GRUFF RHYS

The Almond And The Seahorse (Rough Trade) 

Gruff Rhys continues his voyage, following up the wonderful Seeking New Gods with The Almond And The Seahorse – stitched together from a handful of original songs originated in 2021 before he was commissioned to produce a soundtrack for the film of the same name, involving Rebel Wilson and Charlotte Gainsbourg’s battle with a traumatic brain injury. (The almond and seahorse refer to the parts of the brain that process new memories and retain the old ones.)

Gruff’s idiosyncrasies and styles are a good match for the subject matter. Layer Upon Layer’s 80s synthpop feel has the sheen of his work with Boom Bip as Neon Neon; Skyward and My Old Life Back involve plenty of orchestra, linking back to the Babelsberg LP, while Orea and Amen have a little of the lushness found on SFA’s sweeter songs. Looking forward, The Brain And The Body has a chunk of dialogue between Wilson and Celyn Jones over tense piano and a beatbox, and there’s a charmingly mealy-mouthed chorus in People Are Pissed, with piano, drums, thumb piano and a barrage of chirping syndrums climaxing in a “cycling, cycling free” refrain.

words CHRIS SEAL