Yr Anhrefn, also known simply as Anhrefn, were an influential

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

punk rock group of the 1980s and 1990s.

History

Anhrefn (

for "Disorder") were an influential punk rock band from Bangor, North Wales and formed in 1982,Hill, Sarah (2007) Blerwytirhwng?' the Place of Welsh Pop Music'', Ashgate, , p. 87 and initially sang only in Welsh.Yr Anhrefn
",

BBC Wales BBC Cymru Wales is a division of the BBC and the main public broadcaster in Wales. It is one of the four BBC national regions, alongside the BBC English Regions, BBC Northern Ireland and BBC Scotland. Established in 1964, BBC Cymru Wales is ...

The band were not supported by

Radio Cymru BBC Radio Cymru is a Welsh language radio network owned and operated by BBC Cymru Wales, a division of the BBC. It broadcasts on two stations across Wales on FM, DAB, digital TV and online. The main network broadcasts for hours a day from ...

or Welsh-language TV channel S4C, beyond an occasional interview, and bassist Rhys Mwyn became known as an outspoken critic of the Welsh pop industry. Mwyn (born Gwynedd Rhys Thomas) set up his own Recordiau Anhrefn label in 1983, helping to promote like-minded Welsh bands as well as their own music. The band were championed by

John Peel John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey (DJ) and radio presenter. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly fr ...

and recorded three sessions for his

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...

show; Peel even travelled to Wales to see the band perform.Anhrefn
''Keeping It Peel'',

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

The band played up to 300 gigs a year at their peak, touring Europe several times, including Czechoslovakia, Germany and the Basque Region of Spain. They were featured on

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...

TV show '' The Tube'' in 1987, although they were largely ignored by the British music weeklies, and played with

Joe Strummer John Graham Mellor (21 August 1952 – 22 December 2002), known professionally as Joe Strummer, was a British singer, musician and songwriter. He was the co-founder, lyricist, rhythm guitarist and co-lead vocalist of punk rock band the Clash, ...

on the Rock Against Rich UK tour in 1988. Original members Hefin Huws and Dewi Gwyn left the band in the late 1980s and were replaced by Dylan Hughes (formerly of

Y Cyrff (1983–1991; The Bodies) was a Welsh language indie band in the 1980s, initially formed at the Ysgol Dyffryn Conwy secondary school in Llanrwst, Conwy. The original line-up consisted of Barry Cawley (bass), Emyr Davies (vocals), Dylan Hughes ...

) and Sion Jones (formerly of Maffia Mr Huws). The band made their first

English language English is a West Germanic language of the Indo-European language family, with its earliest forms spoken by the inhabitants of early medieval England. It is named after the Angles, one of the ancient Germanic peoples that migrated to the is ...

recording in 1994, on a single with actress

Margi Clarke Margi Clarke (born 25 May 1954) is an English actress and radio and television presenter. She had a leading role in the film ''Letter to Brezhnev'' (1985), a low-budget film which had an international release. Later, Clarke played Jackie Dobbs ...

(they released a cover of

Cole Porter Cole Albert Porter (June 9, 1891 – October 15, 1964) was an American composer and songwriter. Many of his songs became standards noted for their witty, urbane lyrics, and many of his scores found success on Broadway and in film. Born to ...

's "

Anything Goes ''Anything Goes'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Cole Porter. The original book was a collaborative effort by Guy Bolton and P. G. Wodehouse, heavily revised by the team of Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. The story concerns madcap ant ...

" as a single), and had earlier collaborated with

Pauline Murray Pauline Murray (born 8 March 1958) is best known as the lead vocalist of the punk rock band Penetration, originally formed in 1976. Early years Pauline Murray was born on 8 March 1958 in Waterhouses, County Durham, England, and her parents late ...

(of the punk band Penetration) in 1990, who co-wrote ''Llygaid wrth Lygaid,'' which is on the B-side of the cassette version of ''Rhedeg i Paris.'' In 1995 the band changed musical direction to a more techno sound and released ''Hen Wlad fy Mamau – Land of My Mothers'', It also featured producer Ronnie Stone who aided the duo in creating a world beat collection of re-mixed Welsh folk music, samples and electronic sounds featuring Welsh singers Siân James, Lowri Ann Richards, June Campbell Davies and Elinor Bennett, Punjabi rapper Harvinder Sangha and African dub collective

Zion Train Zion Train are a British dub ensemble that formed in Oxford, 1988. They have consistently released music and toured from 1992 to present day. Their mix of reggae and dance music was a notable innovation in the early 1990s. History Co-founder ...

. The band soon split after that release, but brothers Rhys Mwyn and Sion Sebon formed a new band, Mangre, in 2000. Mwyn went on to manage the Crai label and work as an agent. He managed

Catatonia Catatonia is a complex neuropsychiatric behavioral syndrome that is characterized by abnormal movements, immobility, abnormal behaviors, and withdrawal. The onset of catatonia can be acute or subtle and symptoms can wax, wane, or change during ...

and more recently

Jeb Loy Nichols Jeb Loy Nichols is an American-born singer, songwriter, and musician, who is based in Wales. His music combines elements of soul, Country music, country, Folk music, folk, reggae and blues. Biography Jeb Loy Nichols was born in Lander, Wyoming ...

, which prompted a resurrection of Recordiau Anhrefn.Hill, Claire (2007) "Musical detour for a Welshman who took on an American singer", '' Western Mail'', 30 June 2007, p. 22 In 2007 Anhrefn reformed briefly without Mwyn, with Ryan Kift on vocals.Stevens, Huw (2007)
Saying goodbye to Zabrinski and packing up lots of new music for my summer hols
, '' Western Mail'', 27 July 2007

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 Ciaran ...

drummer Dafydd Ieuan was also in Yr Anhrefn for a time, playing on their 1993 Peel session,Strong, Martin C. (2003) ''The Great Rock Discography'', Canongate, , p. 1022 and SFA had started out as a

techno Techno is a genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempo often varying between 120 and 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central rhythm is typically in common time (4/4) and often ch ...

band, supporting Yr Anhrefn on a tour of

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

in 1993.Buckley, Peter (2003) ''The Rough Guide to Rock'',

Rough Guides Rough Guides Ltd is a British travel guide book and reference publisher, which has been owned by APA Publications since November 2017. In addition to publishing guidebooks, the company also provides a tailor-made trips service based on customer ...

, , p. 1034 Rhys Mwyn gave up his regular show on

Llangefni Llangefni (meaning "church on the River Cefni", ) is the county town of Anglesey in Wales and contains the principal offices of the Isle of Anglesey County Council. United Kingdom Census 2011 recorded Llangefni's population as 5,116 people, maki ...

based community radio

Môn FM Môn FM is a bilingual community radio station serving Anglesey and Gwynedd. The station broadcasts on 96.8, 102.1 and 102.5 FM and online from studios in Llangefni town centre. Overview MônFM broadcasts around 80 hours a week of locally-orien ...

in 2016, to start broadcasting a regular Monday night show on

BBC Radio Cymru BBC Radio Cymru is a Welsh language radio network owned and operated by BBC Cymru Wales, a division of the BBC. It broadcasts on two stations across Wales on FM, DAB, digital TV and online. The main network broadcasts for hours a day from ...

. In 2016, Rhys Mwyn and Sion Jones teamed up with Neil Crud and Alan Matthews (both previous members of North Wales punk bands 4Q and

Sons Of Selina The Sons of Selina were a psychedelic punk group formed in Colwyn Bay, North Wales in 1990. During their nine-year existence they signed to Delerium Records and released two albums and appeared live on BBC Radio 1. Formation Original members ...

) to play Anhrefn's debut album ''Defaid, Skateboards a Wellies'' live under the banner Welsh Rebel Outpost. Also in 2016, Rhys Mwyn became the new bassist for Welsh punk band White Ether. In 2020 Rhys Mwyn played bass on Helen Love's single "1234 Dee Dee Ramone".

Discography

Albums

*''Defaid, Skateboards a Wellies'' (1987), Workers Playtime *''Bwrw Cwrw '' (1989), Workers Playtime *''Soft Lights And Loud Guitars (Part 2)'' (1989) Released Emotions (split LP with Last Rough Cause) *''Rhowch Eich Teitl Eich Hun'' (1990), – live cassette-only album, title translates as ''Fill in Your own Title'' *''Dragons Revenge'' (1990), Lithograph, Crai, Probe Plus *''Dial y Ddraig'' (1990), Incognito *''Rhedeg i Bohemia Live'' (1991), Pro Art *''Dave Goodman Sessions'' (1991), Incognito, Crai *''Hen Wlad fy Mamau – Land of My Mothers'' (1995), Crai

Singles

*"Dim Heddwch" / "Priodas Hapus" (1983) Anrhefn (Cat no ANRHEFN01; green vinyl) *"Be Nesa 89" / "Bach Dy Ben " (1988) Anhrefn *"Rhedeg i Paris" / "Y Ffordd Ymlaen" / "Llgad Wrth Lygad" (1990) Crai C008s *''Bwtleg Powerhaus Llundain 1.3.1990'' (1990), Information Libre (12" EP) *''Clutter From The Gutter'' (1994) Incognito, Crai (with

on vocals)

References

External links

Yr Anhrefn
on Myspace
Rhys Mwyn's official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Anhrefn, Yr Welsh rock music groups Welsh-language bands Welsh punk rock groups Underground punk scene in the United Kingdom