On his remix of Gwenno’s album opener Chwyldro, Andrew Weatherall adds his lightest magic touch to an already spellbinding track.
Chwyldro is the first track on Gwenno Saunders’ debut solo album Y Dydd Olaf (named for Welsh author Owain Owain’s 1976 sci-fi novel). Sung almost entirely in her native Welsh tongue (one song is sung in Cornish), this album is a dreamy synth-pop invocation. So, despite being a legendary dj and producer amongst many other things, you might wonder what Weatherall could literally add to the mix. As well as giving us an extra minute of listening enchantment, he layers beats throughout and makes Gwenno’s blissed-out vocals sound intertwined with these shimmering layers of sound, rather than giving them centre stage.
The result is a sharper electronic vibe that is reminiscent of Supernature-era Goldfrapp. The fact that I don’t understand any of the lyrics doesn’t matter. I guess I’m under the Gwenno spell and Weatherall’s remix has worked like a charm.
This article was written for Backseat Mafia