ALBUM REVIEW – Mr Huw – Cariad Afiach

The formula is a simple one, write a simple pop tune, pen some(times) witty lyrics, sing them with a catchy melody and release them as an album. Couldn’t get more simpler than that and that is what Mr Huw is happy to do, with this, his fourth (I think) album.

He was the bassist in Kentucky AFC, the dark one, lurking in the shadows while Endaf hogged the limelight and plaudits. If you compared Endaf and Huw to the Gecko brothers in the film ‘From Dusk til Dawn’ then Mr Huw was most definitely the Tarantino character, Richie Gecko; the one who murdered, ate and shagged his victims (in that order).

Cariad Afiach is also the title track, a typical Mr Huw pop song, dead catchy and about sick/unhealthy love. In fact there is a theme running here, the (again) catchy Ein Budreddi (Our Filth) kind of skips along the theme of living in your own filth behind closed doors with everything pleasant outside.
I asked Huw to send me the lyrics to try and make sense of some the songs, as he’s a bit of sniggering assassin when it comes to putting ink to paper… but, even with the lyrics, not much sense is made. It’s probably a combination of his off-kilter sense of humour and my shit command of sub-cofi Welsh.

Every track is so damn catchy!! Os Na Cariad Ydi Hyn (If This is Not Love) could almost be the New Seekers, although the punchline (roughly translated) states, ‘I’ll go back to behaving like a wild animal and being treated like a dog.’
So we’re covering love-angst and death really here with tombstones and the blackness playing a big part, and my particular favourite on this fine album is Does Na’m Duw (There is no God) – a marvellous Desperado style tune with a theme close to my heart…

Cariad Afiach (Sick Love) – is the new 12″ vinyl and download album from Mr Huw. Welsh language alternative music at it’s very best.
Release date 22/7/13 on Cae Gwyn