Pleasant Songs By Gruff Rhys

Gruff Rhys - Hotel Shampoo (Ronald Says 7 out of 10)

The lead singer of Super Furry Animals has proven to be a creative man. Gruff Rhys' band is known for a variety in sound and experiments that sometimes can be a bit hard to get into. This however resulted in beautiful music and some less fortunate results. On this solo album he stays on the safe side. His voice is pleasant to listen to like we're used to and the poppy songs are nicely produced. It's not ground breaking stuff but who said that should be the goal. Especially fans of his other work (like me) will enjoy this album a lot.

Listen to 'Hotel Shampoo' on Spotify

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Super Furry Animals Light Years Ahead?

Super Furry Animals - Dark Days/ Light Years
(Ronald Says 3 out of 5)

With this band you never know what you're going to get. Next to masterpieces like "Rings Around The World" are albums that just don't do it for me. Let's see where this album fits in.

The new album of the Welsh band Super Furry Animals starts off pretty interesting. Nice funky sound and falsetto vocals blend into some 70s style rock jam. Accompanied by typical SFA lyrics the opening is promising. However then the tracks turn into more experimental tunes that don't seem to go anywhere. They find their climax in "Inaugural Trams" that's stuffed with electronic effects.

Then halfway the album things change around and it all becomes more coherent. Especially tracks like "Helium Hearts", "White Socks / Flip Flops" and "Where Do You Wanna Go" are typical SFA pop tunes although these sound all very alike. This makes the album not balanced enough. They do find the right balance in the last track "Pric" which is a great 10 minute psychedelic journey. Although not a masterpiece it still is a nice album. But it may stay in your cabinet after a few listens.
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