Gruff Rhys

American Interior (Turnstile Records)

16/20

There is a man in music today who never seems to put a foot wrong all whilst producing a disarmingly eclectic body of music. Not only that, his work also comes with a sense of wonder, discovery and self-fulfillment. We’re talking about Gruff Rhys. On this, his fourth as a solo artist (a path which follows its own distinct trajectory from his ten as frontman of Super Furry Animals and two with Neon Neon), he turns his attention to North America for a multimedia project also incorporating a film, a book and an app. Gruff’s albums have become like personal travelogs, this one tracing the journey of 18th century explorer John Evans, having previously explored his Welsh roots via South American region Patagonia, hunting down fellow Welsh musician and long lost uncle, René Griffiths, as documented in his 2010 film, Seperado.

A history unfolds through the music, with tracks like Allweddellau Allweddol incorporating North American native chants and instruments but morphing the sound into the kind of psychedelic soup Gruff is renowned for, and throughout there is a sumptuous rubbing up of the lo-fi adjacent to the tones of Nashville and the guitar that wrote its history. 100 Unread Messages is a clever canter through the wilds of an unrequested relationship, complete with a country yee-ha. The album is littered with such highlights, making American Interior an edifying cross-cultural adventure.

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Words: Phillip James Allen