Parking Non‑Stop & Ectogram at Klangbad Festival 2007

 

Bangor Experimentalists at Klangbad: 

Two boundary-pushing bands from Bangor—Parking Non‑Stop and Ectogram—took the stage at the Klangbad Festival in Scheer, Germany, a celebrated haven for experimental and avant-garde music founded by Hans‑Joachim Irmler of krautrock pioneers Faust.

Parking Non‑Stop, an ambient sound-art collective inspired by psychogeography and field recordings, delivered an atmospheric set that bridged electronic textures with spoken word and environmental audio. Their appearance at the festival marked their international debut and was a catalyst for future collaboration with Irmler's Klangbad label, leading to the release of their debut album Species Corridor in 2008.

Joining them were Ectogram, a band equally rooted in Bangor’s thriving underground scene. Known for their fusion of noise rock, psychedelia, and improvisation, Ectogram brought a heavier, more distorted energy to the festival. Their set underlined the band’s commitment to sonic experimentation and their place within the broader European avant-rock landscape.

The Klangbad Festival 2007, held from 3–5 August, showcased a diverse lineup of leftfield musicians from across Europe. Set in the idyllic town of Scheer on the banks of the Danube, the event was a celebration of musical freedom, far removed from commercial constraints. Both Parking Non‑Stop and Ectogram exemplified the exploratory spirit Klangbad is known for.

A festival CD compilation released later in the year features tracks from both bands, preserving a moment when two distinct voices from North Wales found an international platform among like-minded experimentalists.

Texas Radio Band, Genod Droog play Porthmadog

 

It's quite fitting that Texas Radio Band played Clwb Chwaraeon as they have a great song called Chwaraeon. 

The electro-country indie band, formed in 1998 in Camarthen but relocated to Aberystwyth when theyd went to university there.
Feat; Matthew Williiams (voc,gtr) (ex Doli), Rhydian “Squids” (bass,voc), Rhodri (drms,voc), Rhodri (keys,elec. eq.). 

Appeared Shotgun Slide Show (2002), 4 Trac, Bandit and Sesiwn Hwyr. 

They were featured on the compilation '£5 Heb Newid' (1999) which also included Zabrinski and Doli, And released 'Y Tywysygoes EP' (2001), 'Love Is Informal' (2002). Slacyr Records released the acclaimed album 'Baccatta'  (Feb04). 

Matthew bought one-way ticket to Spain (Jun04) and re-emerged to return home and the band recorded the next LP ‘Gavin’ (Peski Recs 07.07.08).

Did you go to this gig? Any memories?

VIDEO - Junebug - Sweet Mellow Water (live at Bar Blu, Rhyl)

 I put this video together of Abergele popsters Junebug and their absolute classic Sweet Mellow Water

GIG REVIEW - Super Furry Animals @ Fuji Rock Festival, Japan

Hi:Fi South Live Arena

Arriving to the stage by golf buggy the Welsh techno wizards are dressed for tonight's Live Arena performance in what look like Blue Velor waterproof boiler suits. Ambling on stage lead singer Gruff Rhys is playing a paint tin maraca while the rest of the bands make lovely noises before the Golden Retriever backing visuals which spill orange over the heads of the throng. It really feels like we're watching the musical version of gold.

The band continue backed by mellow trailing visuals to play some very spacey rock and are quite possibly jamming no longer sticking to any known tune, which slightly confuses the crowd, magical and Hello Sunshine sneaks upon us, lovely. Their next song Receptacle Of The Respectable includes a nacho solo by Gruff, munching into the microphone before throwing nachos into the crowd who are mesmerised by the groovy cartoon and this tune is in 13 parts we are told.

A clash of the three guitars on stage like sword play brings much feedback and suddenly 'You've got to tolerate, Some of those people that you hate, I'm not in love with you, But I won't hold that against you.' spills form the speakers from the rather lovely Juxtaposed With U it's another magical moment. If I could see the sunset I'd wager it would be lovely, and looking at it would leave me feeling rather like I do after Super Furry Animals walk off stage, all glowing and ready for the night.

review by: Scott Williams

Farewell Sound Nation

In the vibrant landscape of the past four years, few publications captured the pulse of a creative nation quite like Sound Nation. 

Originally launched under the raw and energetic title Honk, the magazine was born out of a necessity to document a Welsh music scene that was rapidly evolving beyond the "Cool Cymru" stereotypes of the 1990s.
As it transitioned into Sound Nation, it became the official flagship publication of the Welsh Music Foundation, serving as both a fan-facing glossy and a vital industry trade journal. It was a rare beast in the publishing world: a magazine that could seamlessly pivot from interviewing global stars like the Stereophonics or Manic Street Preachers to providing deep-dive features on the technical infrastructure of South Wales recording studios or the grassroots growth of electronic and indie scenes in the north. 

Under the influential guidance of editors like the late James McLaren, the magazine acted as a unifying force, bridging the gap between English-language rock and the flourishing Welsh-language pop and folk communities. It provided a platform for critical discourse that the London-based press often ignored, treating the Welsh industry not as a peripheral curiosity but as a self-sustaining ecosystem of labels, venues, and artists. 

However, the shifting tides of the digital revolution and the complexities of arts funding eventually took their toll, and Sound Nation printed its final issue in December 2005. Its closure marked the end of an era for physical music journalism in Wales, leaving a legacy that is still felt today in the digital archives of Link2Wales and the renewed spirit of modern Welsh music festivals.

Oz Wright - Rheinallt H Rowlands - RIP

The story of Owain "Oz" Wright is one of a remarkable talent whose life was cut short just as he had become a cornerstone of the North Wales cultural landscape. Born in 1970, Oz was a gifted carpenter by trade, but it was his haunting, deep tenor voice—often compared to the likes of Scott Walker or Johnny Cash—that earned him a legendary status in the Welsh music scene.

As the frontman for the duo Rheinallt H Rowlands, formed in 1991 alongside orchestrator Dewi Evans, Oz helped create some of the most atmospheric and cinematic music to emerge from the Ankst record label. The band was famously shrouded in a fictional backstory, presenting "Rheinallt" as a former quarry worker who found his calling through the influence of post-punk. In reality, the project was a sophisticated exploration of baroque pop and chamber pop, reaching its zenith with the 1996 album Bukowski. The record was a critical triumph, blending lush arrangements with Oz’s resonant vocals, and it remains a landmark of 1990s Welsh-language music.

Beyond his main project, Oz was a prolific collaborator, lending his talents to acts like Gorky’s Zygotic Mynci, The Serpents, and Llwybr Llaethog. He was a central figure in the Bethesda community, known for organizing sessions at local venues like The Fic and the King’s Head. Friends and fellow musicians remembered him as a man of immense warmth and technical skill, both as a craftsman and a songwriter.

Tragedy struck in the early hours of December 23, 2005. After attending a festive BBC Radio 1 session at Hendre Hall near Bangor, Oz was walking home to Bethesda when he was struck by a car on a narrow mountain road. He was just 35 years old. His death sent shockwaves through the tight-knit musical communities of North Wales and the Isle of Anglesey, leading to numerous tributes and a conviction that the Welsh scene had lost one of its most unique and soulful voices. Even years later, his influence persists, remembered through the timeless, melancholic beauty of the music he left behind.

Oggum - The Label

 

OGGUM RECORDS

Adam Anonymous looks at the ‘spaced out’ Ceredigion label in the last Spotlight feature, plus we look back at previous businesses given the once-over

[originally published in Sound Nation magazine - Nov 2005]

Forget look-at-me Myspacers or schmoozing independent industry players, because some of the most interesting, trend-defying music still originates from tiny self-starter labels. Wales’s very own self-proclaimed snoozy avant hobbyists Oggum Records are among the best examples of that theory, quietly releasing spaced out yet tuned in transmissions from deepest Ceredigion since, in typically unworried fashion, 1997-ish.

“We were inspired originally by fanzines like Organ and Ptolemaic Terrascope, and the DIY ethic they were writing about,” Oggum architect Dr Daf Roberts reveals. One four-track recorder purchased later and his band Alphane Moon was born.

“We started making links with like-minded labels, and through the goodwill of the Terrascope made a connection with New York label Spiffing. Spiffing planned our first tape as a CD; eventually they released a 7-inch, A Circle of Four. Spiffing did a lovely job of it: hand-made curtain sleeves, silkscreen printed cover, 50 see-through green vinyl. This EP sparked the interest of Norbert Schiller’s Plate Lunch label, and Norbert released our second tape. We were inspired to start Oggum because of the slowness waiting for these CD releases to happen. We imagined we could get things going quicker. We also thought it would be good fun to release music we like in our own way.”

Oggum maintained those early aesthetics, beginning a lovingly crafted back catalogue with Yew Dark On Doze by Alphane Moon / Our Glassie Azoth, each 7-inch on coloured vinyl with home-made sleeves. As with many micro-budgeted labels, cash has been reasonably tight, however.

“The very first 7-inch was self-funded,” explains Dr Roberts. “We consequently got a lottery grant for some releases leading up to the Yr Agor compilation. Since then we’ve used the income from releases – including releases of our music on other labels – to finance things. It’s very shoestring.”

“We tend to like doing things on our own,” he replies, when asked if Oggum feel part of the Welsh music industry. “We have a very relaxed schedule, and certainly don’t feel part of any industry, although I can see benefits in working in a more focused way, and it could be useful to have more support. Distribution is very hard for odd music.”

The late, great John Peel latched onto the label through Electroscope’s 7-inch, a record Dr Roberts cites as his favourite Oggum project so far. “They were lovely to work with and it was the first one Peel played. He went on to support Nimbus 2000 and heavily plugged our Yr Agor CD. Good lad.”

Dr Roberts’ closing wish for the future is to “just follow our own interests”, which says everything you need to know about Oggum. Gloriously unconcerned by what’s fashionable, this is a label for people for whom music is truly a way of life.

[Oggum Discography]