Inarguably one of modern Welsh music’s foremost icons, Gruff Rhys has a less-than-earnest warning for his long-serving listeners on latest single ‘Silver Lining (Lead Balloons)’, the second track to be taken from his forthcoming 25th LP. And what warning is that, we hear you ask, above the symphonic piano and scrumptious strings? Well, we’re not exactly certain, but it’s somewhere between the eccentric poetical sentiments of, and we quote: “There’s no use lining all your dreams with silver/For silver lined clouds look much like lead balloons” and “I left my dreams in a rental car/Live for now and dream afar”.
The beautiful, orchestral sounds, created almost entirely with only wooden acoustic instruments, were recorded live in a 19th-century building on the outskirts of Paris during March 2022 with the ex-Super Furry Animals frontman on vocals, Kliph Scurlock, formerly of Flaming Lips, on drums, Osian Gwynedd on piano, Huw V Williams on double bass and an overdubbed string quartet arranged by Gruff Ab Arwel, only breaking the timber-based rule to include some utterly euphoric brass from Gavin Fitzjohn. Replete with gold like this and previous single ‘Celestial Candyfloss’, Gruff Rhys’s quarter-centuplicate handiwork looks set to be one of his finest and most idyllic yet.
‘Silver Lining (Lead Balloons)’ is the second single to come off of Gruff Rhys’s forthcoming record ‘Sadness Sets Me Free’, due to be released on 26th January 2024 via Rough Trade Records and available to pre-order now. The full track list is below:
1 – Sadness Sets Me Free
2 – Bad Friend
3 – Celestial Candyfloss
4 – Silver Lining (Lead Balloons)
5 – On The Far Side Of The Dollar
6 – They Sold My Home To Build A Skyscraper
7 – Peace Signs
8 – Cover Up The Cover Up
9 – I Tendered My Resignation
10 – I’ll Keep Singing
‘Silver Lining (Lead Balloons)’ was released on 7th November 2023 and you can watch it on Youtube below: