Under starters’ orders, and they’re off: Swn is 5. Time once again to abandon such fripperies as sleep and regular meal times in favour of thirstily seeking out as much brilliant new music as Cardiff’s live venues can belch at you. Away we go…
This year’s twist is a packed-out and boozy schedule across all venues on the Sunday, replacing the more laid-back Gwdi Hw events of recent years; instead, Thursday night is less frenetic than usual, allowing for a gentler introduction to the weekend, but there’s still plenty to investigate and enjoy. For a sure-footed start Clwb for Elephant Stone‘s bubblegum psych-pop. Stay around for a bit of Algiers‘ tuneful post-punk clatter but be sure to hop to Dempseys and crane your neck towards Elephant (no relation) who offer sweet boy/girl harmonies and delicate, dark 60s-tinged pop. Back to Clwb for the ever-splendid shambling antifolk joy of Herman Dune, after which you can either stake out a spot in a heaving 10 Feet Tall to see Arab Strap’s Aidan Moffat croon and murmer post-watershed sweet nothings over Bill Wells‘ jazzy arrangements or chance your arm on getting in and catch North Walians Jen Jeniro‘s heart-tugging pop in between. If you’re off work on Friday, or made of strong stuff, there’s Yr Ods in O’Neills or Fixers‘ dayglo Animal Collective-inspired pop at Dempseys; Buffalo then take day one long into the night with crackling, moody techno-infused dubstep from Martyn and Disclosure‘s languid, haunting beats. It’s 4am. Shouldn’t you be in bed?
It being the weekend proper, Friday packs the good stuff in like Swn of old. Fill your satchel with Ginsters and Lucozade, it’s going to be an endurance test. Start in fine style with a little Swn-themed bingo in CAI but don’t miss Two Wounded Birds, skinny wolves forced out of the shadows early doors to glower and coo for your enjoyment. They’re upstairs in Clwb, from where you should be able to hear Run, WALK! screaming blue bloody murder downstairs. Suitably tenderised and exhilarated, hop to Buffalo where Lesson No. 1 host a night-long glowering contest featuring the reshuffled and always excellent Brandyman, the meat-grinder unpleasantness and slithering noise of The Good Wife and Sweden’s Skull Defekts. Three hours can be very well spent just darting between there and Undertone; there, the Rusty Trombone Of God offer up a plethora of improvised, psychedelic esoterica. Team Sports‘ cello/samplers/drums set-up is the skyscraping highlight, but check out the moog-heavy prog/drone fuzz of Ultrahumanitarian and psych wayfarers Ashtray Navigations too. There’s more though, and an equally fine time can be had checking Gross Magic‘s goofy lo-fi fun and moody post-hardcore instrumentalists Brontide (both Clwb) followed by the brilliant c86-meets-Lush dual harmonies and snappy new wave pop of Veronica Falls and Gallops!‘ propulsive electro/post-rock attack (both Dempseys). Following on from the latter, Clwb go electronic for the rest of the night. Ifan Dafydd does intriguing things with James Blake-esque vocal manipulation and eyebrow-raising samples, and with Stay+ bringing booming bass thud and Seams’ glitchy beats and quicksilver dexterity you’re all set. Modern Life Is Rubbish have your back in Undertone if your needs are more indie-flavoured. Buy them a drink and you’ll get your request played. Deal.
Day three. Alldayer time, and the men and boys are separated. Heroes of the weekend are surf-rock titans Y Niwl, casually doubling last year’s tally by playing four sets in a day. Perm any two from four and you’re sorted; miss them all and you’re an utter chump. You’ve been warned. Start your day with them in CAI if you choose, followed by a one-two of Kiwi noise-punk duo DZ Deathrays and fuzz-punk scruffs Mowbird in Buffalo. For an alternative take there’s more cerebral fare afoot in Chapter, where dots.filmband unfold intricate compositions for short film in front of the big screen. Following that relaxed start, Barefoot Dance Of The Sea‘s gorgeous three-part harmonies and lovelorn shanties and either Summer Camp‘s cute, knowing keyboard-driven indiepop or the flinty-voiced atmospheric balladry of Sam Airey will do nicely. Whichever route you take, don’t miss Eagulls‘ excellent shambling racket in Undertone or LA2019‘s pristine, pulsing Vangelis-via-Boards Of Canada neon dreamscapes in Clwb. After that, it’s a cross-town dash to the Uni to join several hundred lumpy fortysomethings waiting to see The Fall. The main attraction shouldn’t be missed, naturally, city hobgoblin MES’ gnomic mumblings and stentorian gaze overseeing his charges’ roiling, savage stew of post-punk rhythm and krautock rifferama. Head over early for Ted Chippington‘s blank-faced verse and the new-for-2011 reanimation of the Nightingales, Robert Lloyd’s vituperative Midlands counterpoint to the Fall lent similar new vigour. Should all that not appeal, beat a path to Chapter instead; there, Bleeding Heart Narrative‘s delicately crafted music-box post-rock soundscapes and the warm, flickering melancholy of Daughter will soothe tired limbs and hearts. Further solace can be sought with Melodica, Melody and Me (Undertone), whose twinkling percussion and dextrous assimilation of styles make up for an awful name, while Beaty Heart‘s joyful Afrobeat and sticky pop hooks offer a gleefully danceable variant on the theme at Dempseys. Perhaps thankfully, there’s a lull late in the evening; plenty on, but few thrills. Grab some food, or something. Then queue up at Dempseys for Y Niwl‘s triumphant final set of the day, before dosing up on The Keys‘ mercurial psych-pop in a sweaty O’Neills. By then you’ll be either dead or dancing; if the latter, join perennial party-starters Ugly Duckling for hands-in-the-air hip-hop classicism at CAI. Then fall over.
Great! It’s Sunday. Nice big lunch, maybe a relaxing few hours in one place watching a few bands… oh bollocks. Yes, it’s another full programme, rich with noise and giddy enthusiasm. Wash down your Sunday roast at Quiz Quest, Cardiff’s premier cake-awarding Powerpoint quiz about East 17. They’re in the Owain Glyndwr this year, handy for checking out Barry-based artist and renaissance dude Carl Chapple‘s portrait exhibition Musicians in the High Street Arcade during half-time. Early musical recommendations? Try FAMY at Buffalo for slanted pop charm like an over-stimulated Grizzly Bear (the band, sadly), or Olympians‘ hyper-melodic math-pop in Undertone. First must-see, though, is Right Hand Left Hand‘s annual “where the bloody hell have you been” set in Dempseys. Insist on an album release from these men. It must happen. Haste ye then to O’Neills, where Them Squirrels‘ twisty, proggy tempo-switches and jubilant clatter opens a killer Shape Records stage. Stretch your legs with a dash to catch a curiously early set from Danish electro-pop gems Battlekat in CAI – surely better suited to a celebratory late-night slot – before returning for Gentle Friendly, pummelling through two-minute nuggets of catchy blastbeats and see-sawing buzzpop choruses. More of that sort of thing! To whit, Kutosis, trailing their soon-come new album at Dempseys, as do Truckers of Husk back in O’Neills. If you’re flagging or in need of less familiar thrills by that point, however, detour either to Undertone for Hail! The Planes‘ stately, stirring post-rock or over to CAI where a triple-team of yearning indie-pop/c86 revivalism kicks off with stripped-back duo Big Deal‘s lyrical intimacy and fat-free grunge-pop guitars and The History Of Apple Pie‘s borrowed nostalgia for an unremembered, er, 90s. From that point there are a handful of equally fine routes to take. Dam Mantle get a bum deal with an 8pm headline set in Buffalo, but their glorious melding of superbly funky electronica and unsettling horror fx will rule regardless; follow that with the Swn return of mental Bristolian world/funk/psych hydra Zun Zun Egui in Gwdi Hw. That, or the awesomely kinetic one-man guitar and drum looping wunderkind Theo in Undertone followed by Saturday’s Kids in Dempseys. Or H. Hawkline followed by Sweet Baboo in O’Neills, perfectly positioned to allow you to take in David Dondero‘s warm, engaging and witty alt-country folk songs at 10 Feet Tall in between sets. Phew. Come the end of the night, and the weekend, there’s always one band that unites everyone who’s peeled off on different, equally rewarding paths. It’s how Swn is; Future of the Left have been that band, so have Islet. This year, saints preserve us, it’s Strange News From Another Star. In Undertone, not noted for its capacity, temperate climate or working toilets. You’ll be relieved when it’s all over, but you’ll miss it by Monday.
