At Least It's Not The End Of The World: A Brief Review Of The 20th Anniversary Reissue Of Rings Around The World By Super Furry Animals

On September 11, 2001, as the planes were hitting the twin towers on TV, I was listening to "It's Not The End of the World?" by Super Furry Animals. I hadn't put on the song on purpose as the news filtered in, but it just timed out that way. I was on my way to work and stopping at the bank first. I had ordered the UK CD of Rings Around the World from Amazon UK. It had come the night before and I'd taped it to listen to in the car, fresh as they say. I didn't have a CD player in my car and streaming wasn't a real option then. So I'd seen the first plane hit on the TV news as I left home, and then, as I was in line at the bank and just about up to "It's Not The End of the World?", the cell phone rang with family members urging me to turn on the news and come back home. Since I worked a mile away from the Pentagon, that was probably a good idea.

Little did they know, but the Furries had soundtracked a near-apocalypse.

As the world changed, and things got worse everywhere, and a war started in Afghanistan, folks looked to this latest Super Furry Animals release with a sort of resignation. At least I did. Songs like "Fragile Happiness" and "Shoot Doris Day" sounded lovely and a bit sad. While some of the record was buoyant and playful ("Juxtaposed with U", and the McCartney-featuring "Receptacle for the Respectable"), lots more was elegantly sanguine. It sounded as if the Furries were trying to hum a tune as the world burned. And in September 2001 that was exactly what a lot of people needed.

And that's a long way of introducing the new Rings Around The World - 20th Anniversary edition, out tomorrow. As they've done with previous album reissues, the Furries have packaged this one up with an abundance of flip-sides, demos, rarities, and the like. And while there's more than enough to enjoy here, it's always a pleasure to dive back into the original 2001 release and remember how much the world's changed since.

But it's also worth remembering how the sound of this group had progressed in just a half-dozen years or so. From Beatles-esque ravings, they were working with a real Beatle, and unlike nearly any other Creation Records band who namechecked the Velvet Underground, they were actually recording with a member of the band on this one. In 2001, I was still in touch with John Cale via a very weird set of work circumstances, and I can remember asking him on the phone about Gruff, Bunf, Daf, Guto, and Cian, and hearing him, in his own thick Welsh accent, rave about what fine musicians they were. His appearance and McCartney's on Rings Around The World got the record more attention in some quarters than earlier SFA records might have, but it didn't really change much for long-time fans. After all, we always knew the Furries were geniuses, but now we were hearing the heavies acknowledge it with their participation. And hearing the Furries progress enormously thanks to complex and stately numbers here like "Presidential Suite", "Run Christian Run!", and "Fragile Happiness", one of their best numbers as far as I'm concerned.

Of the B-sides collected here, "The Roman Road" from the "It's Not The End of the World?" single is a nice ramble, sounding more like something from an earlier SFA record than something from this one, while "Tradewinds", from the "Juxtaposed with U" single, is all Beach Boys goodness. "Patience", from the Rings Around the World DVD, creates a delicious sense of unease, while the peppy "Edam Anchorman", from the "(Drawing) Rings Around The World" single, is a delight, possessing the sort of invention and wit the earliest SFA singles had. Those are all here, along with demos of the album tracks. Of the outtakes, the funky "John Spex" and the epic "Miami Vice", a proto-"Slow Life" are essential for sure.

Buttressed with more than two dozens remixes, this 20th anniversary edition of Rings Around the World is the definitive version of the album. And while I'm usually not one to rave about remixes, I'd say that if The High Llamas, Brave Captain (Martin Car of The Boo Radleys), and Catatonia, among others, are willing to remix your work, it's probably a good sign. Still, focus in on the album proper first as it retains a consistency that's simply amazing. I probably still prefer Radiator a bit more, but I cannot deny just how perfectly this one flows, especially now thanks to the remastering job by Donal Whelan here on this edition. Rings Around the World is nearly a suite, with each cut easing into the next with the sort of naturalness that indicated then, in 2001, that this band was hitting some kind of peak. Of course, the members went on to interesting projects, and the group itself kept making records, but Rings Around the World, a release from the last summer before 9/11, is a special thing, if not the band's objective best by any reasonable measure.

Rings Around the World - 20th Anniversary Edition is out tomorrow everywhere.

More details on the adventures of Super Furry Animals via SuperFurry.com.

Tune in to a night of special broadcasting for the 20th anniversary of Rings Around the World via the Super Furry Animals feed here.

Super Furry Animals merchandise can be purchased via the official store.

Band Image: Frederike Helwig