Lewys - Rhywbryd yn Rhywle

Fittingly frantic: ‘Rhywbryd yn Rhywle’ leads us on a dictatorial odyssey of Lewys’ evolving manifesto.

Strident in nature, Lewys’ debut album is appropriately anarchic to the current apocalyptic global climate. Côsh’s latest acquisition of albums veers away from the algorithmic energy of previously released singles and alternatively embarks on a fragmented contrast in carnage, destruction and wreckage.

Straying from the math-rock of intricate loops and convoluted pedal use which propelled Lewys to early prominence, it is the dark dominant riffs that takes centre-stage during the segmented opener(s), ‘Rhywbryd’ and ‘Rhywle’. Adjusting to the unapologetic shift in delivery, the record assuredly gathers pace as the prolific riot-like drumming captures a mucilaginous ambience early on.

With the core of the album in our possession prior to release, the re-packaging of refined singles such as ‘Yn Fy Mhen’, ‘Gwres’ and ‘Camu’n Ôl’ was a crucial crux of the puzzle. Recalling on such standalone tracks in an insulated context was an inevitable daunting proposition and drawing parallels with Foals’ early releases is unavoidable. Exposing the kinetic energy of abstract releases alongside the melodramatic howling delivery of nebulous adrenaline rushes ‘Y Cyffro’ and ‘O’r Tywyllwch’ – makes for a pandemonium, diverging formula; one that requires the listener’s full acceptance. Thankfully, the orthodox principles of reverb, fuzz and delay are largely unburied beneath the caliginous production.

The elegance of ‘Hel Sibrydion’ seizes on a more imperturbable tranquillity – the cloudless luminous essence best encapsulates Lewys’ polyrhythmic utopia. The record’s penultimate ‘Adnabod’, is the retrospective serenity following the mass-burning, and incorporates the stimulating lyrical rhetoric ‘Mae’n amser i mi ganfod sut ga i f’adnabod, cyn colli gobaith yn fy hun’. Despite lacking in some conceptual cohesiveness, the 10 tracks are weaved comprehensively for the explosive live shows to follow. As global pandemic sets in, the amorphous artistic output of ‘Rhywbryd yn Rhywle’ is a timely instalment.

Words by Owain Williams.

01. Rhywbryd

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