This is an interesting one. I stuck it on my birthday list earlier this year to pad out a set of options that was a little too short. It ended up being perhaps my favourite present. I’d vaguely lost interest in the Super Furry Animals a few years ago, so this was very much a ‘hope-for-the-best’ which paid off.
The trouble SFA always had was that they combined genuine pop greatness with a propensity for sloppy messing about. Now, I don’t object to musical messing about, but when it gets in the way of – you know – making music that’s actually good, it can be a little frustrating. Happily, Rhys has reigned in the nonsense here, producing thirteen tracks of classic pop goodness. Few of them pass the three minute mark, so even the lesser tracks don’t outstay their welcome, but I’d happily listen to almost all of them for longer.
It’s a very relaxed album with a very home-made feel. It impressively jumps from the upbeat (‘Sensations In The Dark’, ‘Conversation, Conversation’) to the gentle (the sublime ‘Take A Sentence’). It displays Rhys’ skill with wordplay (‘If We Were Words’) and his knack for Brian Wilson-esque harmony (‘Honey All Over’). It is, in short, a real treat, and the album I would recommend above all others this year.
