Name: (Don't) Welcome The Plague As A Blessing / The Babelsberg Basement Files
Brand: Gruff Rhys

Bonus disc

Bonus disc: No

Catalogue number

RT0120LP

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Colour

White

Colour details

Split Black and White 

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Discogs ID

Format multiplier

Download code

Download code: No

Rough Trade Exclusive

Rough Trade Exclusive: No

Extended format

Extended format: No

Format detail

Format Music GB

Limited edition

Release date

2020-08-29

Signed copies

Signed copies: No

Supplier GB

PIAS

Tax rate GB

Standard:20

UPC / Barcode

0191402012019

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Total Cap

1 / Extended format: No / LP / Rough Trade Exclusive: No / Signed copies: No / white

Artist

Gruff Rhys

Genre GB

Alternative / Modern

Label GB

Rough Trade

Singer, guitarist and main songwriter with Super Furry Animals. Gruff Rhys has an eclectic and eccentric musical style, reflected in his solo albums released since 2005. His debut album was recorded entirely in Welsh, followed by several other successful releases. He has collaborated with various artists and contributed to soundtracks. Gruff's music is known for its unique concepts and storytelling.

Rough Trade is a multinational label that was started by Geoff Travis in 1976 as a London record-shop. It quickly grew into an independent label and distributor, collaborating with notable labels such as 4AD, Factory Records, and One Little Indian. The label's catalogue numbering system for singles/EPs included prefixes like RT### and RTT###CD for different formats. Albums were numbered sequentially as ROUGH### with extensions for different formats.In the early 1990s, Rough Trade faced financial difficulties after expanding into the US market. The US branch was shut down and the German branch ended up in the Zomba Music Group. One Little Indian provided financing and took over the label in the UK, retaining ownership of key releases like A.R. Kane albums. Geoff Travis eventually regained control of Rough Trade around 1999–2000 and re-launched it alongside Tugboat Records.

Early in 2016 Ali Chant texted me, asking if I still wanted to record some stuff at his studio - as property developers were about to knock it down. Another creative space bulldozed away for capital gain.Politically it was a shit year.The noise building for the Brexit referendum that would fuck with the future of the young was in full swing. Bowie died, and on the morning of the first recordings I had the worst migraine.I left the building and threw up in the street.I wanted to commit to the lyrics and sing live so I think I was stressed about getting them ready to sing. I had a batch of songs I wanted to record but I didn't have a record label or any plans of what to do with them. I gathered incredible musicians from my square mile in Cardiff in the van and drove to Bristol. Kliph on drums, Steve on bass and Osian on piano. I sang and played guitar - We recorded live takes for 3 days then I sat on the songs for almost 2 years.Eventually handing them to composer Stephen McNeff to work on orchestral arrangements. I called the album that was mixed by Samur Kouja; Babelsberg - and I'm very happy with it. This album meanwhile is an exploration of how it came to be - and the songs in their raw state.A companion piece rather than the definitive article. Most tracks are similar to the final work except for Selfies in The Sunset which is pre-duet and much longer. At some point it would be great to release the amazing orchestral elements too. Maybe both records could be played at once. In the meantime please enjoy the fruits of Kliph Scurlock's mixes and demo digging for (Don't) Welcome The Plague As A Blessing. I'm very grateful to Lisa Jen and Mirain Haf from the band 9 Bach for singing the background vocals. Kliph for overseeing this project, Rough Trade for their enthusiasm and thanks to the designers; thanks Uno Moralez for agreeing to have his incredible Babelsberg sleeve illustration carved up, and ace designer Mark James for this final article. Further thanks to Ali, Steve, Osian and also to Robin Turner for lending his ear at the time. 1. Frontier Man 2. The Club 3. Oh Dear! 4. Limited Edition Heart 5. Take That Call 6. Drones in the City 7. Negative Vibes 8. Same Old Song 9. Architecture of Amneisa 10. Selfies in the Sunset

(Don't) Welcome The Plague As A Blessing / The Babelsberg Basement Files

Music GB