An award-winning indie-folk band is launching their debut album this month.

Lo-fi Jones, the creation of brothers Siôn and Liam Rickard, Rolando Bertrand Ruiz and Badger Brown, has been described as an ‘excellent home brew’ by BBC’s Adam Walton; ‘take one sip, and it might take you somewhere you weren’t expecting’ - words that ring true for this record.

When they’re not winning at the National Eisteddfod and Ireland’s Pan-Celtic Festival, they can be found performing around the Dyfi Valley with their eclectic, multilingual sound.

Lo-fi Jones is going on tour across Wales to launch their debut album, Coming Swn.
Lo-fi Jones is going on tour across Wales to launch their debut album, Coming Swn. (Lo-fi Jones)

Their long-awaited debut album Coming Sŵn launches on 12 June at art space Sploj, followed by a national tour.

Speaking about the album, lead vocalist Siôn, who also plays harmonica, accordion and saxophone, said: “Some songs were written when we were teenagers; others are much newer.

“We’re chaotic, obsessive, and it’s probably a miracle we finished the record — but we’re excited about what comes next.”

Mostly recorded at Borth’s Our Lady Studio, the album opens with a rhythmic, syncopated thrum of nylon strings as fiddle and harmonica deliver an upbeat rendition of ‘Diofal yw’r Aderyn’.

Badger Brown plays bass and fiddle, Siôn Rickard on lead vocals, harmonica, accordion and saxophone, Rolando Bertrand Ruiz on (sometimes simultaneous) bass and drums, and Liam Rickard on vocals, guitar, piano and synth.
Badger Brown plays bass and fiddle, Siôn Rickard on lead vocals, harmonica, accordion and saxophone, Rolando Bertrand Ruiz on (sometimes simultaneous) bass and drums, and Liam Rickard on vocals, guitar, piano and synth. (Mimi Tŷ Meirion)

The band then veer off the beaten track, moving between genres and moods — playful, lyrical, reflective, and subversive.

Original songs tackle everything from broken toasters to refugees, climate change, and the language, landscapes and communities of Wales.

Founded in 2020, Lo-fi Jones weaves seamlessly between Welsh, English, Spanish and French.

Rolando, on bass and drums, said: “With the music we make, we want to take the Welsh heritage — the folk, the stories, the storytelling of the people and Cymru — and bring it to life through the visions of people from different backgrounds, like myself, from Nicaragua.

“Channelling the contemporary stories we all carry, through the language of the land.”

Buy the album in local shops or via their website - musicglue.com/lofijones