An interview with John Griffiths of Welsh  dub/electronica band - Llwybr Llaethog

Llwybr Llaethog on the Wiki : "Founded in the north Welsh town of Blaenau Ffestiniog in 1985 by John Griffiths and Kevs Ford, the two teens had spent the seventies growing up in the town's decaying industrial surroundings. The two were heavily influenced by reggae and the punk scenes that were sweeping the UK. After several abortive attempts to start bands, the turning point came in 1984 when John Griffiths was on vacation in New York City and was impressed by a group of youths he saw at a nightclub breakdancing, and the sounds of DJ Red Alert.

After returning to Wales, Griffiths fixed on the idea of marrying hip hop and far left politics with his native Welsh language. Llwybr Llaethog's debut release was an EP for the Welsh record label Anhrefn Records in 1986, entitled Dull Di Drais, which combined Llwybr Llaethog's leftist political messages with what would become the band's trademark sound of turntable scratching, audio sampling, hip-hop, and cut-and-paste production. The band were also heavily promoted by British radio DJ John Peel."

AmeriCymru:  What can you tell us about the new album 'I'r Dim'?

John:   It's a series of experimental recordings made at Stiwdio Neud Nid Deud in Cardiff & Stiwdio BOS in Llanerfyl.

I can safely say it's unlike anything we've done previously, and has been described as "like a soundtrack for an imaginary horror film" & "musique concrete". We mixed field recordings, malfunctioning electronics, vinyl crackle and a few musical instruments. The title means "Ideal" 0r "Spot on", but translates literally as "To the nothing".

AmeriCymru:  How did the band come to be formed and how did you choose the name Llwybr Llaethog?

John:   We recorded our 1st ep whilst living in London. I found the name in the dictionary and thought it'd be cool to have a name that no-one outside Wales could pronounce. It was a joke really, I didn't expect to be explaining it for the following 30 years. Anhrefn records released our 1st two singles.

AmeriCymru:  Your music is a mix of various genres including rap, dub, reggae, hip hop, and punk. How would you describe your sound and who would you rate as major influences?

John:   I suppose our sound is a mixture of the music that's influenced us, with our own input. Growing up in the 60s we were into rock music [The Who, Rolling Stones et. al.], then discovered dub reggae and got into punk rock in the 70s. Adrian Sherwood's ONU Sound label was a major influence, as was King Tubby & Lee Perry.

AmeriCymru:  How has the Welsh language music scene changed in recent decades?

John:   It's diversified. We still need some groundbreaking electronic acts though.

AmeriCymru:  You were featured on the John Peel show a number of times. What are your memories of John? How important was his support for Welsh music back in the 80's?

John:   He was very supportive of us, gave us 4 sessions on his show and played just about every track we released.

He was a nice bloke, despite being a Liverpool supporter! He used to ring me up to hear how to pronounce Welsh song titles when I lived in London, I miss his show - & knowing we had an ally at BBC central.

He didn't play all Welsh music that came out in the 80s, he played the stuff he liked, bands such as Datblygu, Anhrefn, Plant Bach Ofnus and us.

AmeriCymru:   Where can people go to buy your music online?

John:   www.llwybrllaethog.co.uk

AmeriCymru:   What's next for Llwybr Llaethog?

John:   Working on a new album now...it'll be more poppy than "I'R DIM", more electronic and dancey.

AmeriCymru:  Any final message for the readers and members of AmeriCymru?

John:   Try our album "STWFF" if you're not familiar with our stuff - there's something for everyone on that album. And "DUB CYMRAEG" is a must for dub fans.