Cae Gwyn Records is a small independent record label run by the enterprising Dan Amor whose Rainhill Trials was a delightful breath of fresh air this year. Cynefin Cae Gwyn is a compilation of nine of Cae Gwyn’s artists based in the village of Penmachno in north Wales. Let me emphasise that this album is available for download absolutely free. If you’ve ever wondered about Welsh music at the grassroots but were afraid to ask, now is your chance – just follow the link.
The set opens with ‘Gwallt’, a simple piano based song by Ebol Digon Tebol lifted by sweet harmonies. Dan Amor himself appears three times – could be more as I suspect that everyone plays alongside everyone else. The first of these is in partnership with Huw Owens on the silly sounding ‘Ym Ym Ai Ia’ and I’m sorry if it’s a desperately serious song. They return with the organ-driven ‘Cyfandirol’ and Dan solos with ‘Mawrth’. Three of the bands, Falcons, Sen Segur and Mr Huw, are gently indie-pop with Tom ap Dan following the same line although a bit heavier. Ben Marshall finger-picks some delightful guitar on ‘Tonnau Gwanwyn’ and Sión Richards follows the familiar singer-songwriter path.
There’s great variety here from artists who are not yet well known but deserve a wider audience. Don’t fret about the language barrier, either, music is a universal language.
Dai Jeffries
Download link: http://cynefincaegwyn.bandcamp.com/releases
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