#adwaith

Dod nôl am wythnos newydd! Shwmae folks, glad you've been liking the Welsh music Wednesday recommendations so far, I've got one of Wales and especially Welsh language music's brightest stars as a spotlit artist for today!

Adwaith are an indie rock trio from Caermarthen in South Wales, made of three school friends Gwenllian Anthony, Hollie Singer (who is, aptly, one of the two singers in the band) and Heledd Owen.

They started out as more of a punk band, writing songs with a feminist punk rock angle, talking about their lives as girls in town (Lipstick Coch is a great song to check out from the time). They wrote as they spoke, a deliberate choice to be more conversational and not feel afraid to make mistakes in their Welsh, as language learners and feel more confident. And Adwaith have every reason to be confident: they are one of the most exciting bands to come out of Wales, and lately they have only been going from strength to strength.

Winning the Welsh Music Prize for their debut album, 2018's Melyn, Adwaith began expanding their sound into more indie and post punk on their second album Bato Mato, inspired by a trip taken by the band to get to a show, on the Trans Siberian Express train. They won the Welsh Music Prize again for that album, and to date that makes them the only artist ever to have won the prize twice!

It also took them beyond the usual boundaries of minority language music: Adwaith played the BBC Introducing stage at Glastonbury, and were even picked up for a session by the iconic radio station KEXP when they were at the ESNS showcase festival in the Netherlands in 2022.

They've released their third album this February called Solas, and once again Adwaith have taken a bold step. Solas is an all-Welsh language double album, and the band continues to grow sonically: they lean into darker synths, write about life and the world around them, find pockets of joy in the darkness, and just generally have written an album that should be lauded.

Anyway, Adwaith are extremely cool. Here's Solas on Bandcamp, if you like them, go buy their album and support them independently if you can. (Alternately if you're just in the area, they are on Libertino Records.)

I've linked the first song ‘Planed’ (‘Planet’), because it's quite Depeche Mode to my ears.

thank you for the ask! as decided by tymblr itself, these polls show some of the top internationally known (?) welsh artists. BUT, here are some personal recommendations from yours truly:

Adwaith

an all female post punk indie rock band from carmarthen. their songs are really catchy, cover a range of genres, and satisfy the urge to be serenaded by a choir of angels with electric guitars and synths

Candelas

an anonymous tumblr user told me about candelas recently, and I can't get enough. they're an award-winning rock band from llanuwchllyn, and sing in both welsh and english. if you're gonna listen to any welsh band, listen to them

Catatonia

the myth, the legend, the one and only. they're my mother's favourite band, so listen to them for my mam, please. if you like alternative rock from the post-britpop days of the mid-90s in cardiff, with a front woman who sounds like she smokes 50 packs a day, then you're in luck

Talkin' bout my generation... ;)

Adwaith return with lead single from upcoming third album

Acclaimed Welsh indie rock band Adwaith have released their latest single ‘MWY’, which acts as the first glimpse of music from their highly anticipated and ambitious third album.

Adwaith are known for never standing still and always looking to push forward musically. ‘MWY’ is no different, with the band exploring new sounds on the track whilst staying true to their unique artistic vision. ‘MWY’ captivates you as a listener and is full of infectious energy and mantra lyrics - sung in Welsh as always. It’s full of sound and the track is driven forward by powerful bass and drums.

There’s fuzz guitar, echoing vocals and a sense of hypnotic repetition. The tempo is fast and it builds throughout the track.

Adwaith - MWY

Lead vocalist Hollie Singer described ‘MWY’ as a reflection on reconnecting with one’s homeland and finding belonging within one’s community - “finding our tribe.” The track was meticulously crafted over multiple recording sessions. Each studio environment contributed to the rich and diverse sonic palette of the song, making it one of the most enthralling tracks on the upcoming album.

Bass player and vocalist Gwenllian Anthony revealed that ‘MWY’ was inspired by Can’s seminal track ‘….And More’. The band aimed to create a song that would inspire listeners to stomp along to its infectious rhythm. Drummer Heledd Owen added: “‘MWY’ is a celebration of our connection to the ancient land beneath our feet, inviting listeners to join in a joyous neolithic dance.”

This forthcoming album is not an ordinary release. Adwaith continue to push themselves with the upcoming LP being a double album in length, one which reflects on the band’s expansive creative journey over the last 12 months. The recording process took Adwaith to far-flung studios in the Outer Hebrides, Lisbon, and the wild west and north of Wales, allowing them to capture a diverse range of influences and experiences.

‘MWY’ is out now via Libertino Records.

Adwaith - Nid Aur

Shwmae! Amazingly, you are the literal target audience for Ynys' first album ('Ynys', 2022). Dylan Hughes is from Aberystwyth and spent many years in Cardiff and found himself longing for the seaside he grew up in, and when he finally started writing music as Ynys (he used to be in a cool indie psychedelic band called Race Horses too, if that's your thing), he put together a whole album only to realise how much of it is about the sea. I mean, his band is literally called Ynys (Island)!

Also, he has that wonderful, lush psychedelic pop sound, which I think sounds pretty happy musically, though there are definitely some themes of longing, being lost, culture and language, all that good stuff thrown in too. It's complex, but I still feel it's quite a happy listen!

So some songs from the album I'd recommend - Môr Du (Black Sea), Welcome to the Island (now technically this is an instrumental, don't know where that sits!), There's Nothing The Sea Doesn't Know.

My personal favourite off the album is Caneuon (‘Songs’, references the Gorky's Zygotic Mynci song 'Gegin Nos'—more on them in a sec—and also a pretty happy/reminiscing/wistful song), but the whole album is quite good, and their recent second album Dosbarth Nos also has some lovely songs that lift my mood at least— Aros Amdanat Ti, Gyda Ni, Dosbarth Nos. Also the sea references continue!

I'm linking their Bandcamp page rather than a Spotify because Dylan makes sure to include lyrics and translations on there (and in physical liner notes), if you or anyone else reading this was interested in going into the lyrics! (Also I usually feel like I should give people the option to directly support musicians if they feel inclined, where Spotify pays not even cents for most music.) But these two albums are on streaming if you'd like too!

I've also gotta recommend some Gorky's! Their 1997 album's called Barafundle, named after Barafundle Beach, and while I don't think any of the songs are directly about the sea itself (except like The Barafundle Bumbler, which uh. Your mileage may vary. It’s about a voyeur bloke that sits by the seaside on said beach), but there's Diamond Dew which is such a lovely tune, and while not about the sea, Patio Song (i.e. everyone's favourite Gorky's song) has that lovely outro of 'it is raining, so take my hand, the winter's so long, it takes so much of the earth'. ☔️🌧🌈 Happy music, some of Gorky's work! (Personal fave off the album: Starmoonsun <3)

(Also this song's in English but since we're talking about Gorky's I can't not recommend Spanish Dance Troupe. Gorgeous song.)

There's also the super cool Adwaith, who wrote the song Lan Y Môr. This song is actually a lot older than the album it ended up on, 2022's Welsh Music Prize winning Bato Mato, Adwaith are still the only musicians to win the Prize twice. They wrote the song and released it as a single back in early 2020 and it was following a run of really cool punky Cymraeg singles. Love Adwaith, they're quite cool.

Edit: HOW COULD I HAVE FORGOTTEN. The queen of the beaches. Gwenno herself. I guess I hadn’t included her because this isn’t technically a Welsh language album (save for one song, N.Y.C.A.W. (Nid Yw Cymru Ar Werth)). Gwenno is half-Welsh, half-Cornish, and this album was basically written down at St. Ives. This does sound like it, and I love this song Anima!