Dark Days / Light Years
Initial Thoughts on the New Super Furry Animals Album -
It's a very interesting album. In many ways it's more like Fuzzy Logic than any other SFA album. Although Fuzzy Logic crossbred with Hendrix and Stones styling.
It doesn't help that the opening track is possibly one of their weakest ever. Crazy Naked Girls is a great curveball, full of wailing and distorted guitar. It lasts over six minutes, whereas most of their previous openers have been tiny little tracks to allow you to adjust to 'Furryvision' or to act as a gateway song. There's no such compromise here!
If you survive Crazy Naked Girls, then Mt is much more familiar. Hearing the word 'F**king' in such a sweet, traditional sounding SFA song is a bit of jolt. Apart from that it's an amiable, repetitive, awesome groove.
Moped Eyes is almost the title track of the album, coming in with a (dull?) drumbeat on which are built some fab guitar grooves. Yes, it's the electric guitar! This isn't quite SFA in rock mode, but it's close.
Inaugural Trams is a bouncy 'Woo yay!' of a song. With rapping in German!
The guitars really take over for the next two songs, Inconvenience and Cardiff In the Sun, the latter of which is a heavy epic of a track, the former an alternate take on Golden Retriever with whooping and swirling guitar.
Then you get The Very Best of Neil Diamond, which is completely different to anything the SFA have done before. Marrying THAT song title with Indian / Eastern guitar and droning synths is quite, quite brilliant.
Things brighten up with Helium Hearts, the sunshine open-top love song of the pack.
White Socks/Flip Flops is another fab rocker, with Gruff taking a back seat and allowing the harmonies to take over. There's a brilliant double bill after that, of Where Do You Wanna Go? and Lliwiau Llachar. First you get the song in English - then you get it in Welsh! Everyone's happy.
Closing the album is the third epic, Pric. Although not as immediate, this is a worthy successor to Slow Life, a huge and awesome track.
Probably haven't done justice to the album there, but it gives you an idea anyway!
It's a very interesting album. In many ways it's more like Fuzzy Logic than any other SFA album. Although Fuzzy Logic crossbred with Hendrix and Stones styling.
It doesn't help that the opening track is possibly one of their weakest ever. Crazy Naked Girls is a great curveball, full of wailing and distorted guitar. It lasts over six minutes, whereas most of their previous openers have been tiny little tracks to allow you to adjust to 'Furryvision' or to act as a gateway song. There's no such compromise here!
If you survive Crazy Naked Girls, then Mt is much more familiar. Hearing the word 'F**king' in such a sweet, traditional sounding SFA song is a bit of jolt. Apart from that it's an amiable, repetitive, awesome groove.
Moped Eyes is almost the title track of the album, coming in with a (dull?) drumbeat on which are built some fab guitar grooves. Yes, it's the electric guitar! This isn't quite SFA in rock mode, but it's close.
Inaugural Trams is a bouncy 'Woo yay!' of a song. With rapping in German!
The guitars really take over for the next two songs, Inconvenience and Cardiff In the Sun, the latter of which is a heavy epic of a track, the former an alternate take on Golden Retriever with whooping and swirling guitar.
Then you get The Very Best of Neil Diamond, which is completely different to anything the SFA have done before. Marrying THAT song title with Indian / Eastern guitar and droning synths is quite, quite brilliant.
Things brighten up with Helium Hearts, the sunshine open-top love song of the pack.
White Socks/Flip Flops is another fab rocker, with Gruff taking a back seat and allowing the harmonies to take over. There's a brilliant double bill after that, of Where Do You Wanna Go? and Lliwiau Llachar. First you get the song in English - then you get it in Welsh! Everyone's happy.
Closing the album is the third epic, Pric. Although not as immediate, this is a worthy successor to Slow Life, a huge and awesome track.
Probably haven't done justice to the album there, but it gives you an idea anyway!