Gwenno: “Chwyldro”
For whatever reason I have always been drawn to the music of Wales – I think that maybe it’s the incredibly-awkward-to-pronounce song titles. Or perhaps the music of Tom Jones planted a seed in me at a young age. But regardless of why, I often find myself seeking out music with lots of “y’s” in it. The most recent of such is Welsh artist Gwenno, who is a former member of the Pipettes (a band I know very little about). Gwenno has a forthcoming LP called Y Dydd Olaf (see what I mean with these y’s?) which will be released on Peski Records early next year. Peski is the good folks that initially brought us Cate Le Bon, and are one of the foremost supporters of Welsh music in general. You can stream a single from the record below. “Chwyldro” is an ethereal take on synth driven dream pop that features actual drumming (which isn’t always the case in this genre) and Gwenno’s breathy, ethereal vocals sung (of course) in her native Welsh tongue. It might be a good thing that I can’t understand what she’s singing because I just looked up some Pipettes lyrics and it aint exactly poetry. Let’s give her the benefit of the doubt though and assume she’s voicing something profound. “Chwyldro” is Welsh for “revolution” so some kind of political/social intent is implied.
— Jon
