Friday, October 18, 2013

Welsh Music Prize 2013 - And the Winner is...

It feels weird doing another blog post about Georgia Ruth so soon, but this was the risk I took when I left Week of Pines 'til last. Still, I don't want to use the album cover as my main image again, so here instead is a Georgia Ruth selfie:


So Week of Pines has won its creator the 2013 Welsh Music Prize. And actually, I'm pretty pleased with this result. I was rooting for Furniture, of course, but WoP is certainly a worthy winner in itself, boasting at least two stone-cold classics (Week of Pines and A Slow Parade) and a whole host of other lovely songs., like Old Blue and In Luna. As I mentioned on Twitter the other day, it's a very nostalgic album - she's trying to "get back to the week of pines", she's singing about her old dog, she's thinking about relationships that have long since ended. True to the title, the album is full of longing - or pining - for things past.

I was looking for Old Blue on YouTube, and guess what? It's a cover! I couldn't find Georgia Ruth's version, so here's a slightly less modern rendition...

And if that lot doesn't make Georgia Ruth a deserving winner, consider that, with a sprinkling of harp and a smattering of Cymraeg, Week of Pines was probably the Welsh-est album on the shortlist. If the WMP is supposed to show off what this country has to offer, music-wise, then this album was a fine choice for the prize.

At the end of the day, though, it's not about who won or who lost. The whole shortlist was full of amazing stuff, and I'm glad that I made myself listen to it all. Even when I was disappointed, irritated, or downright baffled, I was still  having fun. Oh, and it's Swn Festival now, which means that I get to see a bunch of these bands I've discovered in person. I caught Trwbador at the Angel Hotel last night, and they were awesome, like Kate Bush with a laptop.

Thank you all for joining me on this Welsh Music Prize journey - you can relive the whole thing here. Normal service resumes on Monday, but in the meantime...who do you think should have won?

2 comments:

  1. I'm happy with that win! I saw Georgia Ruth supporting Beth Orton a while back, and she was brill - very understated. I think it's good for the Welsh Music Prize that very different acts have won in each year of its existence, stops it from being pigeonholed plus really showcases a wide variety of Welsh music. Good work on reviewing each album!

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  2. You're right - Future of the Left and Georgia Ruth could scarcely be more different!

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