Pitchfork

Sometimes you want your music to go just a little bit bonkers, and that's why God put Super Furry Animals (Welsh name, roughly: "Ffllygddyll- ddylgldlydllggylldyld") on this Earth, as a foil to all those brooding post-punkers and too-serious emocore yelpers. The Furries' acting frontman Gruff Rhys (English pronunciation, roughly: "dances with pancakes") has a new solo disc on the way-- his second-- titled Candylion (Welsh: "Cyncncnnncnclyn").

Rough Trade delivers dozen-song Candylion, which follows up 2005's all-Welsh set Yr Atal Genhedlaeth (pronounced: "ponies make me want to frolic hard"), on January 29 in the UK. A single for the title track is out now, and what's this? A delightful, low-budget video directed by Mark James that will get you in the mood for some intense craft-making? Believe it:



Gruff plays Esquel, Argentina's "Ysgol Gymraeg yr Andes (Capilla Seion)", whatever the hell that is, on December 9.

Another Furry is doing his thing as well: drummer/vocalist Dafydd Ieuan (pronounced "David Hasselhoff") presently plays with the Peth, who apparently have 20 members, some of them possibly other Furries. The Peth are, predictably, total nutcases. They have a pair of glam rock jams available for download now on their MySpace, links conveniently provided below.

Candylion:

01 This Is Just the Beginning
02 Candylion
03 The Court of King Arthur
04 Lonesome Words
05 Cycle of Violence
06 Painting People Blue
07 Beacon in the Darkness
08 Con Carino
09 Gyrru Gyrru Gyrru
10 Now That the Feeling Has Gone
11 Ffrwydriad Yn Y Ffurfafen
12 Skylon!