Cian Ciarán (born 16 June 1976) is a Welsh musician best known as the keyboard player in the band

Super Furry Animals Super Furry Animals are a Welsh rock band formed in Cardiff in 1993. For the duration of their professional career, the band consisted of Gruff Rhys (lead vocals, guitar), Huw Bunford (lead guitar, vocals), Guto Pryce (bass guitar), Cian Ciar ...

. In addition to keyboards, he plays guitar and drums and sings, and is a songwriter, composer and producer.

Career

Cian was born in

Bangor, Wales Bangor (; ) is a cathedral city and community in Gwynedd, North Wales. It is the oldest city in Wales. Historically part of Caernarfonshire, it had a population of 18,322 in 2019, according to the Office for National Statistics. Landmarks ...

. Prior to the formation of Super Furry Animals, he played in the electronica groups Wwzz and Aros Mae. He has been a member of techno collective Acid Casuals and is currently producing under the names Paps, Kirkland and as himself. He has guested with, produced and mixed several artists, including

Kaiser Chiefs Kaiser Chiefs are an English indie rock band from Leeds who formed in 2000 as Parva, releasing one studio album, ''22'', in 2003, before renaming and establishing themselves in their current name that same year. Since their formation the band h ...

Mogwai Mogwai () are a Scottish post-rock band, formed in 1995 in Glasgow. The band consists of Stuart Braithwaite (guitar, vocals), Barry Burns (guitar, piano, synthesizer, vocals), Dominic Aitchison (bass guitar), and Martin Bulloch (drums). Mog ...

, and

Manic Street Preachers Manic Street Preachers, also known simply as the Manics, are a Welsh rock band formed in Blackwood in 1986. The band consists of cousins James Dean Bradfield (lead vocals, lead guitar) and Sean Moore (drums, percussion, soundscapes), plus ...

. His first solo single "Martina Franca", was released in June 2012, with the full album, ''Outside In'', released in July 2012 on Strangetown Records. Ciarán's second solo album, ''They Are Nothing Without Us'', was released in 2013. In 2013 and 2014 Ciarán took part in several anti-nuclear and pro-clean energy protests, including a solo performance at the top of a wind turbine in Norfolk in September 2013. In 2013, he travelled to

Fukushima may refer to: Japan * Fukushima Prefecture, Japanese prefecture ** Fukushima, Fukushima, capital city of Fukushima Prefecture, Japan ***Fukushima University, national university in Japan *** Fukushima Station (Fukushima) in Fukushima, Fukushim ...

, Japan to witness the devastation from the nuclear power plant meltdown in the wake of the 2011 earthquake and tsunami. He appeared as a guest on the Channel 5 programme ''

The Wright Stuff ''The Wright Stuff'' is a British television chat show which was hosted by former tabloid journalist Matthew Wright from 2000 until 2018. It aired on Channel 5 on weekday mornings from 9:15 to 11:15am. The series characterised itself as "Br ...

'' in 2013 to discuss his views. Ciarán is also label manager for SomBom and Strangetown Records. As part of Strange Village, a television production company, Cian and his brother

Dafydd Ieuan Dafydd Ieuan (born 1 March 1969) is a Welsh musician and producer, best known as the drummer with the band Super Furry Animals, The Peth and The Earth (band). Ieuan played with Gruff Rhys in their early band Ffa Coffi Pawb. He was a drummer f ...

were presented with a BAFTA Cymru Award for the soundtrack to ''Pen Talar'', and were nominated for awards in 2012 for ''Alys'' and 2013 for ''Gerallt''.

Personal life

Cian's brother is musician

and he also has two sisters. His father, Dr. Carl Iwan Clowes, OBE, was an anti-nuclear campaigner, health consultant and official consulate in Wales for African country Lesotho. His mother's name is Dorothi. Cian's partner is musician Estelle Ios. The two lead the band Zefur Wolves, while Ios is also a member of the group Baby Queens, which Cian manages as part of Strangetown Records.

Campaigner

In September 2018, Ciaran launched a legal challenge against the decision by

EDF EDF may refer to: Organisations * Eclaireurs de France, a French Scouting association * Education for Development Foundation, a Thai charity * Électricité de France, a French energy company ** EDF Energy, their British subsidiary ** EDF Luminus, ...

to dredge mud from the seabed near the Hinkley Point C building site in Somerset, and dump it in the Bristol Channel near Cardiff Bay. On behalf of the Campaign Against Hinkley Mud Dumping, he submitted an application for an interim injunction against the dumping.

Discography

Solo albums

*''Outside In'' (2012) Dell'Orso Records *''They Are Nothing Without Us'' (2013) Strangetown Records *''Rhys a Meinir'' (2016) Strangetown Records *''20 Millisieverts Per Year'' (2018) Strangetown Records

Acid Casuals

*"Omni" (2006) Placid Casual Recordings

Ciaran & Wilding

*"Missing Her" / "Stuck in the Middle" (singles, 2014) Strangetown Records

Filmography

2000 '' Beautiful Mistake (Camgymeriad Gwych)'' (with

) (himself)
2004 ''

9 Songs ''9 Songs'' is a 2004 British art romantic drama film written and directed by Michael Winterbottom. The film stars Kieran O'Brien and Margo Stilley. The title refers to the nine songs played by eight different rock bands that complement the s ...

'' (with

) (himself)

References

External links

Acid Casuals
at SomBom website * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ciaran, Cian 1976 births Living people Welsh keyboardists Super Furry Animals members Welsh-language singers People from Bangor, Gwynedd People educated at Ysgol David Hughes