Gruff Rhys ‘American Interior’ solo show

Gruff Rhys, the enigmatic Welsh musician, is best known as the frontman and main songwriter of Super Furry Animals, one of the most inventive British bands of the 1990s and 2000s. Famed for blending psychedelia, indie rock, and electronic experimentation, Rhys has also built a rich solo career, releasing acclaimed albums like Candylion and Babelsberg.

Pleased to announce that the Gruff Rhys show at Bedford Esquires will be an ‘American Interior’ solo show to celebrate the re-release and expanded version of the album. The show is a performance that is a combination of songs and storytelling alongside some accompanying visuals.

Here’s what Gruff has to say about the album:
Revisiting American Interior feels prescient. In following the story of explorer John Evans (1770-1799) it becomes clear that faked narratives can have profound and unpredictable consequences in real life.

His journey of verification in searching continental scale wilderness for a [fictitious] Welsh speaking tribe believed to be living on the Great Plains of North America (an ancient folk tale perpetuated by the Elizabethan court following the subjugation of Wales, to make colonial claims on behalf of the British on the Americas) had a dramatic political effect on the fledgling USA and a devastating impact on himself and those who helped him.

I wrote an album inspired by his life; American Interior, which also served as a soundtrack to a film based on a book about his journey, intertwined with my own investigative concert tour.
It was my most ambitious undertaking; living with one foot in the 18th century and wearing the same clothes (for cinematic continuity) for that entire period, left me exhausted. (Imagine a cold extra from The Revenant movie).

It took me a while to process the experience and I owe it to my former self to take the songs back on the road and re-tell the story for a new decade.

Don’t miss the chance to witness the magic of Gruff in the intimate space of Esquires.

Tickets on SEE online and in person from Slide Record Shop and Esquires Bar