Breichiau Hir
Y Dwylo Uwchben
Halen Records
While much of the western music world orients towards using English as the default setting for lyrical content there are a growing number of dissenters. The most obvious to hit the big time are Rammstein who work in their native German. What makes Breichiau Hir different again is that they sing in Welsh, a language that suffered a palpable decline for many generations but is now thankfully recovering. The alt rockers can write a great tune too. They layer heaps of mood throughout from near folk to ballsy rock. You get lovely bass lines coming through complimenting the solid drum work. The subtle guitars sits comfortably in that rhythmic framework. And the vocals? Well you may not understand a word unless you do speak the lingo, but they’re clean, passionate and, well you know the reputation Wales has for singing, need we say more? They convey what you need to know in only a way music can, as a universal language. ‘Y Dwylo Uwchben’ (The Hands Above, for the curious) is a fine record in its own right, but must be viewed too as so very important for helping to keep Welsh in the spotlight.
Review by Gary Trueman