Dry Cleaning have a pretty set formula – nonsensical, oft-hilarious observationals delivered in Florence Shaw’s deadpan sprechgesang overtop muscular rock guitar riffage – so you’d be forgiven if, when listening to this second preview of their forthcoming second album Stumpwork, you find you’ve spent the whole five minutes waiting for the muscular rock guitar riffage to drop. But no, you’ve got tasteful keyboard, smooth woodwinds, and lightly chorused guitar strums down in the mix. So maybe the Dry Cleaning formula isn’t so formulaic after all?

The official notes from the band on the song are as follows:

The lyrics were partly inspired by phone calls with a friend who was living and working in the Arctic. The song developed from a keyboard, bass and clarinet jam. This then took shape during our pre-recording sessions with John Parish and Joe Jones in Bristol and finalized at Rockfield studios a month later, with some musical inspiration coming from the dramatic scores of John Barry. The song is observational and sensual.

Dry Cleaining

It’s hard to imagine guitarist Tom Dowse fist-pumping after they play this one live… but he probably will.

Stumpwork is out October 21.