Das Koolies

Emerging in 2019 to fuse dark, groove-based electronica with the sunny eccentricities central to their core band, Das Koolies comprise four members of the Welsh neo-psych act Super Furry Animals, minus their leader. As Super Furry Animals, with Gruff Rhys, they sent nine albums into the U.K. Top 30 between 1996 and 2009. Three of these records in particular — 1999′s Guerrilla, 2001′s Rings Around the World, and 2003′s Phantom Power — leaned slightly into electronic experimentation, augmenting their inventive stew of indie rock, delicate folk, frenetic punk, stomping glam, and sweeping chamber pop. The early-’90s rave scene had played a crucial part in their genesis, so although electronic music wasn’t the primary focus of their day job, it was certainly in their DNA. Indeed, during the 1996 festival season, the Super Furries toured the U.K. in a customized tank blasting out ear-splitting DJ sets of obscure German techno from its sound system at every opportunity. Therefore, when guitarist Huw Bunford, keys player Cian Ciarán, bassist Guto Pryce and drummer Dafydd Ieuan convened at their Cardiff docklands studio in 2019 to work on new music, they veered further into electronica than ever before. Between 1998 and 2000, they had attempted something similar — even labelling it Das Koolies at the time — but the results of that project were never released. 19 years on, they salvaged the name and rebooted what was initially conceived as an instrumental endeavor. However, when Bunford laid down vocals one evening it breathed new life into Das Koolies and other members followed suit, often skewing their voices with manipulative sound effects. As a result, when their debut single, “It’s All About the Dolphins,” appeared in January 2020 it featured lead vocals from Bunford, Ciarán, and Ieuan. Over the next three years, Das Koolies recorded enough material for a triple album, but ultimately curtailed this ambition. Instead, their March 2023 EP, The Condemned, contained four original pieces: ranging from the title track’s dark electro-pop to the Motorik Happy Mondays vibe of “Dim Byd Mawr.” The following six months saw them issue seven preview singles ahead of their debut album, each hinting at its diverse nature. While June’s “A Ride” displayed busy, bubbling, squelching electronics, August’s “Pain Down the Drain” was built around the main motif from Richard Fleischer’s 1958 film, The Vikings. Das Koolies’ double LP, DK.01, arrived in September 2023, and was promoted with a three-date U.K. record shop tour — it reached the Top Ten of the U.K. album chart. ~ James Wilkinson