The Super Furry Animals inspire love. They’re one of those bands that you’d want to be part of - not only because you’d get to dress up as a Yeti and play “The Man Don’t Give A F*ck” for 25-minutes every night, but because they’ve always done exactly what they wanted to, not to mention finding the common trajectory between ancient Celtic folk, West Coast harmony and ear-bleeding techno - often in the same song.
For some this makes them pranksters. But just compare the Furries to the rest of their Creation contemporaries. The majority have disappeared, but those that remain are either stuck in a rut(le) – Oasis - or stuck to their record collections - Primal Scream. The Furries were innovative and inventive and remain so ten years later.
That their main weapon has been humour should not be misinterpreted. Artists as great as Brian Wilson and John Lennon have proved that you can’t be truly heartbreaking without having a laugh. Having a laugh is evidence you can show-off a full range of human emotions - the equivalent of “California Girls” to “Til’ I Die” as opposed to just “California Girls” or “Til’ I Die”. Technically, it’s called having a counterpoint.
This is why the Furries will always be affecting in a way that Radiohead, say, never will be. There’s no pretence. Millionaire rock star Thom Yorke obviously doesn’t walk around with the world on his shoulders 24/7, but with SFA you get the whole spectrum, whether that‘s the aforementioned Yeti suits or heartbreaking songs of staggering genius. Consequently, when they do drop something like "Fire In My Heart", the effect is worth a million "Paranoid Android"s.
This inventiveness is highlighted from the cherry-picking evident on “Songbook”. It bags everything from the early psychedelia of “God! Show Me Magic” and “Something 4 The Weekend” through “Demons” and “Ice Hockey Hair” to “Golden Retriever” and “Slow Life” from last year’s “Phantom Power”. It’s all high points and no chaff and at 21 tracks there’s still no room for "Gathering Moss", “The Turning Tide”, “The Undefeated”, “Venus & Serena”, “Run! Christian, Run”, “Mountain People”, and, and, and, and, and…
That’s 21 reasons more than most, but, in all honesty, the best advice? Skip this and buy all their albums instead.
