Welsh Musicians Collaborate on Refugee Charity Album ‘Reach Out’

reach out welsh rock for refguees

How did you feel when the severity of the current refugee crisis truly hit home with you? How did you feel when those distressing photos hit the press, and the stories of these refugees became all too painfully real to you?

If your answer, among any number of other feelings, was helpless, you’re not alone. There seems to be an awful lot of that going around lately. Journalist David Owens found himself succumbing to the helplessness blues. Speaking to Wales Online, for whom he is music writer, Owens said;

“I was one of those who shed tears at the harrowing images. As a father it broke my heart. I wanted to do something but like many of us felt utterly powerless.”

However, in the face of all this ongoing tragedy and his own sense of helplessness, Owens felt compelled to action, to switch from helpless to helpful in any way he could. Now, for most of us, that’d mean making donations, signing petitions, supporting grass roots groups and campaigns, maybe even buying specific, and needed, items to send out for refugees. Some might go so far as joining volunteer organisations. When it came to David Owens taking action, it meant getting in touch with some of the biggest and brightest Welsh music stars, in the hopes of rounding them up for a charity album. Well, I’ll let Owens speak for himself when it comes to how that went;

“In the space of a week the Welsh music community has stood together as one. It’s been a labour of love and this album would never have come together if it wasn’t for those who went out of their way to ensure this collection of songs became a reality in less than seven days.”

It makes you proud to be Welsh, don’t it? I mean, if you are Welsh that is, and there’s a significant chance that you aren’t. I am though, so… Go Wales! Woo! Ahem, anyhoo, the album features an impressive list of thirty acts contributing songs, that include big name bands like the Manic Street Preachers, Super Furry Animals, and Stereophonics, alongside well known singers such as Charlotte Church and Cerys Matthews, as well as renowned indie acts like The Joy Formidable, Paper Aeroplanes, and Grant Nicholas of Feeder. There’s also rising stars with the likes of The People The Poet, Climbing Trees, and Houdini Dax, and some special treats in the shape of Amy Wadge’s original version of ‘Thinking Out Loud’, and Game of Thrones star Iwan Rheon (Ramsay Bolton) refraining from flaying for more than five minutes contributing some delicate Welsh folk.

With all proceedings from this album going directly to Refugee Action, if you’re still feeling a little helpless, you could do a lot worse than donate and download a copy of this compilation. It’s not just about this current refugee crisis though, because it’s not the first and it, unfortunately, most-certainly, won’t be the last, and charities like Refugee Action need all the help they can get. There may not always be a ‘refugee crisis’, but there will always be refugees in crisis. Go to the album’s Bandcamp page, donate, download. It’s as easy as that.

Here’s the full track-list of new songs, B-sides, rarities, live performances, and acoustic/special renditions;

1. Frisbee – Super Furry Animals

2. New Loafers – 60ft Dolls

3. Roll On Up – Houdini Dax

4. You Taught Me – The Joy Formidable

5. Thinking Out Loud – Amy Wadge

6. 5c Cotton 40c Beef – Cian Ciaran

7. Graves – Climbing Trees

8. Devastation – Pale Blue Dots

9. The Surgeon – Euros Childs

10. Sbia ar y Seren – Georgia Ruth

11. Lines & Angles – Ellie Makes Music

12. Vast – Gulp

13. Chwyldro (R.Seiliog remix) – Gwenno

14. You’re My Star (Live) – Stereophonics

15. Miller (Live at The Gate) – Zervas & Pepper

16. Caer O Feddyliau – Kizzy Crawford

17. Refugees In The West World – Mike Peters

18. Box – Charlotte Church

19. Hippos – Cerys Matthews

20. Lost Tribes (Tomas Barford Remix) – Gruff Rhys

21. Alcohol Kiss – Trampolene

22. Goldrush (Acoustic) – Paper Aeroplanes

23. Guillotine (featuring Lillian Todd) – Sion Russell Jones

24. Rhodd – Iwan Rheon and Aled Rheon

25. Safe In Place – Grant Nicholas

26. Liberty Rd – The Earth

27. No Borders – Zefur Wolves

28. Redesign – Jayce Lewis and Gary Numan

29. Molly (Acoustic) – The People The Poet

30. William’s Last Words (Underworld mix r37br11) – Manic Street Preachers

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