Played Cymru #6: The Best In New Welsh Music
Creoso! Welcome to Clash’s Welsh music round-up column. Every month we take a look at the latest essential releases from Welsh artists, with an aim to focus on the country’s most singular rising acts. This month we tilt between a range of genres, from psych pop glamour to drone folk serenity and from cult solo stars to hardcore punk head cases. Welsh music is a rich tapestry, with so much of it often not even making it beyond our beyonds.
Across the country last month, festival season dominated proceedings. Cardiff hosted Tafywl, a celebration of Welsh-language culture that drew tens of thousands of punters. The eclectic, friendly Big Love Festival took place in Usk at the end of the month, on the same weekend as venerable Newport brewers Tiny Rebel hosted two days of top-tier Welsh talent at this year’s Rebelfest. Elsewhere, the international arts festival Llais announced their lineup for this year’s event, the longlist has been finalised for albums eligible for this year’s Welsh Music Prize and, in great news, beloved Cardiff venue Porter’s managed to raise the majority of funds needed to keep the venue afloat.
In terms of established artists, cult indie pop collective Los Campesinos! returned with a brilliant new album, while July also saw great new tracks from emerging acts such as Half Happy, Spithood, Aisha Kigs, Aduja, The Nightmares, Mali Hâf, Revenant, My Name Is Ian, Macy, Cyn Cwsg, Holy Gloam, Sonny Double 1, KEYS and countless others.
The following are five of the best albums and EP’s released by Welsh artists last month –
Ynys – ‘Dosbarth Nos’
Released on Welsh indie institution Libertino Records, ‘Dosbarth Nos’ is a stellar addition to the extensive canon of quirky, psych-inflected Welsh indie pop. Ynys’ second full-length is an ornate, extravagant collection of upbeat bangers built on with horn sections (‘Gyda Ni’), Bond film-style strings (‘Welcome Back To The Island’) and piano-led glam rock glitz (‘Shindig’). The Aberystwyth band’s latest is an absolute blast, overflowing with energy, joie de vivre and timeless glamour. Also, shoutout to the quite spell-binding string arrangements by Gruff ab Arwel.
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The Neighbourhood Watch – ‘Demo’
Now for something completely different. For the uninitiated, the epicentre of Welsh hardcore punk is Newport, specifically at DIY venue The Cab. They’re practically single-handedly holding up the national scene (although Fuel and The Moon in Cardiff also host great shows) and in the process have nurtured tons of great new heavy bands. The Neighbourhood Watch are among the latest, a balaclava-wearing heavy hardcore mob who’ve just released a killer four song demo. These raw, abrasive and seriously-fun tracks will have you swinging loose ones like the crowd at this mental house show the band played.
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Tom Emlyn – ‘NFN Alt Versions’
So, quick clarification, the above video is actually a track from Tom Emlyn’s forthcoming full-length, out at the end of August. Treat it as an adroit tease for that release, a description which also applies to Tom’s lovely latest EP ‘NFN Alt Versions’. These gorgeous demos and acoustic tracks capture the range of its creator’s imagination, from the gentle motorik psych of ‘Caught The Sun’ to the Cleaners From Venus-esque outsider pop of ‘Think Twice’. Swansea native Tom’s becoming a bit of a cult favourite here in Wales, relentlessly gigging around the country and infusing everything he releases with copious charm and magic.
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Mines – ‘Safe & Warm’
Staying in Swansea, we’re turning to the city’s darker side. Mines are an awesome noise rock/sludge metal band, one for fans of gloomy, visceral heaviness like Neurosis and KEN Mode. On their latest release they’ve taken a Justin Broadrick (Godflesh, Jesu)-inspired turn and crafted a series of stellar heavy electronica tracks. It’s all long runtimes, maximalist drum machines, rumbling bass and murky, sorrow-laden synths. Mines take to it all like a duck to water and have come up with a gloomy but genuinely-intoxicating sidestep.
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Peiriant – ‘Dychwelyd’
We’ll wrap things up with a soulful sojourn to the Y Mynyddoedd Ddu (the Black Mountains). Peiriant are Rose and Dan Linn-Pearl, a minimalist folk/drone duo that use violin and electric guitar to paint spell-binding vistas that feel deeply rooted in the Welsh borderlands. The minimalist experimentation on display here is a thing to behold. ‘Carraeg’ thrums with exhilarating low-end, while ‘Spoons’ incorporates percussion into a lovely track that recalls the serene post-rock of Dirty Three or Do Make Say Think. It’s a privilege that Peiriant have let us in on the conversation they seem to be having with the land beneath their feet.
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Words: Tom Morgan
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