Joy Story

Welsh racketeers The Joy Formidable on writing the best songs ever, recording their debut without a label and listening to Jamiroquai……

Sitting in a South London pub – a Putney pub, to be precise – to talk about their upcoming album, tour and recently released single ‘Popinjay’, Welsh indie-trio The Joy Formidable will instead fill The Fly’s dictaphone with debates about goats, tales of sofa surfing and how The Temper Trap once threatened to spell out ‘RITZY’ with their pubic hair. It’s certainly more fun than interviewing The Horrors, let’s put it that way. “I think in the early days we were a bit more conscious of what we were saying in interviews but we don’t really mind now,” giggles frontwoman Ritzy Bryan, sipping from her second Bloody Mary of the night. “I remember once when we got the ‘what bands are you into’ question and Matt says ‘well, I’ve been listening to a lot of Jamiroquai’. In the background our manager was like ‘WHAT. THE. FUCK?! I leave you for two minutes and you’re talking about fucking Jamiroquai!’” Drummer, Matt Thomas, all hair, cheek-bones and Guinness, is beside himself laughing: “I’m listening to a lot less Jamiroquai these days…” he confesses. However, beyond a love of dubious hat-wearing ninnys, there is, of course, that small matter of the music. Two hours previous to arriving in Putney, The Fly office is gifted with a four-song preview session for the follow-up to last year’s mini-LP, ‘A Balloon Called Moaning’. Epic, widescreen, yet, at all times, brilliantly pop, that ‘A Balloon…’ didn’t feature higher up in 2009’s Best Albums lists truly was a tragedy (for the record, The Fly put it at 16, so nerrr). Self-produced and self-released, it was the product of a band formed three years ago out of the relationship of Ritzy and bassist boyfriend, Rhydian Dafydd, who became close when they started writing together. After their first drummer left they were soon joined by ex-teacher Matt, who currently kips on the couple’s sofa in exchange, or so it seems, for comic relief (“As soon as that sofa’s gone, I’m gone!”). Today, however, unveils a new Joy Formidable. One that opens this sample CD with an eight-minute untitled track so grandiosely grungy it makes everything they’ve done before look like an Xx B-side. Distortion pedals, shoegaze and massive choruses have always been the backbone of TJF, but never on this scale. As it patters out, we’re left stunned. “So”, remarks our esteemed editor, “I’m guessing that’s the radio edit?” What follows from there on out is a more traditional extension of ‘A Balloon…’, but no less promising, and no less epic. The Joy
Formidable have gone beyond widescreen. They’re practically cinematic. Still without a label, Rhydian is quick to point out that’s more to do with circumstance than any anti-label manifesto. “It’s not a case of ‘hey! Look at us! We’re the flagship underdogs! We don’t need a label!” We just want to work with people who have something to add. There’s a few people we’re talking to and when the record comes out, then who knows? It’s not that interesting, it’s not that important… we’re just trying to write the fucking best songs ever”. “I listened back to the album the other day and the first song alone,” adds Rhydian. “I can’t think of anything that good for a long, long time. And that’s something we’ve written…” The “fucking best songs ever” they may be, but trying to get TJF to talk about them in any detail beyond vague is sadly a task too far for The Fly, even when we bombard them with praise. “I’m hesitant of talking about the album this early. I think you put so much into your songs that you feel very protective,” says Ritzy. “I don’t like dissecting it.” “Well,” offers Matt, now quite tipsy, “it’s got notes in it, and then some sounds, and it goes quiet for a bit and then it gets louder and then goes quiet again. The lyrics are also made up of letters. From the alphabet.” Thanks, Matt, but take it from us – this is worth getting excited for.

‘Popinjay’ is out now on TJF Records.