Cawr by Gus Payne / Cover of 'Bach Yn Ryff' Jamie Bevan Courtesy of repeats of the innovative S4C series 'Fideo Naw', I've recently revisited roc Cymraeg from the 90s in particular and realised just what I missed.
In the 80s, with DJ John Peel as musical guru, I would listen avidly to punk band Yr Anrhefn and the most challenging but original of all Welsh groups Datblygu, who were greatly influenced by that genius Captain Beefheart.
Records were hard to find and I once discovered Yr Anrhefn in the World Music section at HMV! Now they have a whole Welsh shelf, but no Welsh language bands on it.
At the time my Welsh was rudimentary, but I did my best to pick up some lines, words and phrases. Singer-songwriters like Dafydd Iwan and Meic Stevens were much easier to comprehend and the latter's songs such as 'Dic Penderyn' and 'Bobby Sands' I really relished. Seeing him perform at a Welsh republican event in Cardiff further convinced me of his special place in music.
I believe that had he decided to record only in English, then Stevens would be up there with Dylan and Cohen today and it's a sad indictment of the dominance of the English language that he is still so marginalised.
The same applies to Geraint Jarman, who began as a poet and now publishes verse once again. He doesn't even get the recognition he deserves from Welsh-speakers, who tend to pigeon-hole him as 'white reggae'.
Yet every Jarman album comprises so much more , especially the best ones like 'Gwesty Cymru' and 'Rhiniog' : the music ranges from rock to more funky and folky influences and Tich Gwilym was simply a guitarist to rival the very best. Jarman's lyrics were always those of a true bard.
So, to the bands I missed out on and notably Y Cyrff, Ffa Coffi Pawb and U Thant. The first gave rise to Catatonia, the second boasted a certain Gruff Rhys as singer and the third must have been quite phenomenal live (they even started the Bluebird fans 'ayatollah' according to legend).
Today, I think the talent in terms of Welsh language music lies with the many singer-songwriters, so varied both in music and lyrical emphasis. In English, on the other hand, it's bands like The Joy Formidable, Paper Aeroplanes and Future of the Left who lead the way.
This is the best scene since the absurdly-named Cwl Cymru of the 1990s, a secret that has to be let out one of these days.
In a way it's more intriguing, simply because it's such a long way from Future of the Left to Georgia Ruth, like the train journey from Cardiff to Aberystwyth, where they're from respectively!
Welsh singer-songwriters tend to be more original than Welsh language bands because the latter are too in awe of the Super Furries and too inclined to imitate them (Sibrydion being just one example). However, the singer-songwriters feel greater freedom to borrow and adapt.
Interestingly, all four I'm looking at have released bi-lingual material recently, just as Gorky's Zygotic Mynci did in their heyday.
Firstly there is Huw M. (or Huw Meredydd Roberts) who , on 'Gathering Dusk', has 5 tracks in Welsh, 4 in English and one in baby-talk.
While the English lyrics come over as rather sentimental at times, the Welsh songs are more edgy such as 'Ystafelloedd Gwag' and the more playful 'Brechdanau Sgwar'.
Huw M. is influenced by the earlier Sufjan Stevens but never lets that music overpower him and his version of the traditional song 'Dyma lythyr' is one of the album's high-points.
Lleuwen Steffan's 'Tan' comprises songs in both Welsh and Breton and, as she lives in Llydaw at present, that's not surprising.
Her music blends folk and jazz effortlessly and reminds me of the sadly-missed band Gilespi and what they could have gone on to do with a smaller group of musicians.
Out of the four, she is the most experimental, taking standard folk forms and developing them with quirky rhythms and distinctive vocals : her voice has all the agility of a jazz singer .
The opening track 'Lle Wyt Ti Heno Iesu Grist' is a classic with its staccato strings, breathy singing and quick-step harp. Her Breton songs are more traditional, while songs like 'Paid a Son' show how she can evoke a sensual mood so well.
She is a unique talent and I look forward very much to her next offering.
Aberystwyth's Georgia Ruth is very much the artist of the moment. She featured greatly in the WOMEX international music festival at the Millennium Centre as both performer and presenter and won last year's Welsh Music Award for her debut album 'Week of Pines'.
I like the importance of her harp-playing on the album and I'm told she is even better live.
She is undoubtedly under the spell of Joni Mitchell, yet I'm sure she will gradually break away and find an even more distinctive style. There is enough on the album to suggest this and the imagery of her lyrics is subtle and never pretentious, such as the title track and 'Mapping'.
With his backing band Gweddillion, Merthyr's Jamie Bevan sounds the most traditionally folk of all four (tin whistles, pipes and accordion providing some the backing). Characters from Merthyr and the streets of his home town play a crucial role in his songs, like 'John the Lamb', a portrait of an infamous landlord and his pub in the 1960s.
Opening track 'Bron' is Radio Cymru's record of the week this week and Frank Hennessey has played the raucous singalong 'No Lentils In Cawl' several times on Radio Wales.
'Bach Yn Ryff' is a lively and tuneful e.p. and Jamie is happy to venture into English. It would be interesting to see what would happen if his folk persona met up with electronic experimenters Twlc Tlwc (with whom
he has close associations) and produced some music.
New Welsh music is on it's way.........where to , I'm not sure.....but hopefully the ears of the world.
( I wrote this poem in response to Jamie's song 'No Lentils In Cawl').
Cawl Yr Iaith
Dw i’n moyn lentils yn y cawl
ac Eisteddfodau heb gystadlu.
Dw i’n moyn ymuno a’r cor
sy’n canu yn y tafarnau.
Dw’n lico gweld yr oen bach
yn y cae nid yn y llestri.
Dw i’n lico cerddoriaeth Gymraeg
ond ble mae e ar y teledu?
Dw i’n edrych ymlaen at farddoniaeth
gyda’r gwybodaeth y strydoedd.
Dw i’n edrych ymlaen at gawl yr iaith :
bwyd symyl heb farwoliaeth.
RSS Feed