Love Kraft

Love Kraft
Studio album by Super Furry Animals
Released 22 August 2005
Studio Musician studios, Figueres, Spain; Pleasure Foxxx, Cardiff; The Dairy, Brixton; Stir Studios, Cardiff
Genre Indie rock
Length 54:22
Label Epic
Producer Mario Caldato Jr, Super Furry Animals
Super Furry Animals chronology
Songbook: The Singles, Vol. 1
(2004)		 Love Kraft
(2005)		 Hey Venus!
(2007)
Singles from Love Kraft
  1. "Lazer Beam"
    Released: 15 August 2005

Love Kraft is the seventh studio album by Welsh indie rock band Super Furry Animals, released on 22 August 2005 through Epic Records in the United Kingdom. The album was recorded in Spain with producer Mario Caldato Jr and was something of a departure for the band, with all members contributing songs and lead vocals alongside Gruff Rhys who had been main songwriter for the Super Furries until this point.[1][2] In selecting tracks for Love Kraft a conscious effort was made by the band not to choose songs on their individual merit but rather to pick those which went well together in order to create as cohesive an album as possible. The album's name was taken from a sex shop, Love Craft, near the Cardiff offices of the Super Furries' management team and is also a nod to American horror writer H. P. Lovecraft.[3]

Critical response was generally positive with some reviews claiming the album was the best of the group's career. However, a few reviewers expressed reservations that Love Kraft was "merely a very good Super Furry Animals effort" and was not as impressive as the band's previous records.[4] The track "Lazer Beam" was released as a single and reached #28 in the UK Singles Chart.[5]

Recording

Love Kraft was recorded in Figueres, a small city in Catalonia, Spain.[1] According to Rhys the band found themselves in the "unusual" position of recording their seventh album together and began looking at groups who had made lots of records, such as Fleetwood Mac and The Beach Boys. These bands had made "foreign records" (Tusk and Holland respectively) so the Super Furries decided to do the same although on "a much tighter budget."[1][2] Leaving their usual Cardiff studio behind had an effect on the songs according to Rhys:

“ "It was recorded last June in intense heat. We're not used to heat at all, so it's a very slow album. We call it our sludge-rock album".[1] ”

The band did a lot of experimenting and arranging in Cardiff before going into the studio, as a result of which Love Kraft was recorded in just three weeks. Drummer Dafydd Ieuan also attributes the album sessions' speedy conclusion to producer Mario Caldato Jr. who was very good at keeping the group together and on the right track.[6]
Super Furry Animals "Zoom!" (2005)
Short sample from "Zoom!", the album's first track. The clip illustrates the band's use of found sounds on Love Kraft, in this case a sample of Huw Bunford jumping into a swimming pool.[7]
Super Furry Animals "Cloudberries" (2005)
Short sample from "Cloudberries". An Observer review of "Love Kraft" describes the track as exhibiting "hymnal solemnity" and the clip illustrates the "slow" nature of the album as described by Gruff Rhys in an interview with The Guardian.[1][8] Towards the middle of the clip the tracks mid-section plays—"the only moment at which any Latin flavour seeps into Love Kraft".[8]
Problems playing these files? See media help.

The album represented a departure from the band's previous working methods: although all five members had always contributed to the development of the songs, Gruff Rhys had been the main songwriter. On Love Kraft this was no longer the case, as Rhys, Huw Bunford, Dafydd Ieuan and Cian Ciaran all contributed songs and lead vocals.[2] The group also abandoned their usual practise of picking songs on their individual merit, instead choosing tracks that would work well together and "create a sound that was as cohesive as possible".[9] Of the "30-40" songs written by band members the group chose "the more introspective ones" which meant that some of Rhys's tracks were left off the album as they were "energetic and poppy" and "didn't really fit in with everybody else's work".[10]

Several 'found sounds' were recorded and used on the album including the buzzing of a Brazilian electrical substation, the sound of pool balls being rubbed against each other and a recording of Huw Bunford jumping into a swimming pool. The latter opens the album, preceding the intro to "Zoom!".[11]

Love Kraft was mixed in a suburb of Rio de Janeiro at the request of Brazilian born Caldato. According to Rhys the band toyed with the idea of using Latin musical elements and had fantasies of "Marcos Valle doing backing vocals, and getting Rogerio Duprat to arrange the strings" but ultimately thought it would be a "bit too embarrassing" and actively tried not to make a "Brazilian sounding" record.[3][11] This point was echoed by Guto Pryce in an interview with Birmingham's Metro although he conceded that "in Rio music is everywhere. The beats and rhythms are non-stop so that probably seeped into our minds as a subconscious influence."[12]

The album is named after a sex shop, Lovecraft Limited, near the Ankst Management offices on Cowbridge Road, Cardiff and is also a reference to American horror writer H. P. Lovecraft.[3] In a 2005 interview with The Daily Telegraph, Gruff Rhys explained that the name also stems from the fact that the record has "a general warm glow of love" and that it was originally conceived as a "love record" before "some of the lyrics went completely off the rails".[3]

Release

Love Kraft was released on CD, SACD, vinyl and as a digital download on 22 August 2005 in the United Kingdom and was the band's last release for Sony's Epic imprint before they moved to independent label Rough Trade. The album reached #19 in the UK Albums Chart.[5] In America the album was released on 13 September 2005 by Beggars Banquet US. "Lazer Beam" was the only track to be released as a single from the album, reaching #28 in the UK Singles Chart.[5]

Region Date Label Format Catalogue
Japan 24 August 2005[13] Epic Records Japan Compact disc EICP-546
United Kingdom 22 August 2005[14] Epic Vinyl record 5205011
Compact disc 5205012
Super Audio CD 5205016
Download —
United States 13 September 2005[14] XL Recordings/Beggars Banquet US Vinyl record ?
Compact disc 85047
Download —

Critical response

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic77/100[15]
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[4]
The Guardian[16]
Mojo (September 2005, p.88)
NME[17]
The Observer[8]
Pitchfork Media(8.5/10) link
PopMatters link
Q (September 2005, p.116)
Rolling Stone link
Stylus Magazine(C) link

The album received a generally positive reaction from critics. British newspaper The Guardian described Love Kraft as the band's "best album yet" and musicOMH claimed it to be "the greatest realisation of the Super Furry vision to date".[16][18] Uncut was similarly impressed calling the album "perhaps the defining record of [the band's] career" while Yahoo Music UK thought Love Kraft was "perfect pop".[19][20]

The NME had reservations however, stating that although the album is "easily as engaging and full of the wild possibilities of pop music as anything else in their peerless canon" it is "not quite up there with Radiator due to its brace of shonky ballad filler ("Cloudberries" and "Cabin Fever")".[17] Writing for Allmusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine was largely impressed with Love Kraft but admitted to being disappointed that it is "merely a very good Super Furry Animals effort, with few surprises outside of its alluring sleek".[4] The band's singer, Gruff Rhys, has described the album as "the most beautiful record we've made ... really orchestral and fairly timeless".[21]

Accolades

Publication Country Accolade Year Rank
Iguana Music Spain Best albums 2005[22] 2005 62
NME United Kingdom Albums of 2005[23] 2005 26
Uncut United Kingdom Uncut 50 best albums of 2005[24] 2005 12
Uncut United Kingdom Uncut's 150 greatest albums of the 2000s[25] 2009 118
The Village Voice United States Pazz & Jop Albums of 2005[26] 2005 339

Tour

Super Furry Animals performing live at the V Festival, 2005 in support of Love Kraft.

The Super Furry Animals played numerous festivals in Great Britain prior to Love Kraft's release including Scotland's T in the Park, Oxegen, the Secret Garden Party in Cambridge and the V Festival, warming up for these dates with a small show at Barry Memorial Hall on 22 July 2005.[27] A gig at Somerset House in London on 8 July 2005 went ahead despite coming just one day after the 7/7 bombings caused Queens of the Stone Age to cancel their show at the venue.[28]

Following the release of Love Kraft in the United Kingdom the Super Furry Animals played Bestival on the Isle of Wight before embarking on an 11 date tour of the UK and Ireland, beginning at the University of East Anglia in Norwich on 14 September 2005 and ending on 27 September at Dublin's Olympia Theatre venue.[29] A month long tour of Canada and the United States followed, starting on 1 November in Montreal and ending in San Diego on 1 December.[30]

The band experienced a "very different atmosphere" at initial shows on the Love Kraft tour, when they played the "slow" songs from the album.[7] This contributed to their decision to make follow up Hey Venus! a "rowdy pop record".[31]

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Super Furry Animals. 

No. TitleLead vocals Length
1. "Zoom!"  Gruff Rhys 6:53
2. "Atomik Lust"  Dafydd Ieuan 4:53
3. "The Horn"  Huw Bunford 3:01
4. "Ohio Heat"  Rhys 4:07
5. "Walk You Home"  Cian Ciaran 4:00
6. "Lazer Beam"  Rhys 4:55
7. "Frequency"  Rhys 4:39
8. "Oi Frango"  Bunford 2:23
9. "Psyclone!"  Rhys 4:19
10. "Back on a Roll"  Bunford 3:46
11. "Cloudberries"  Rhys 5:04
12. "Cabin Fever"  Ciaran/Ieuan 6:20

Personnel

The following people contributed to Love Kraft:[32]

Band

Additional musicians
  • Brian Wright – violin
  • Elspeth Cowey – violin
  • Ellen Blair – violin
  • Amanda Britton – violin
  • Sally Herbert – violin
  • Laura Melhuish – violin
  • Gill Morley – violin
  • Jacqueline Norrie – violin
  • Will Morris Jones – choral arrangements
  • Osian Gwynedd – choral arrangements
  • Sean O'Hagan – choral, string and wind arrangements
  • Super Furry Animals – string and wind arrangements

Recording personnel

Artwork

Album chart positions

Chart Peak
position
Ireland Albums Chart 23[33]
U.S. Top Heatseekers 38[34]
U.S. Top Independent Albums 47[35]
UK Albums Chart 19[5]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Jinman, Richard (2005-07-01). "'We call it sludge-rock'". The Guardian. Retrieved 2008-07-07.
  2. 1 2 3 Kocan, Alex (c. 2005). "Alex Kocan spoke to Bunf from the Super Furry Animals". LeftLion. Retrieved 2008-07-07.
  3. 1 2 3 4 McLean, Craig (2005-08-19). "Super fuzzy logic". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2009-01-28.
  4. 1 2 3 Erlewine, Stephen Thomas (c. 2005). "Love Kraft". Allmusic. Retrieved 2008-12-04.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "Search Results – Singles". everyHit.com. 2008-07-29. Retrieved 2008-07-29.
  6. ↑ Spignese, Frank (2005-10-20). "SFA: Less fuzz more logic". The Daily Yomiuri.
  7. 1 2 Hogan, Marc (2007-08-27). "Interview: Super Furry Animals". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 2008-07-09.
  8. 1 2 3 Hoskyns, Barney (2005-07-17). "Super Furry Animals, Love Kraft". The Observer. Retrieved 2009-02-02.
  9. ↑ Foster, Richard (2005-10-10). "Incendiary interview Super Furry Animals". Incendiary Magazine. Retrieved 2008-08-04.
  10. ↑ Sweeney, Tanya (2005-08-31). "The Sound and the Furry". Hot Press.
  11. 1 2 McNair, James (2005-08-19). "Super Furry Animals: Heavenly creatures". The Independent. Retrieved 2008-08-04.
  12. ↑ Mcbay, Nadine (2005-05-23). "Interview". Metro.
  13. ↑ "Love Kraft". MusicBrainz. 2005. Retrieved 2008-01-28.
  14. 1 2 Lundy, Zeth (2005). "Love Kraft". PopMatters. Retrieved 2008-07-29.
  15. ↑ http://www.metacritic.com/music/love-kraft/super-furry-animals
  16. 1 2 Clarke, Betty (2005-08-19). "Super Furry Animals, Love Kraft". The Guardian. Retrieved 2008-07-29.
  17. 1 2 Beaumont, Mark (2005-08-24). "Super Furry Animals: Love Kraft". NME. Retrieved 2008-12-04.
  18. ↑ Welsh, David (2005-08-22). "Love Kraft". musicOMH. Retrieved 2008-12-04.
  19. ↑ "Love Kraft". Uncut 100: 100. September 2005.
  20. ↑ Watson, Ian (2008-12-04). "Super Furry Animals - Love Kraft". Yahoo!. Retrieved 2008-12-04.
  21. ↑ Martin, Piers (April 2008). "Album by album: Super Furry Animals". Uncut 131: 70–72.
  22. ↑ "Iguana Music lists from Spain: Best albums 2005". RockListMusic. Retrieved 2008-08-04.
  23. ↑ "NME 2005 Lists". RockListMusic. Archived from the original on May 24, 2008. Retrieved 2008-08-04.
  24. ↑ "Uncut albums of the year". RockListMusic. Retrieved 2008-08-04.
  25. ↑ "Uncut's 150 greatest albums of the decade". Uncut 150: 41. November 2009.
  26. ↑ "Pazz & Jop Albums Of 2005 (Village Voice)". RockListMusic. Retrieved 2008-08-04.
  27. ↑ "SUPER FURRY ANIMALS TO PLAY ONE-OFF WELSH DATE". NME. 2005-06-04. Retrieved 2008-12-04.
  28. ↑ "SOMERSET HOUSE SHOWS START AGAIN". NME. 2005-07-08. Retrieved 2008-12-04.
  29. ↑ "'LOVE' LIVE!". NME. 2005-06-03. Retrieved 2008-12-04.
  30. ↑ "The Super Furry Animals Love Kraft Live". IGN. 2005-10-31. Retrieved 2008-12-04.
  31. ↑ "Gruff Rhys (Super Furry Animals)". Soundscapes. 2007-09-25. Retrieved 2009-02-02.
  32. ↑ Love Kraft (CD booklet). Super Furry Animals. London: Epic Records. 2005. p. 10.
  33. ↑ "Super Furry Animals - Love Kraft". aCharts. 2008-07-31. Retrieved 2008-07-31.
  34. ↑ "Top Heatseekers: Love Kraft". Billboard. Retrieved 2008-07-31.
  35. ↑ "Top Independent Albums: Love Kraft". Billboard. Retrieved 2008-07-31.

External links

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