Super Furry Animals frontman Gruff Rhys is to release his debut solo album - 'Yr Atal Genhedlaeth' - on Jan 2005. The album's 11 songs were recorded with Gorwel Owen at Stiwdio Ofn at various points during spring and summer 2004.
Meanwhile, the Super Furries have also released full details of their sold-out Lightning Fryday event, which will take place on 1 Oct at London's Royal Festival Hall. It starts at 6.30pm, and SFA will play two sets across three rooms in the venue. The band will be joined by a supporting cast featuring Zabrinski, bravecaptain, Richard James from Gorky's Zygotic Mynci and Mugison. There will also be a chance for fans to confess all sins to Howard Marks in the Howard Marks Confessional Booth. Surprise guest DJs will appear, and there will be visual performances and art installations by Pete Fowler and Mark James. A few extra tickets will be released at 3pm on the day of the show. The band will also appear at Cardiff Point Theatre on 30 Sep as a warm up for Lightning Fryday. Tickets, priced will go on sale at 9am on Friday (24 Sep) exclusively from Spillers Records in Cardiff.
SFA are also hard at work on their seventh studio album - the follow up to 2003's 'Phantom Power' - to be released during spring 2005. Frontman Rhys told NME recently that the album "has an orchestral feel to it". The band's hits compilation 'Songbook - The Singles Volume One' is released on 4 Oct.