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Part Time Signals new 'Take Me For A Ride' single out 30th June via Bubblewrap Collective
By Ceri Shaw, 2023-06-20
Part Time Signals - 'Take Me For A Ride'
Part Time Signals is the new project formed by Sock vocalist and guitarist Jacob Church. The band came together initially by taking demo ideas written by Jacob.
The second taste of music from the band, ‘Take Me For A Ride’, is an understated song following on from their first single ‘The Man’.
The new single will be released across all digital platforms on June 3 recorded at Chapter Arts Centre, Cardiff, mixed by Sam Barnes and Al-Shakarchi.
The artwork photo is by Jacob Church with typography and layout by Rich Chitty.
"I am an artist and film-maker based in Carmarthenshire. I am currently a co-curator for the Attic International Film Festival which operates out of Newcastle Emlyn.
We are presenting a festival of short film/video [running time up to approx. 20 minutes] from around the world across the long weekend of 13-15th October 2023. This event will be free admission to the public, so we can guarantee actual audiences for our presentations. Full details can be found at;
https://filmfreeway.com/AtticTheatreInternationalFilmFestival
We are looking for good quality work. This can be back-catalogue, having been shown elsewhere previously; we don't require video for 'premiere viewing'. Any theme, any style -we are a completely genre-neutral event! Files should be sent as MP4 when requested after submission.
I look forward to seeing work by any members/friends and followers of Americymru. Do please pass on this opportunity to any film-makers/videographers you may know.
WELSH ALT POP ARTIST 'MALI HAF' RELEASES NEW 'SHWSH!' SINGLE ON THE 16TH JUNE
By Ceri Shaw, 2023-06-14
Mali Haf on Facebook
SHWSH!
Released on 16/06/2023
In this single Mali Haf takes a new direction with her brand of alternative pop. The aim is to create music with an impact that cannot be ignored, a combination of compelling electroinc beats and evocative melodies. She hopes to convince her Welsh speaking and non-Welsh speaking audiences that the language can thrive in current high energy musical environments.
SHWSH! is a burst of empowering pop that urges it’s listeners to be themselves in the worlds of Reality TV and social media. There is empathy for how we have to navigate the bombardment of media advice, designed to create disatisfactions. The last verse wishes that we could be free to allow love into our lives.
The other clear message in the lyrics is that your gender identity is personal to you, no-one should dictate how you should express it.
The single is accompanied by a video which depicts Mali being auditioned for the part of playing a “woman”.
This is the first single leading towards an EP in the Autumn. This new material is a collaboration with the South Wales based producer Minas.
SHWSH!
Dyddiad cyhoeddi 16/06/2023
Yn y sengl hon mae Mali Haf yn mynd i gyfeiriad newydd gyda’i brand o bop amgen. Y nod yw creu cerddoriaeth gydag effaith na ellir ei anwybyddu, cyfuniad o guriadau electroinc cymhellol ac alawon atgofus. Mae’n gobeithio darbwyllo ei chynulleidfa Cymraeg eu hiaith a’r di-Gymraeg bod yr iaith yn medru ffynnu mewn amgylcheddau cerddorol egni uchel y presennol.
Mae SHWSH! yn ffrwydriad o bop grymusol sy’n annog ei wrandawyr i fod yn nhw eu hunain ym myd teledu Realiti a’r cyfryngau cymdeithasol. Mae yna empathi gyda sut mae'n rhaid i ni lywio ein hunaniaeth trwy gyngor parhaus y cyfryngau cymdeithasol, sydd wedi'u cynllunio i greu anfodlonrwydd. Mae'r pennill olaf yn dymuno y gallem fod yn rhydd i ganiatáu cariad i mewn i’n bywydau.
Y neges glir arall yn y geiriau yw bod eich hunaniaeth o ran rhywedd yn bersonol i chi, ni ddylai neb ddweud sut y dylech ei fynegi.
I gyd-fynd â’r sengl mae fideo sy’n darlunio Mali yn cael clyweliad am y rhan o chwarae “Dynes”.
Dyma’r sengl gyntaf yn arwain at EP yn yr Hydref. Mae'r deunydd newydd hwn yn gydweithrediad â'r cynhyrchydd Minas o dde Cymru.
We called ANGHARAD a ‘mesmerising musical chameleon’ with the release of her debut single ‘Because I am a Woman’, an unstoppable disco anthem with sweeping strings, sparkling horns and a clear message of empowerment. Her second single ‘Postpartum’ is equally as striking and unflinching in it’s honesty.
Here we find ANGHARAD swimming in darker musical waters, ‘Postpartum’ is what happens when you combine ‘Slow Dazzle’ era John Cale with the stark and bold rock and roll of Patti Smith’s ‘Horses’ and NEU!’s propulsive sonic explorations. Angharad explains about the background to ‘Postpartum’:
“This is about all the things that they don’t tell you about child birth and early motherhood. It’s a list about the uglier side of childbirth, and its effects on a woman’s body, physically and mentally, and in particular the acute loss of identity we feel when we bring life into the world.
There’s a dark humour here, because the truth is, we wouldn’t have it any other way. But if only I had this song to listen to before becoming a mother for the first time, I think I would have been a bit more prepared about what was to come! If you didn’t know about cluster feeding, the hair loss, Mothers Thumb and that first 'accident', then let this song educate you. It’s not all cute and fluffy, and it’s time we open up about this.
"I’m a prisoner to the sofa, and I’ve lost what makes me me, it true that all I am, is a mother to my baby?” Is a genuine cry of desperation about losing one’s identity. This 3 minute song will be more useful and educational than a 6 week ante-natal class!”
'Postpartum' by ANGHARAD is out now on Libertino.
Derbyniwyd sengl gyntaf ANGHARAD 'Because I am a Woman' cryn dipyn o sylw am ei fod yn anthem disgo gyda neges bwerus yn perthyn iddi ac mae ei hail sengl ‘Postpartum’, allan ar Libertino heddiw, yr un mor drawiadol a di-flewyn ar dafod â'r gyntaf.
Yma gweler ANGHARAD yn arbrofi mewn dyfroedd cerddorol tywyllach, yn cyfuno synau albwm ‘Slow Dazzle’ gan John Cale, roc beiddgar Patti Smith ac archwiliadau arbrofol NEU! Esbonia Angharad:
“Mae'r gân yn ymwneud â'r holl bethau does neb yn ei son amdano pan ydych yn disgwyl eich plentyn cyntaf. Mae’n son am yr ochr does neb yn ei weld a'r effeithiau mae hynny yn ei gael ar gorff merch - yn gorfforol ac yn feddyliol, ac yn trafod hefyd y teimlad rhyfedd hwnnw o golli synnwyr o hunaniaeth ti dy hun.
Taswn i 'mond 'di cael y gân yma i wrando arni cyn dod yn fam am y tro cyntaf, dwi'n meddwl y byddai wedi fy mharatoi i ychydig yn well nag yr oeddwn i! Os nad ydych yn gwybod riw lawer am fwydo babi, colli gwallt, y 'ddamwain' cyntaf a'r teimladau newydd sy'n dod gyda'r profiadau hynny, yna gadewch i'r gân hon eich addysgu. Mae'n hen bryd i ni son yn agored am y pethau yma. Mae'r gân hon yn fwy defnyddiol, addysgiadol a gwerthfawr na unrhyw ddosbarth cyn-geni!”
Mae 'Postpartum' allan nawr ar Libertino
A Message From Welsh Band CVC ( Church Village Collective ) - Currently on Tour in the U.S.
By Ceri Shaw, 2023-06-10
BUY CVC CONCERT TICKETS HERE
AmeriCymru: Many thanks for agreeing to this interview. Care to introduce the band, CVC for our members and readers?
CVC: Thank you for having us! We have Francesco Orsi on lead vocals, David Bassey and Elliot Bradfield singing guitarists, Nanial on keys, Tom Fry on drums and Ben Thorne on bass.
AmeriCymru: Where in Wales is Church Village and how would you describe it?
CVC: Church Village is about half hour drive from the capital Cardiff, it’s a small little village but looks quite nice when the suns out Full of characters, and lots of good rugby players.
AmeriCymru: ( will be re ordered) How vibrant is the Welsh music scene at the moment? How easy is it for a Welsh band to get noticed?
CVC: There’s all sorts of great music going on in Cardiff now, too many great bands to name! And I think it’s quite hard to break out of the Cardiff scene, it took us a while, and we know loads of great band and musicians that are struggling to make a dent in England or the UK, so anything we can do to shine a light on that we will do. There’s untapped potential aplenty over in the land of sheep hear me now!
AmeriCymru: What can you tell us about your current / recent tour of the United States? Any plans to return and perhaps visit the West Coast?
CVC: We’ve played New York and Toronto so far and the reaction has been incredible! To have people over the other side of the world singing back to us is a crazy feeling, and yes hopefully a West Coast trip in October fingers crossed!
AmeriCymru: Care to tell us a little about your recently released album 'Get Real'? CVC:
Get Real was recorded in guitarist Elliot’s kitchen during lockdown, we sent it around everyone we could find and ended up getting a response from Jonny Bradshaw and Geoff Barradale, our managers, and then they put us on the road and on the radio! It contains nearly all the songs we’d written up to that point, and we recorded everything from real Welsh rain to pots and bongs and shoe horned it all in to this DIY home grown recording.
AmeriCymru: How would you derscribe CVC's sound? What are the bands main influences?
CVC: I’d say it was like groovy harmony based rock music in a nutshell We love harmony bands like Frankie and the 4 seasons, groovy stuff like the Doobie Brothers and the Atlanta Rhythm Section and hip hop music from guys like Biggie Smalls and NWA.
AmeriCymru: Where can people go to hear you play and buy your music?
CVC: Well after this first American tour we’re going home to play our second UK tour, and then we’re out in Germany for Reeperbahn! All dates are on our website www.CVCband.com !
AmeriCymru: What are your future touring and recording plans? Any new tours or albums in the works?
CVC: We just about to start recording album 2, since most of it was written about a year ago, so we’re raaaaring to go!! We want to take it all over the world, especially Japan, we’re all sushi lovers!
AmeriCymru: Any final message for the readers and members of AmeriCymru?
CVC: Get Real, Stay Real! Look after each other, look after yourselves, and keep it peace and love!
FORTHCOMING TOUR DATES
Psychedelic upstarts The Family Battenberg announce the release of their reverb coated,fuzz founded new track ‘Runny Hunny’, out on the 6th of June!
By Ceri Shaw, 2023-06-06
Psychedelic upstarts The Family Battenberg announce the release of their reverb coated,fuzz founded new track ‘Runny Hunny’, out on the 6th of June!
Having already gained attention from Steve Lamacq , Amy Lamé , Huw Stephens , alongside Amazing Radio playlisting on their previous releases, the band plan to make a lot of noise with ‘Runny Hunny’.
Upcoming Live Dates
June 9th - The Bunkhouse, Swansea (Supporting Panic Shack)
June 29th - The Globe, Cardiff (Supporting SHLUG)
July 16th - HarbourFest, Bristol
July 22nd - Leopalooza, Cornwall
July 23rd - NozStock, Herefordshire
THE BAND
Life in Church Village is laid back and simple. Situated at the top of a hill in the Welsh Valleys around 10 miles north of Cardiff: there are a couple of rugby pitches, a few pubs all within walking distance of one another and that’s about it. Like many villages of this kind, it appears on the outside as quiet and serene, but there’s a bubbling underbelly, of kids itching for a chance to explore the wider world.
CVC (or Church Village Collective in full) represents this. But as the name suggests, they’re not divorcing themselves from the identity of the ‘small town’; if they have it their way, international renown will soon be brought to their village.
The outfit is comprised of singer Francesco Orsi, bassist Ben Thorne, drummer Tom Fry, keyboardist Daniel ‘Nanial’ Jones and singing guitarists David Bassey and Elliot Bradfield. It’s worth noting that the latter two, despite never having met them, are related to Welsh royalty Dame Shirley Bassey and Manic Street Preachers’ James Dean Bradfield, respectively. Maybe owing to genetics, Bassey states “I don’t think I’d be able to not do this, I don’t actively choose to, I’m just drawn to it”. But the band are all as equally talented with different skills that aid the cacophony of their sound. Simply put, CVC are a democracy, greater than the sum of its parts, and destined for world domination - perhaps!
It’s a lofty but not impossible dream - but if there is one band that’s up to that challenge, it’s them. “The point of being in a band is to have fun and to make music that people enjoy” Dave adds, “We listen to music to feel something and if we can give a bit of that back to other people - to hear them say they like the art you’ve produced, that’s the best thing ever”. The band’s rallying cry? “Peace and love and good times; stay real, stay true and that’s it.” Ultimately, they are essentialists and their music appeals to universally felt, primal instincts.
Again, there are no add-ons with this band, no gimmicks. They grew up on rock music’s building blocks: The Beatles, Neil Young and The Beach Boys - rich and melodic music steeped in rock’s history, while adding a contemporary feel; think the sunny sounds of Mac Demarco and Super Furry Animals coupled with the virtuosity of the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
There is a hint of chaos though. Partly owing to the fact that they started as a ‘jam band’ says Orsi, and partly to their ingrained love of 70s psychedelia, it’s maybe the big three-part harmonies that stand out. Orsi, Bassey and Bradfield’s vocals are able to conjure moods of any palette, sweet but also explosive.
“We like big sounds,” sums up Bassey. “We like the big-big stuff. You’ve gotta have a keyboard player, two guitars, that’s a must, and three singers - “You definitely want to get to the top of Everest before you start coming back down.” Thorne adds.
The love of harmony comes from a surprising place given their knack for rebellion. “When I was in primary school, my music teacher would have six or seven hundred pupils singing four part harmonies and it was banging,” says Bradfield. “Like, it was loud as fuck in the hall. I remember getting goosebumps and thinking, ‘This is so class…’”
Real to Reel, their debut EP released in mid-2022 neatly summed up their identity. It’s an urgent manifesto that appeals to classic tastes but implanted in the present. ‘Docking the Pay is full blown energy’ says Thorne, despite being made in lockdown; a time when the world was invariably still. NME called the EP an “assured achievement” and highlighted ‘Winston’ saying “[it] recaptures the groove and glory of late ‘60s psych-pop…with swirls and reverb”. It’s otherworldly.
In January 2023, Get Real, CVC’s 11-track debut album, will offer a similar transcendency. Keeping it local, they recorded in Bradfield’s’ living room over four sun-baked summer weeks; cooking up some of the rhythms in the kitchen using wooden spoons and pots and pans - with Ross Orton (Arctic Monkeys) coming on board to mix the finished product. They were efficient, “We’d start in the morning, crank the amps up and then be home for dinner… Great fun,” says Bassey. “We do everything for the greater good of the band, rather than as individuals, that’s how everybody looks at it” says Jones.
As expected, the album betrays the four-walled confines of where it was recorded. Songs that rarely stray beyond four minutes, they’re arena-filling epics in miniature. ‘Knock Knock’ weaves an undulating groove, ‘Music Stuff’ brings a bit of Laurel Canyon to the Valleys, ‘Mademoiselle’ shakes, rattles and rolls.
‘Docking the Pay’ rightfully re-features on their debut album and fits perfectly, “it’s the ideal track to introduce the band”, says Thorne.
Elsewhere, there’s the anthemic ballad ‘Sophie’, named after Jones’ girlfriend and the jazz- inflected ‘Anogo’, which was written about the time the keyboardist broke both his arms (“The moral of the story is don’t be inebriated and climb trees,” he says).
When the album lands, an indispensable new band will be uncovered. “We want to be on massive stages with massive crowds, big gigs, big albums, top of the stack, like…the bigger the better.” Teeming with exuberance, they’re primed and prepped for this.
Around the release of Real to Reel, they played scuzzy, sweaty venues like London’s The Lexington and Cardiff’s Clwb Ifor Bach as well as the greater plains of Electric Picnic and Reading & Leeds, converting crowds along the way. This was no more evident than at their EP release party at London’s Shacklewell Arms, where new and seasoned fans alike loudly chanted “CVC” at the end of the set; it felt spiritual, almost cultish.
The sound of ‘real Welsh rain’ pitter-patters across this self-produced album. CVC bring it all back home on Get Real. It’s local and far-reaching; atop hills but firmly grounded; it’s bursting at the seams. It’s the Church Village Collective.
THE TOUR
CVC ON THE SOCIALS
LinkTree: @cvcband | https://linktr.ee/cvcband
Facebook: @CVCband | https://www.facebook.com/CVCband/
Twitter: @CVCband_ | https://twitter.com/CVCband_
Instagram: @cvcband_ | https://www.instagram.com/cvcband_/
YouTube: @cvcband | https://tinyurl.com/24fp9a75
TikTok: @cvcband | https://tinyurl.com/ye95bd2h
