DAS KOOLIES
Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff - 24th January 2024
This was, at the time, the closest any of us thought we'd get to a Super Furry Animals reunion - four fifths of them as their electro-pop alter-egos Das Koolies finally crawling out of their burrows to play songs from their debut album live. There was no chance I was missing this and neither was Our Mate Colin, so off to Clwb we trotted.
Members of the band provided the "support", such as it was, by way of a DJ set. The place filled the closer we got to showtime until you could barely move in there. There's a lot of love for anything even vaguely SFA-related around here of course, so no wonder it was a sell-out. But I wonder how many of the crowd got what they were expecting, and how many went home happy?
You see, apparently (and I learned this some time after the show from a friend of the band) none of the band actually enjoy being watched, which is a bit of a problem when you're a band trying to make a living for itself. That certainly explains the stage setup - a bank of electronics at the front of the stage with screens facing the audience projecting psychedelic imagery. Nowt wrong with that per se, except you couldn't actually see the band! I occasionally caught a glimpse of the top of Cian or Bunf's heads, and I thought I could make Guto out now and again, or more accurately the headstock of his bass.
At least they were playing live, right? Well yes, I suppose, but a lot of electronic stuff sounds exactly like it does on the record, so not much of a live feel. And Despite Das Koolies having at least three members who have taken vocal duties in SFA or one of their many side-projects at some point or another, it seems not only do they not want to be seen, they don't want to be heard either. Pre-recorded vocals floated atop the supposedly live backing to end up giving us little more than a nightclub vibe.
Super Furry Animals were never the most exciting band to watch live, but at least you could see and hear they were making an effort. With Das Koolies, while the music itself is great, I don't really know why they even bothered turning up. I felt a tad ripped off - I'd paid to see a live band, but had a bloke stood on stage and played Das Koolies songs on Spotify through the PA, I doubt I'd have noticed a lot of difference. Colin seemed to agree with me - I wonder how many others did?
At the time of writing (April 2026), Super Furry Animals will no doubt be rehearsing for their first live dates for 10 years in the summer. With the prices of those tickets, I damn well hope they give the crowds something more than a glorified karaoke night.
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