Sydney, 31st August 2021 A ‘pop-up’ SFA TV television station will celebrate the reissue of Super Furry Animals’ ‘maximalist’ classic album, Rings Around The World for one night only in a bumper, fan-focused week, which also brings the band’s first NFT collection release. Four, limited-edition, digital artworks, reimagining the album’s original sleeve design will be delivered via a new, fan-centric and eco-friendly platform.
Launching the pre-recorded programming at 8pm BST on Thu 2 September 2021 on the band’s own YouTube channel, with the Furries pledging to join fans online, the premiere of The Making of Rings Around the World short film gets the band back together with US counterparts – including the album’s producer, Chris Shaw and US tour manager, Joe Puleo – to tell all about the Rings Around The World transatlantic journey. Unable to travel to the States to be back together in person, the band and crew find themselves lost in space and linked by satellite to discuss witnessing and being inspired by Scott Walker’s daily lunch of a savoured hamburger and the earthquakes caused by their experimentations with deep bass.
Restored and reloaded for the 2021 reissue, the video for Receptacle For The Respectable is will also be premiered with commentary by the video-designing artist, Pete Fowler. The line-up for the first, ever SFA TV broadcast, including a special programme by the esteemed Welsh Music Podcast, is as follows (all times British Summertime):
8pm – PREMIERE: The Making of Rings Around the World
8.20pm – Receptacle for the Respectable: HD video with commentary by Pete Fowler
8.25pm – Rings Around the World – a TV special by the Welsh Music Podcast
The technologically fearless band will also join the world of NFT digital collectables on release date, Fri 3 September 2021, by releasing four, limited edition, animated artworks featuring the original album artwork remodelled by long-standing creative collaborator, Mark James. Each piece will be packaged with accompanying, exclusive audio courtesy of the band.
Created in partnership with Hipgnosis Songs and distributed by eco-friendly, artist and fan-centric NFT platform Serenade (utilising less than 1/44,000th of the carbon emitted by a standard NFT) the Furries’ and James’ collaboration, based on Pete Fowler’s sleeve design, will not only be released in increasingly valuable editions of between just ten to 100 editions each, but briefly ‘appear’ in blink-and-you’ll-miss it screenings on digital billboards in Tokyo, Berlin, Paris, New York.
For up-to-date information on the pricing and availability of the Super Furry Animals’ NFT release, alongside subscribing to their channel for SFA TV programming, fans are urged to visit the band’s social media channels, including Twitter.
Coming twenty years after its original release, the reissue of Rings Around The World is so vast that the digital version will be split over two, separate release dates. All physical versions, including double, 180g vinyl, three-disc CD and the first digital instalment will be released on Fri 3 September 2021. The vinyl and CD versions come complete with updated packaging featuring original artwork and sleeve notes by music journalist, Keith Cameron.
The second digital collection being made available three weeks later on Fri 24 September 2021.
The Rings Around The World adventure is notable for being central to the Furries’ American odyssey. They, Shaw and engineer Eric Tew completed the estimated, final third of the record at Bearsville Studios on the lip of Woodstock, New York State, sessions that began after the band were left at the roadside by an out-of-patience, conservative husband and wife driving team, following a nine-date club tour from Hoboken to Boston. The following weeks featured baby bears, fireflies and paranoid, Blair Witch Project-reminiscent Forest walks.
Notably the first ever studio album to be produced in 5.1 Surround Sound, as a visual album and released on DVD allowing Playstation gamers to effortlessly switch to listening to the album, Super Furry Animals tested both the tolerances of modern technology and the purse strings of their record label at the time, Sony/Epic. Hiring four-time Grammy Award-winning, Run DMC and Public Enemy Producer, Chris Shaw and heading for a string of high-spec, residential studios, the band set out to reach for their furthest and wildest musical ambitions.
The widespread, positive response to the record after release on Mon 23 July 2001, which included the sunlit, countrified splendour of Run! Christian, Run! and It’s Not The End Of The World, not only gained the band more ground and bigger shows in the US, but a 2001 Mercury Prize-nomination, putting the band onstage for the awards party on a notable Tue 11 September 2001. The band returned to the States in 2002 for two, coast-to-coast US Tours following the critical and commercial success of the album across the Atlantic.
All of the tracks for the 2021 reissue have been remastered by Donal Whelan at Hafod Mastering in the Vale of Glamorgan with Furries archivist, Kliph Scurlock taking a deep dive into the vaults once again to bring so many unheard tracks to light.
The Super Furry Animals were and remain the multi-instrumental Huw Bunford, Cian Ciarán, Daf Ieuan, Guto Pryce and Gruff Rhys.
Release Information:
Super Furry Animals: Rings Around The World (20th Anniversary Deluxe Edition)
Release Date: Fri 3 September 2021
Formats: Heavyweight 180g 2 LP Vinyl / 1 Disc CD / 3 x Disc Expanded CD / Digital
Label: BMG
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Twitter www.twitter.com/superfurry
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