This month sees the long awaited debut release from Welsh duo Trwbador. The self titled album marks a triumphant step in what has been a slow unveiling of the magic these two can create, a mirror on their Welsh pop influences aligned to something more rooted in the rural landscape of their home in Carmarthenshire. Collaborations with the likes of Cornershop have helped raise their profile which has seen them gain ever-increasing airplay across the BBC as well as having ‘Red Handkerchiefs’ feature in a TV advert for ‘Visit Wales’.
It is music to lose yourself in, a mass of influences that you can’t really pin down…one moment you’re wrapped up in a warm folk fuzz then they drop those beats and loops which maintain that rural magic thanks to the beautifully quirky and original vocals of Angharad Van Rijswijk. She has a voice that sounds at home in the underground psych-folk scene of the early seventies, carefree and hypnotic…the perfect escape for these modern times.
It genuinely feels like Angharad and Owain Gwilym are pioneering a new sound, the boundaries of their music are blurred but it is also very clearly Welsh…therein lies its force! Go and buy that album, magic and irresistibly beautiful!
Trwbador is released on Owlet Music 8 April 2013
buy it here