It was in 2013 that I was first introduced to the music of Little Arrow following the release of their second album ‘Wild Wishes’ on Cardiff’s Bubblewrap Collective, also home to Gareth Bonello, Richard James, Quiet Marauder, Ivan Moult and more. Their short bio at the time read:
Hailing from St Davids, Little Arrow make bitter sweet nu folk to heal the weary soul. Like a Fairport Convention from Venus, or a Laura Marling from Mars their mix of otherworldly melodies is as infectious and surreal as it is unique. Forget the Camden Crawl – the finest acoustic music you’ll hear this year comes courtesy of the ancient drovers routes and Saints of Wales.
When they released Old Ink in 2015, their fourth album, they were firmly on our radar and Helen Gregory, who also fell under their spell, wrote a gorgeous review on which she concludes:
At a time when individuality in society comes at a price – the sacrifice of empathy, compassion and basic humanity on the altar of neoliberal austerity – and the fallout from that is a rising tide of ‘safe’, unquestioning and anodyne music, Little Arrow rail against mediocrity with an irresistibly fierce passion. The result is Old Ink, one of the most intoxicatingly original records you’re likely hear this year.
It’s been 10 years since Little Arrow emerged with their debut album, ‘Music, Masks & Poems’ way back in 2011. Bubblewrap are releasing a very special Anniversary Edition (out this Friday, 21 May), available for the first time on vinyl, and accompanied by a raft of bonus digital tracks which can all be heard below. Label owner and Little Arrow drummer Rich Chitty and Ben Sharpe – Little Arrow guitarist and backing vocalist – have very kindly agreed to put together this preview and Track by Track – which also covers the bonus tracks (30 in total) for which we are really very grateful.
There is also another reason for releasing this album…
In marking this monumental milestone, we also celebrate the life and music of frontman, William Hughes, who we sadly lost to cancer in December 2018.
All proceeds from the album will be donated to Paul Sartori – Hospice at Home – www.paulsartori.org
‘Music, Masks & Poems’ completes the collection of existing fans, but also acts as the perfect introduction to a stellar, much-missed songwriting talent.
From the liner notes by Rich Chitty:
He really was the most extraordinary soul I’ve ever had the pleasure of knowing. I am indebted to him for letting me into his world and allowing me, as a label and a band member, to share his music. I’d played in a few bands over the years, but only with Will, Dan, Ben and Cal did I feel truly connected to the creation of something really special. What we did as a band was different and, in some ways, miles away from the early days of Little Arrow. There’s a simpleness, a rawness to Music, Masks & Poems’ and, as it has now reached a ripe age of ten, I felt it right to take some time and, in my own way, honour the man and the music with this special release. To this day, it remains my favourite part of Will’s back catalogue.
The release charts some of the many aspects of Will’s artistic life with a ‘Words & Art’ booklet showcasing his sculptures and lyrics; all accompanying the heavyweight, marbled blue vinyl of music. The digital reissue will also include bonus live recordings spanning Little Arrow’s career alongside interpretations of the album tracks re-recorded by some of Will’s closest friends.
Pre-Order ‘Music. Masks & Poems’ (Out on 21 May) https://bubblewrapcollective.co.uk/product/little-arrow-music-masks-poems-2/
Little Arrow – Music, Masks & Poems (10 Year Anniversary)
Track notes by Richard Chitty (Little Arrow Drummer + Record Label Owner) + Ben Sharpe (Little Arrow Guitarist and Backing Vocalist).
Ben Sharpe: I can tell you a story about the Whiskey Worms…
I can remember vividly the night Will, asked me to join his ‘as yet untitled‘ project. The stars were out, putting on a West Wales spectacular. We were around the fire, as we often were, and often would be. Will outlined what was to become Little Arrow in his awkward and intense way. It is hard to believe that it’s been 10 years since we were first shaping songs in a Pembrokeshire cottage. A worthy winter, singing and single malt. The start of a great journey with many friends.
The album was recorded in a typical Pembrokeshire fashion, a few miles up the road at Jens’ farm. A beautiful building with a huge wood burner and a recording studio tucked in the corner. This was not an ordinary home studio, racks and cables filled the space which was dominated by a huge mixing desk. Takes were done in the living room which doubled as the sound booth. It was a strange experience for me, I’d recorded tracks before but usually the whole band would be present, this was different. Will gave us the freedom to express ourselves while directing the course of each tune. In most cases, Will laid down the guitar and vocal first before friends and family were drafted in. His focus throughout was to record an album – hope songs – with family and friends. Forming a band was never a priority, but Little Arrow grew organically out of the writing and recording. A collective of sorts, Will was the skeleton, the soul, the rest of us added the muscle…
- Bitten Blues
RC: The first track I heard from Will after Fredrick Stanley Star had disbanded, Will had headed out West, and returned back to Cardiff. I first met Will at a bubblewrap event at the Pot Cafe in Cardiff and he handed me a makeshift copy of ‘Music, Masks & Poems’. It had a metre long fold-out sleeve filled with his own psychedelic artwork and hand-drawn notes. This first track features Will’s Mother, Margaret, on backing vocals.
BS: Will was always supremely confident in his voice. One of his other claims was that of whistling…Will would love to compete at anything and somehow made whistling into a competition!
2. Aeroplane
RC: The middle eight / build up in Aeroplane is one of favourite moments in Little Arrow’s music. I love the imagery of rising up from the depths, transforming from a submarine to an Aeroplane. This track later became a staple in our live set, linking together with the Fredrick Stanley Star track, 500 Years.
BS: The first song I recorded on the album. On paper it was the simplest as it had been a staple for us during jam sessions. In the end it was probably the hardest to mix given the middle section’s multiple parts and textures. All of us tried the drum part, and I think the final take might be multiple layers! One of my favourite live tracks.
3. Vessel of Fear
BS: Before this track I hadn’t played electric guitar for years. Will always pushed me to improve and find my own voice. I, in turn, always tried to come up with parts that would complement Will’s songs. Something clicked in the writing of this part for me and the atmospheric sound became a bit of a signature in my set up. To me, this tune is an affirmation of progress and a nod to the past.
RC: I love the melody in this track, and at this point of listening through the album for the first time, I felt pretty mesmerised by the distinctively individual lyric writing of Will.
4. People of the Volcano
BS: Another of my favourite tracks to play live. This would be the first song that had the heavier aspect applied, the archetype for what would become our ‘grunge folk’.
RC: This track just sparks up memories of being in the wilds of Pembrokeshire. It was one of the first tracks we would play live when I joined the band at the tail end of 2012.
5. Dear Old Diary
BS: People will always remember Will’s voice. But this song reminds me of his talent with so many instruments. Ukulele, harmonium, harmonica, keys, megaphone…Will loved to make noise and had an old shopping basket full of ‘noise makers’. I remember so many good times tinging triangles, shaking shakers, and scraping the old wooden toad…
6. The Viewers Are All Human
RC: This is a pretty dark number, for album that’s mostly hopeful. But it paved the way for a few more darker tracks on later albums like Lead Us Now, I Man Ogre and War Drones.
BS: I love Will’s voice on this tune. For me, the production is perfect.
7. Tap Lighter Loop
BS: What it says on the tin. A lighter tapping of guitar strings. A little break before the track to come. Like a palette cleanser.
RC: Just a short dit to separate the album, which worked out really well when pressing to vinyl!
8. Poetically Diseased
RC: This has got to be me favourite of Wills’s songs. Strange imagery, strong melodies, hopeful themes. For me, it’s Little Arrow at its best. We’d always close sets with it later on as a full band, bringing a whole new dynamic to the song. It also mentions the origin of the band name which will elaborated in the linear notes on Furious Finite, where Will and guitarist Dan had encountered a character names Moon whilst travelling the Sahara in Morocco. They played music in the desert and in the morning, he was gone, having left a mantra in stone saying “Life your life true, like an Arrow”.
BS: If you ever saw us live then you heard this song. It was our anthem. It was Will’s manifesto.
9. One Helium Balloon
BS: Margaret, Will’s Mum, sings on a lot of the songs. Will would reminisce about his Mothers singing when he was a child. I think you can definitely hear her influence in his voice.
RC: For me, another track that holds a lot of weight in its melody and delivery. I love the final repose in this, and with many of the other tracks on this album, I find it incredibly hard to listen to now. It all gets a bit too emotional.
10. Boat
BS: Probably the most popular ‘live’ tune for a long while. So much fun to record. The laughter track especially. Dickie stars in this one for me, the bouncing bass line and slide guitar a great snapshot of his talent and energy.
RC: A straight up jaunty folk song. Not quite a sea shanty, but definitely one we’ve had a few singalongs to around a campfire.
11. Beneath The True Blue
RC: Another one of my favourites. It’s definitely the lyrics and melodies on this album that pulled me in. They hold so much more meaning to me now, thinking of the relationship I had with Will in the years following the release. The folk sensibilities run deep, but it definitely had a bit more of a contemporary edge rather than a traditional one.
BS: Another beautiful example of Will’s voice. Will and Daisy in the verse and then Margaret’s on the chorus create an amazing vocal sound.
12. Easy Now
RC: A beautiful end to the album, although I really struggle get through it.
BS: The crackle of the fire, the long goodbye. A love song as only Will could write.
13. Winter Villains – Vessel Of Fear
RC: In the first of the cover versions, we have Winter Villains. Will had been a part of the band for their first album, 2013’s February. Josef of the band was also a founding member of Bubblewrap and was just as blown away as I was by Music, Masks & Poems after meeting Will on his return to Cardiff.
14. Ben Sharpe – People of the Volcano
BS: Talent abounds. I personally feel so lucky to have met so many talented people through Little Arrow. It is a testament to Will that he has, and still does, inspire so many people.
People of the volcano cover. I’m not sure what to say about this. I am my own worst critic…I tried to lose my inhibitions and just sing. Will spent years trying to get me to sing without worrying about it, so this is for him.
15. Sky Barkers – The Viewers Are All Human
RC: Sky Barkers Dan and Jo. Both played in Fredrick Stanley Star with Will, and Dan became Little Arrow’s guitarist when Will wanted to bring a bigger “full band” out for live touring. He plays on all the albums following Music, Masks & Poems.
16. Quiet Marauder – Poetically Diseased
RC: Simon from Quiet Marauder has always been an integral part of the label since joining as a band. He even took part in our ‘Medicine Moon’ music video as an alien. A brave move to cover this one, and they pull it off in a typical Quiet Marauder fashion.
17. Callum Duggan – One Helium Balloon
RC: A beautiful orchestral composition of the track. Callum played bass with Little Arrow from ‘Wild Wishes’ onwards and recorded and mixed ‘Furious Finite’ and ‘Old Ink’.
18. Ivan Moult – Beneath The True Blue
RC: A great folk singer in his own right, Ivan also joined briefly as bassist towards the end of Little Arrow’s career.
19. Farm Hand – Easy Now
RC: Mark runs Shape records and released Fredrick Stanley Star’s album before Will formed Little Arrow.
20. Echoes – Loss Um (Remix)
RC: Luke Neuman remixed ‘Loss Um’, from Little Arrow’s fourth album, ‘Furious Finite’.
21 People of the Volcano (Live Greenman Session, 18/08/2014)
RC: A previously unreleased session we did at Greenman Festival in 2014 after playing their settlement stage
BS: Playing Greenman was such a privilege for us all. The gig itself was amazing, we overran our set but used crowd power to allow us to play one more song… I had one of the standout moments of my life as a crowd of people sang Poetically back at the stage. This session took place after our actual performance, filmed by our good friends and long time collaborators OnPar productions.
22. Poetically Diseased (Live at Four Bars, Cardiff, 18/12/14)
RC: Always my favourite to play live. The track stands as a juxtaposition between the folk roots of the album version and the final live lineup of Little Arrow.
BS:Here it is, embrace your freedom.
23. Boat (Live Campfire Version, 27/08/2011)
BS: If there was ever a snapshot into the life we have in Pembrokeshire this is it. I miss that rush you get from playing live with Little Arrow. But this recording summarises the best times: hanging out with my friends, around a fire, beside the sea, fishing, laughing, surfing, playing ping pong, making music.
24. Loss Um (Live Greenman Session, 18/08/2014)
BS: What a weekend. A standout gig in my Little Arrow book. This brings goosebumps to me still. This is one of favourite tracks to play still. Made for Will to sing.
RC: Totally agree with Ben on this. Loads of fun to play, and an incredible vocal performance from Will.
25. Flat Earth (Live at Gwdihw, Cardiff, 21/04/2015)
RC: There’s a few versions of this on these bonus tracks, but I love the simple combination of Will’s voice and Dan’s guitar on this. Both extremely talented at what they do, and I nice reminder of one of the great lost Cardiff venues, Gwdhihw.
26. War Drones (Live Field Recording, 13/09/2016)
RC: We filmed and recorded this in a forest high up in the southern French Alps. It was an eerily misty day and the track reflects this. Will’s voice is as haunting as the subject matter.
27-29. BBC Radio Wales Sessions, 24/09/2014
BS: Another memorable moment; alongside festival stages and Welsh album nominations playing at the BBC was a huge moment personally. Medicine moon is a pared back version of a live favourite. Avant Garde space concepts, before it was cool. One of the most fun music videos too! Pier mountain: I loved singing in Little Arrow, Will and Cal’s voices are especially good on this track. Flat earth: This is one of my favourite vocals of Will’s. I love the lyrics, the melody. It always makes me want to sing.
RC: We were a bit limited in the session and couldn’t perform our current “Grunge Folk” loud set, so we adapted these songs to work as a bit more of a folky feel. A bit back to roots. I hadn’t listened to these for a long time and I especially love Will’s melody towards the end of Medicine Moon.
30. Government Bodies (Live Field Recording, 02/04/2014)
RC: I wanted to finish the album off with this. We recorded it live when we had a trip around Europe and were in a graffiti-filled industrial estate in Berlin. It has a nice blues-folk feel to it, and I always preferred it to how we recorded it for the studio album, Furious Finite.
FINAL WORDS
I miss my Will immensely. But am comforted to find him in these recordings. I still struggle with losing him, with living in this place where we did so much together. This release, the covers, the writing, talking the time to reflect, has helped me celebrate the time we had. It has given me the energy to play again. That was what Will always did, he made me want to play music.
Huge thanks to Dickie, Daisy, Dan, Callum, Ivan and Chitty for all the fun times. A mention for Steve and Darren too, with whom we had a brief side project prior to Will’s illness. A big shout out to all the musicians, followers and friends with whom we made such great memories. A massive thank you for the Hughes family who provided the space for our Pembrokeshire sessions. Special thanks to Richard Chitty for putting all of this together. For keeping Will in time all those years and for being an awesome friend. Legend.
Peace out yo.
Pre-Order ‘Music. Masks & Poems’https://bubblewrapcollective.co.uk/product/little-arrow-music-masks-poems-2/