Under The Influence: Alt Electronic Artist 'heddlu' discusses the tracks that influenced his new 'Tramor' album - Out Now via Zawn
Welsh Alt Electronic Artist 'heddlu' recently released his 2nd long player entitled 'Tramor' meaning 'Overseas' in Welsh. We caught up with 'Rhodri Daniel' to see what music was key in the inception of his tremendous new offering which is available now via Zawn Records.
Track 1: Kelly Watch the Stars, Air. For some reason this song resonated with me, I wanted to re-create the feeling it gave me throughout certain songs in the album, a hopeful, light, pretty song that didn't say too much, just gave a simple feeling and aesthetic, you can hear this influence in the song 'Paid Becso Am Dim'
Track 2: Can't do without You, Caribou. I usually write songs with meandering and reprising sections, but the simplicity of this song, where the main motif builds until an eventual crescendo, spoke to me when writing this album, I didn't feel the need to write more sections for the sake of it, when the main riff or motif was enough. As the record is also pretty much a breakup album, the song's simple repeating lamentful lyric was quite moving and inspired me to be a bit more open and honest.
Tracks 4: Am Ser, Accu: Accu is a criminally under-appreciated artists from Carmarthen, and her song 'Am Ser' is so stunning, so hopeful, I listen to this record at least once a month, and whenever this track comes on, I just stop and sit there and listen to it, doesn't matter what I'm doing, there's just something so immersive in a simple way about it, and I wanted some of my tracks on the album to feel the same. Bloody good bleeps and bloops on it too.
Track 4: Teleharmonic, The Smile, a side project of radiohead, I wrote my first album on the coastal path where I fell in love with someone who left my life whilst writing the second, during this time I went back to the coastal path in Pembrokeshire for a few days to hike alone, this song came on during one evening looking out to sea at sunset, the song is desperately sad, where Thom Yorke asks a woman in his dreams to tell him where she is taking him, the person I loved often visited me in my dreams around then, and I decided to write my album sharing my feelings honestly from then on.
Track 5: Ebony Eye, Yves Tumor, an eccentric, experimental, unreserved immediate artists who I have become obsessed with, this track ends their 3rd album with a blisteringly beautiful and hard hitting track, so I decided that I needed to do the same with my final track, which is honestly the favourite and best thing I have ever made, and I hate everything I make, so I am ALLOWED to say this, OK?
Heddlu is the new musical project by Rhodri Daniel. The Ceredigion native was a founding member of renowned Welsh band Estrons who had a major impact on the industry having gained rave reviews from the likes of NME, Vice, DIY and Clash to BBC Radio, Radio X, Ultimate Guitar, The Guardian and Independent.
After finishing the band in 2019, Rhodri became aware that his hearing was severely damaged. Years of touring the live circuit had taken their toll, Rhodri ultimately being diagnosed with hearing loss, tinnitus and severe sensitivity to noise. The effects were so acute, Rhodri was unable to play live music, leading to him composing his critically acclaimed debut album (Cantref, 2022) in his head whilst completing the entirety of the Wales Coastal Path (900 miles). His family and namely his sister, were great sources of comfort and hope during this difficult period. Serendipity led Rhodri back to music, and heddlu was born. Meaning ‘Police’ in Welsh, from the words ‘peace-force’, heddlu's music has been true to its’ name, offering a force of peace to the songwriter.
Rhodri spent the next few years writing and experimenting with new sounds and instruments as his hearing slowly recovered. Whilst writing and recording his 2nd album, life found a way of both disrupting and influencing the creative process, leading to multiple re-writes and an entire album being erased. Eventually, despite the interruptions, heddlu’s 2nd album, ‘Tramor’ - was completed.
Meaning ‘Overseas’ in Welsh, ‘Tramor’ is series of intimate and volatile songs, detailing years of loss, estrangement, trauma and hope.
“Tramor” is out now on 'Zawn Records'.
Purchase 'Tramor' here direct from the artist
