid picture, though one makes listeners want to look away while the other makes them want to stare. “Picking leeches off white underwear,” she sings one second, and the next, she sings, “twirling like a Degas dancer.” She has never been afraid to say what no one else wants to say or, perhaps, to sit with something as fascinating and utterly disgusting as bovine excision. Her chilling harmonies, soft guitar strums, and steady downbeat carry through the track, helping tow that same line seamlessly.
Femininity has always had a place in Samia’s music, but she found herself inspired and frustrated by the “impossibility of femininity” while penning Bloodless. If this song is any testament to the album to come, Samia will surely deliver a raw and rebellious album, never lacking in the lyrical, vocal, or instrumental departments.
Watch the "Bovine Excision" video below:
