'Let's go fucking mental,' urge the Peth, and their gonzo attitude is infectious. It doesn't hinder their cause that their defining slogan is carried by an infectious, nagging punk riff and a soaring chorus sung in the high, sly and insinuating accents of the patented Welsh pop style. Put me down for some of that menthol, sir.
- The Peth
- The Golden Mile
- Strangetown
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- Formed by Super Furry Animals drummer Dafydd Ieuan along with Rhys Ifans and Welsh rock stalwarts such as Dic Deryn of Elfyn Presley, the Peth (the Thing) are presented as a pub idea or a famous actor's vanity project, but The Golden Mile is more substantial: a very well-made rock record of perfect length (about 45 minutes) and contradictory catharsis.
The opener 'Half a Brain' begins with a slow shuffle with unison voices, then ups the intensity with squalling guitars, letting Rhys Ifans take over: 'If you could only put your mind to something/ If you could only do half your drinking/ Don't fucking bother me, I've had enough and I'm going home.' He doesn't sound petulant, just sad and wise enough to acknowledge his own folly.
As he repeats the chorus for the second time, a crowd of shouting voices breaks in and then just as quickly subsides into the closing piano melody. 'Half a Brain' makes it clear that, despite the inevitable media attention focused on their celebrity frontman, the Peth are a proper group with at least four singers and Rhys Ifans is just one voice to be selected or missed at will.
The Peth's basic position is stoopid - and life-enhancing - Seventies rawk: the glam stomp of 'Shoot on Sight'; the slow Stones burn of '69 Fanny Street'; the sly boogie of 'Turbotank'. Add SFA-style West Coast harmonies and you have a record that formally encodes and celebrates hedonism: think of the Super Furry Animals' 'Bad Behaviour' 12 years on.
However, nothing is ever that simple. In harking back to uncomplicated good times, the Peth know how hard it is to get back that first time carelessness of youth, and The Golden Mile is shot through with regretful ballads such as 'Honey, Take a Bow' and 'Stonefinger' that give the flip side to the surrealistic swaggering.
The Peth might urge you to go fucking mental but The Golden Mile also counts the cost: the depression and anger that follows broken relationships, the sadness of being the 'Last Man Stand-ing', 'the one they always blame'. As Rhys Ifans sings on the title track, 'I'll always be remembered for propping up the bar.'
Not that that is going to stop them from having a good time. Their first show at Portmeirion Town Hall - which featured 10 musicians and singers in all - amped up the riffs in a raucous release. In that most beautiful building - in front of family and friends - the Peth's collective will to rock was very human.
The Golden Mile replaces those rough edges with an accomplished pop production but the feeling remains the same. Sometimes in life, the only thing you can do is kick out the jams. You need a bit of misrule: the cost will come soon enough. Their spirit makes me smile.
Download 'Half a Brain'; 'Shoot on Sight'; 'Turbobank'