The arrival of ‘Discombobulated’ marks a fascinating and disorienting milestone for the avant-garde collective Hen Ogledd. As a project defined by its rejection of easy categorization, this release sees the core ensemble of Richard Dawson, Rhodri Davies, Dawn Bothwell, and Sally Pilkington delving deeper into a surrealist exploration of sound. The record functions as a hall of mirrors where traditional folk influences are refracted through a lens of glitchy electronics and jagged improvisation, resulting in a work that is as intellectually demanding as it is strangely alluring.
The architectural instability of the record is largely driven by the vocal contributions of Bothwell, whose mastery of looping and real-time sampling creates a dizzying narrative feedback loop. While Dawson often provides a visceral, earthy vocal presence, Bothwell acts as the digital ghost in the machine, catching fragments of melody and repeating them until they take on a ritualistic intensity. This approach is immediately evident in “Nell’s prologue,” where voice and electronics are indistinguishable, setting a surrealist tone that carries into the unsettling clarity of “Scales will fall.” In this track, Davies provides a cascading foundation on the harp that is periodically interrupted by sharp, percussive strikes, mirroring the lyrical themes of sudden realization and shifting perspectives.
As the album progresses, “Dead in a post-truth world” emerges as a central pillar of the band’s philosophical inquiry. It is a dense, rhythmically complex composition that grapples with the disintegration of objective reality, using dissonance to reflect the cognitive load of the digital age. The use of repetitive sampling here becomes a biting metaphor for modern echo chambers, with voices spliced and stuttered to create a sense of linguistic collapse. This tension is strategically softened by “Clara,” a piece where Pilkington’s melodic sensibilities provide a vital anchor. Her ability to weave accessible, hauntingly beautiful synth lines through the chaos ensures the record remains grounded in a human core, even as the instrumentation around her threatens to fragment.
The record finds its most frantic expression in “End of the rhythm,” a track that lives up to its name by dismantling traditional meter. Here, the musicians engage in a frantic exchange where the boundaries between the various instruments blur into a singular, vibrating mass of sound. This chaos is followed by the linguistic and sonic richness of “Amser a ddengys.” By incorporating Welsh themes, the band honors their namesake (the Old North), while remaining firmly rooted in a futuristic aesthetic.
In the latter half of the release, “Clear pools” offers a brief, shimmering respite, acting as a reflective surface for the listener to catch their breath before the final descent. The album concludes with “Land of the dead,” where Davies’ harp takes on a ghostly, skeletal quality, providing a final, echoing reminder of the ancient world peering through a digital veil. ‘Discombobulated’ is not an album designed for casual consumption; it is a challenging, brilliant, and utterly original document of a band that refuses to stand still, proving that Hen Ogledd remains one of the most vital forces in contemporary experimental music.
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