Ritzy Bryan of The Joy Formidable (Live on KEXP 2011)

New Video: The Joy Formidable Share Expansive, Mind-Bending "Share My Heat"

New Video: The Joy Formidable Shares Expansive, Mind-Bending "Share My Heat" @joyformidable @fulltimehobby @hasslerecords @clarioncallpr @imtherealcb

Splitting their time between Northern Wales and Utah, the celebrated alt rock outfit The Joy Formidable — Ritzy Bryan (vocals, guitar), Rhydian Daybed (bass, vocals) and Matt Thomas (drums) — have managed to remain close to their loyal fanbase: Back in 2019, they launched TJF Music Club with members able to request backstage access, watch online shows and get exclusive songs and merchandise.…

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The Joy Formidable Release Album Date and Leeds Gig

Welsh alternative rock trio The Joy Formidable have released a brand new single today. Entitled Cut Your Face, it is the first of three to be issued ahead of a UK tour in September. “Cut Your Face is a reminder to myself that even in shyness, when that voice is telling you to hide away, that what I really want is deep, authentic connection,” states singer Ritzy Bryan. “The only way to satisfy…

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REVIEW: THE JOY FORMIDABLE SMASH YOU WITH THE SEEMING FLAP OF AAARTH FEATHER ON NEW ALBUM

The Joy Formidable have now reached that fourth album point.  The new album, AAARTH, out today (September 28), is released via label, Hassle Records. The Welsh trio have combined the “whispering hills of Wales with the otherworldly rainbow canyons of the Utah/Arizona border”, hence the cornucopia of colour on their rather striking album cover.  The running theme seems to be that of rebirth and transformation, taking in the sights of said border and its Shamanistic influence.  Regarding this latest effort, AAARTH, lead singer and guitarist, Ritzy Bryan, really delves that little bit deeper into what exactly made the record the way it is: “I see it in my lyrics, a lot of the imagery plays on being ambivalent because I’m often expressing a lot of things at once. That’s true of the title; it falls somewhere between a scream, an exaltation, a play on words, and then this motif of the bear (“arth” in Welsh) that spiritually represents strength, wisdom & healing,” she says. They cater for a variety of tastes, this reviewer citing nu-metal influences plus rap metal acts such as Rage Against The Machine.  They played a sold-out show at Robert Smith’s Meltdown Festival recently, and supported Foo Fighters on tour having done their Reading and Leeds Festival mainstage slots this summer; proving their repertoire to be wider ranging than just the aforementioned. Singles for it are “Dance Of The Lotus”, “The Wrong Side” and “The Better Me”. They’ve got your attention in “Y Bluen Eira (The Snowflake)”, which opens with jarring skipping before going headlong into tribal, emphatic drum and deadly guitar.  Almost nu-metal in execution.  Then crazy, Rage Against The Machine guitar histrionics.  It hammers and hammers to crescendo.  The vocals are almost delicate, totally at odds with the instrumental backdrop. Things then strip back, relatively calm until the freight train, freakish speeding drums jar like the track began. You’re on the “The Wrong Side”, next.  This’s also quite heavy, tales of Mexicans probably on the wrong side of the border and having to scale Trump’s massive wall at an attempt to a better life.  Tom Morello twiddling on the guitar, once again.  A solo on said instrument punctuating stomping drum.  Things ring out and guitar scratches abruptly, screeching like a cry for help on the border. “Go Loving” with them, now. This’s groovy, dirty and relentless. Bass is cyclical, crawling up and down that neck with expert alacrity.  Things pare back in order for the dainty vocals to be heard, before all crashes in again.  Tinkling piano fights to be heard until granted breathing space for a rather quiet ending. Then comes “Cicada (Land On Your Back)”.  It’s ominous, with an Eastern feel that’s “crossing the sand”.  Middle Eastern, to be exact.  This also has a dirty groove to it, too.  Even the instrumentation is local to the feel, whether sitar or other appropriate instrument.  Rumbling bass feels like tanks rolling upon scorched sands and lands hunting for tyrants when they’ve arguably got their own at home. “All In All” is childlike, innocent and with an earnest yearning.  Percussion in the guise of the xylophone definitely reinforces this. Guitar ascends cyclically, dreamlike and ethereal like a subverted lullaby.  Haunted beyond the midway, gradually crashing and ascending into oblivion. Lead guitar screeches as if trying to reach and smash through a glass dome.  A cacophony that also manages to sound triumphant. “What For”, next.  This opens with a confusing announcement from the announcer at what’s an arena, perhaps.  The riff that ensues really drops, urging you take leave of your senses and go mad.  All underpinned by determined drum, bobbing and weaving bass plus a vocal slightly harder edged than usual.  When combined with that raucous guitar, it’s an aural sight to behold.  Things slow to a whisper after midway, before getting moody and bringing it all up, again. It fades into computed interference before ending. “The Better Me” has strings that assure you this one will be pretty.  Rude guitar interrupts this thought.  However, the arrangement is quite sparse, not much punctuating the drum. “You can only try” exemplifies delving into determination and, therefore the better me.  The guitar growls like a wildcat, the dynamics pounding home as the whole thing drops out only to assail you when you’d least expect it. The honesty of “Absence” is truly unabashed and yearning.  Piano, delicate vocal.  The whole thing dizzying, cyclical, beautiful and feminine. The drama escalates as if to say she can’t cope with the absence of her other half, she’ll pursue them to the other side of the world just to tell them so.  What’s the “Dance Of The Lotus”?  A trippy scene to begin with, before coming in heavy and brutal. Morello seems back in spirit, before pulsing, driving and moody.  Chugging, overdriven and just a tad dangerous.  High register bass joins guitar solo before the whole arrangement hammers back in.  The picture painted is desolate, dying in punishing heat.  Heat of the scorched sands and lands explored earlier in the album, “Cicada (Land On Your Back)”. “You Can’t Give Me” has drum opening this rather despondent track, all coming together to be an almost snarling, punky kind of number.  “The choice is in my hand” seems to hint at self-determination, despite what she says, you can’t give me.  Is her life in the hands of herself, or other vital people in her life? The middle climaxes in cacophony before giving way to a brief moment in time that’s truly silent.  Even the tinkling piano is high intensity, tense and highly strung. Come “Caught On A Breeze” you know the album’s end is nigh.  It’s funky and broody with the bass and drum locking tight, syncopated and hugely satisfying.  Tribal like “Y Bluen Eira (The Snowflake)” to some extent, doubly proving the symmetry of the whole thing coming together as one fluid and coherent piece.  Sinister whispers conspire like voices in your head to leave you totally overcome and in need of desperate help.  Her subsequent sultry voice leaves you infatuated and, to be frank, under her spell. Lookout for “Y Bluen Eira (The Snowflake)”, “Cicada (Land On Your Back)”, “What For” and “Caught On A Breeze”.  These tracks particularly are exceptional.  The others are no mean feat, neither.  The mix of hard and brutal instrumentation and generally soft and delicate vocal make for a potent mix.  These particular tracks spread across the start, middle and end of the album, proving how well, consistent and coherent it comes together as one single piece of work. More so when you consider how well “Cicada (Land On Your Back)” and “Dance Of The Lotus” link together, plus how “Y Bluen Eira (The Snowflake)” and “Caught On A Breeze” link together to create true symmetry.  Evocative imagery enters your mind in the first instance, scorched earth policies of militaristic war campaigns; with the tribalism of the drums in particular in the latter instance. The Joy Formidable know dynamics; hard and soft, heavy and light.  Without this, there’s no diversity.  Thankfully knowing these dynamics makes the band a cut above the rest.  So refreshing that they handle sounds eschewed by many in the approximate genre. It’s not dumb rock, quite intelligent in fact, but there are times they’re unashamed to play ugly, visceral and satisfyingly head banging riffs.  And long may it continue.  The Joy Formidable’s AAARTH can be bought on iTunes, here.

The Joy Formidable. The Hollow Bar, Albany NY, 12/7/19.

Last night at Rough Trade NYC: The Joy Formidable (061219)  

The Joy Formidable — Into the Blue (Enci)

Into The Blue by The Joy Formidable

The Joy Formidable make a super clear, super clean version of indie rock where everything gleams and reverberates. The sound benefits equally from Ritzy Bryan’s pop exuberant vocal delivery and her gnarly, riff-centric guitar; the two things ought to be at odds, but somehow aren’t. Arena-friendly choruses stream out of the scratchy, howling string-work; the songs pound hard with big muscular bass lines (that’s co-founder Rhydian Dafydd) and reverb-accentuated drums (Matt Thomas). It’s a bit too glossy for me, but not objectionable. The brute force of “Chimes,” for instance, is polished like a mirror, but remains authentically powerful.

Into the Blue is the Welsh duo’s fifth full-length album, and like most of the music we’re listening to these days, it has a COVID backstory. Early in 2020, Bryant and Dafydd made what they thought would be a quick trip to Bryant’s home in Utah, planning to pick up some gear and fly back to record in Wales. But when the pandemic hit, they were stuck in the desert. Fortunately, though, they were together and had access to instruments and recording equipment, so they began laying down tracks anyway. The songs reflect this difficult period; though themes of blockage and confusion thread through this album, there is also a palpable sense of getting on with it, of forging ahead regardless, of carefully conserving one’s optimism amid recurring challenges. In the spirited “Interval,” for instance, Bryant sings, “don’t think about it, it’s a crossroads, for me, just look around it, it’s an interval, before I leave.” But she’s not doing the song in a mope-y, introspective way; the drums thunder, the guitar screams, the melody explodes with crisp, confident energy.

Perhaps the most obvious way that this album reflects the COVID lockdown, however, is in its weirder, more idiosyncratic second half, which is, incidentally, the best part of the record. Bryan cuts her clarion voice to a whisper in moody, drum-crashing, “Gotta Feed My Dog,” putting a scrim of mystery what has been, to this point, crowd-pleasing anthemry.  (The song also nods to the 19 dogs Bryant has fostered over the lockdown period; she’s not kidding about having pups to feed.) It is followed by the languid, Spanish-guitar flourishing, “Somewhere,” where Dafydd sings in a surprising vulnerable, lyrical way, and then, the balls-out synth-blues-boogie of “Bring It to the Front.” The back end of Into the Blue is all over the map, in other words, and that’s a good thing.

Jennifer Kelly

OK, August 31

You can buy a copy of this issue for your very own at my eBay store: https://www.ebay.com/str/bradentonbooks

Cover: Bindi Irwin’s baby surprise -- twins

Page 2: Contents 

Page 3: Contents 

Page 4: Kim Kardashian and Kanye West’s make-or-break vacation with their kids to the Dominican Republic -- Kim and Kanye may have saved their crumbling relationship 

Page 6: Amber Heard and ex-husband Johnny Depp’s nasty courtroom bombshells made headlines across the globe but now that the case has wrapped up the actress is ready to move forward 

Page 7: After temporarily living in a few of their friends’ properties Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have finally purchased a home of their own which is a jaw-dropping $14.7 million estate in the ritzy Santa Barbara enclave of Montecito and they intend to make this their forever home, Cameron Diaz confessed she felt at peace with her decision to ditch the Hollywood scene in favor of motherhood but that lifestyle change came a shake-up in her social circle because Cameron can’t be bothered with people she sees as superficial, Paris Jackson’s inner circle is concerned about her mental health in the wake of her sudden split from beau of two years Gabriel Glenn because she’s already such a fragile character so a ton of people worry she won’t be able to cope without Gabriel by her side 

Page 8: After a few tough years Lisa Marie Presley is ready to leave L.A. and head to Graceland because she’s convinced that being close to her dad Elvis Presley’s spirit is the best shot she has at getting her life back on track, January Jones is known for keeping her personal life private she’s recently turned over a new leaf and is ready to spill her best-kept secrets in a juicy memoir but the name of the father of her son Xander probably won’t make it into the book, though Ben Affleck and Matt Damon have been best buds for decades Ben’s girlfriend Ana de Armas has no interest in getting to know Matt’s wife Luciana Barroso -- the guys hoped they’d hit it off but Luciana thinks Ana is an opportunist and Ana snipes that Luciana is stuck up

Page 10: Red Hot on the Red Carpet -- stars reign supreme in purple -- Keke Palmer, Karlie Kloss 

Page 11: Tracee Ellis Ross, Carrie Underwood 

Page 12: Who Wore It Better? Diane Kruger vs. Cindy Bruna, Padma Lakshmi vs. Katharine McPhee Foster 

Page 14: News in Photos -- Kylie Jenner in L.A. on her birthday 

Page 15: Pierce Brosnan and son Paris on the golf course, Joy Bauer after taking a yoga class, Kate Hudson showed off her green juice, Serena Williams while dressing up in princess costumes with daughter Alexis 

Page 16: Drab to Fab -- dropping the extra weight gave these celebs a boost of confidence -- Adele, Ben Affleck, Kelly Osbourne 

Page 18: Sarah Hyland and Wells Adams on the day they were supposed to get married, Gabrielle Union and Dwyane Wade and daughter Kaavia, Reese Witherspoon and her affectionate dog Lou, Britney Spears and Sam Asghari riding bikes with masks on 

Page 20: Alessandra Ambrosio played volleyball on the beach, Rita Ora lounging during a vacation in Ibiza

Page 21: Gordon Ramsay gave son Oscar a lift while exploring the coastline near their new home in Cornwall, David Beckham at the beach in Greece, RHONJ star Melissa Gorga tried on a swimsuit while taping promos for the Bravo reality show

Page 22: Mayim Bialik and her cat Addie promoting Royal Canin’s Take Your Cat to the Vet campaign, pro wrestler Ariane Andrew out and about in L.A., Mark Wahlberg and wife Rhea Durham during a family day at the lake 

Page 24: Lynette Barbieri and Raffaela Pontecorvo and Vanessa Coppes and Jennifer DeCillis and Amanda Ringel at Bella Magazine’s eighth annual Hamptons Cover Lunch, Shia LaBeouf played it up for the cameras while on a jog, pregnant Katy Perry took a quick snooze while shopping for baby supplies 

Page 25: Kevin Hart running errands in L.A., Kristen Taekman modeled a pair of overalls for her blog, Bachelor in Paradise alums Hannah Godwin and Dylan Barbour showed off their silly sides while shooting a video for Dr. Scholl’s 

Page 26: Inside My Home -- Selena Gomez’s expansive estate -- check out the star’s plush new pad 

Page 28: Chip and Joanna Gaines are no longer seeing eye to eye when it comes to their future -- Joanna isn’t thrilled about the revival of Fixer Upper and they’ve been bickering since Chip signed the deal 

Page 29: Taylor Swift’s boyfriend Joe Alwyn will star alongside brunette beauty Emma Mackey in a biopic centered on Wuthering Heights author Emily Bronte and although filming won’t commence until next year Taylor is already sweating bullets -- she trusts Joe but this will be the first time in literally years they’ll have to be apart for a while and the idea of him spending all that time with someone as beautiful and charming as Emma has her anxious 

Page 30: After nearly four years together Mariah Carey and Bryan Tanaka are ready to become husband and wife, Sacha Baron Cohen has been working nonstop since the lockdown started to lift leaving wife Isla Fisher to do all the heavy lifting at home with their three kids all under the age of 13, Love Bites -- Jennifer Garner and John Miller split, Chris Pratt and Katherine Schwarzenegger welcomed a baby girl, Duff Goldman and wife Johnna Colbry are expecting their first child 

Page 32: Cover Story -- Bindi Irwin’s big surprise -- mom-to-be Bindi is pregnant with twins 

Page 36: Close Calls -- these stars cheated death -- Jennifer Aniston, Antonio Banderas 

Page 37: Rachel Bilson, Sharon Stone, Leonardo DiCaprio 

Page 38: The Next Generation -- get to know the talented up-and-coming stars who are taking Hollywood by storm -- Joey King, Chase Stokes, Halle Bailey, Charles Melton 

Page 39: Hayley Kiyoko, Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, Zendaya, Lucas Hedges 

Page 40: Interview -- Keanu Reeves -- the veteran actor opens up about his reputation for being one of the sweetest stars around 

Page 42: Beach Body Winners -- how these stunning stars stay in swimsuit shape -- Brooke Shields, Julianne Hough, Olivia Culpo 

Page 43: Nina Agdal, Carrie Underwood, Jessie James Decker 

Page 46: Style Week -- Swimsuits for All and Ashley Graham have collaborated once again on a supersexy collection of size-inclusive swimwear 

Page 48: What’s Hot Right Now -- elevate your look with products from these empowering female-owned beauty brands -- Tracee Ellis Ross, Amy Schumer is bringing a little humor to a serious topic in hopes of making period conversation as normal as periods 

Page 49: Foot Notes -- fashionable footwear 

Page 50: Say Anything -- make a bold statement in a cheeky graphic tee -- Yara Shahidi 

Page 52: Beauty -- Chill Out -- beat the heat and humidity with these cooling beauty products -- Sofia Richie 

Page 54: Entertainment 

Page 55: Q&A -- Elizabeth Pipko 

Page 58: Buzz -- just got paid -- Forbes reveals which actors earned the most money from June 2019 to June 2020 -- Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Ryan Reynolds, Mark Wahlberg, Ben Affleck, Vin Diesel 

Page 60: Sound Bites -- Jason Sudeikis on being a father, Kelly Clarkson on daughter River, Ariana Grande on Lady Gaga accidentally scratching her face while rehearsing their Rain on Me music video, Ben Schwartz, Kate Hudson on what she tells herself when she’s stressed 

Page 61: Tamera Mowry asked if she wanted a quarantine baby, Gwen Stefani correcting Dua Lipa who thought she was married to Blake Shelton, Simon Cowell after breaking his back in a cycling accident, Kate Bosworth on whether she’s willing to do a Blue Crush sequel, Bruno Mars on songwriting 

Page 62: Horoscope -- Virgo LeAnn Rimes turned 38 on August 28 

Page 64: By the Numbers -- Linda Cardellini 

The Joy Formidable on Audiotree Live (Full Session)

Welsh indie rockers The Joy Formidable perform a nice four track acoustic set for Audiotree. Recorded on December 12, 2019 in Chicago, IL. The band consists of Rhiannon "Ritzy" Bryan, Rhydian Dafydd and Matthew James Thomas.

Setlist

Y Golau Mwyaf yw'r Cysgod Mwyaf

Austere

While the Flies

Cicada (Land on Your Back)

The Joy Formidable Play Music Hall of Williamsburg Thursday Night

Influenced by the likes of Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Arcade Fire and My Bloody Valentine, the Joy Formidable—Ritzy Bryan (vocals and guitar), Rhydian Dafydd (bass) and Matt Thomas (drums)—have been making what Pitchfork calls “their atomic fusion of Britpop-scaled anthemery and post-shoegaze overdrive” since forming in 2007. The Welsh trio are in fine form on their fourth long-player, Aaarth (stream it here), out in late September. “Aaarth may be their most immediate and cacophonous effort to date, pairing palm-muted riffs and explosive percussion with dynamic electronic flourishes,” says AllMusic. “That Aaarth feels cathartic comes as no surprise, as the trio have long been purveyors of both aural and emotional heft, but this time around they’ve managed to crystallize both aesthetics into something truly sublime.” With their American tour soon coming to a close, the Joy Formidable play Music Hall of Williamsburg on Friday night. Tancred open the show.

The Joy Formidable Announce Leeds Date

The Joy Formidable Announce Leeds Date

Welsh alternative rock trio The Joy Formidable have announced a set of UK tour dates for March 2023, followed by a very special orchestral night at the Clapham Grand in London in May. The Cradle You Again Tour is “a collective ‘cwtch’ to all our fans & a thank you for supporting us across the years” (Ritzy Bryan). The band will come to Leeds at The Wardrobe on 18th March 2023.

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Gallery: The Joy Formidable @ Fox Cabaret - Vancouver, BC Date: October 27th, 2018 Photographed by: Ray Maichin

The Joy Formidable najavljuju novu ploču

The Joy Formidable najavljuju novu ploču

Alternativni rok sastav The Joy Formidable predstavili su novi singl “The Wrong Side” kojim najavljuju novi album “AAARTH”. (more…)

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