We Went Riding, my second album, was released on 21 June 2010.
You can buy it here:
Sadwrn (online Welsh music shop) /
Amazon /
Play.com /
hmv.com
or you can download it on iTunes
The single "When You See Me (In the Pouring Rain)" won single of the week on Radcliffe and Maconie's Radio 2 show for w/c 14th June and We Went Riding is Album of the Day on BBC 6 Music on 30 June.
Reviews for We Went Riding
Mojo:
“Brilliantly constructed pop gems from Zygotic Mynci.he’s matured into an inventive songwriter and is long overdue for greater recognition. This second solo album is chock full of perfect pop songs couched in country, Welsh folk and punk flourishes and all with a strong sense of James’s charisma at their core. With songs like these, it can only be a matter of time before the world becomes aware of how talented Richard James is.” 4/5
NME:
“Ex-Gorky’s Zygotic Mynci man RJ’s June-bound album “We Went Riding” is set to prove that you can make amazing modern folk music.”
NME:
“Former Gorky’s Zygotic Mynci man James is the master of that sort of gently eerie psych-folk whimsy that is to Wales what khol-eyed chilly ‘60s pop pastiche is to Sweden.Definitely hot to trot.” 8/10
The Times:
"Richard James.makes the craft of songwriting seem so easy. Anyone wanting to know the secret of the perfect pop song should wrap their ears around the countrified gorgeousness of When You See Me in the Pouring Rain. Amid the gently strummed folk gems James lobs in the odd curveball, such as the scuzzy psych rocker Faces, while Cate Le Bon is Nico to his Lou Reed on the sublime album closer, From Morning Sunshine". 4/5
Freq: "We Went Riding is a warm and irresistible trove of delights that I will continue to listen to over and over for sheer pleasure – and so should you."
BBC:
“an artist who knows when best to stay in the shadows, as well as saunter to the stage, which says much about his musical past, as well as his beguiling present. Long may he continue to take us with him, in and out of the spotlight, wherever he goes. On the strength of this record, it is time for his talents to be recognised in their own right.”
Mercury Music Prize website, album recommendations: "Channeling Welsh Folk music through Psychedelic Rock, Gorky's Zygotic Mynci were quite apart from the rest of the music that helped shape the sound of the Nineties, and as such will always be celebrated as cult heroes. With his new solo material, however, founding member Richard James has struck on something much more accessible, but still just as imaginative. He is joined on this new album by Cate Le Bon and fellow Gorky's bandmate Euros Childs."
Uncut:
“It’s been three years since the charming The Seven Sleepers Den, and while this has much the same air of romanticism, there’s a fuller ensemble sound, shaken up by a few more raucous songs, including the rackety “Blues (Hey Hey Hey)”. Overall, James’s forte is blissful melancholy, his sometimes cautious singing bolstered by former bandmate Euros Childs and kindred spirit Cate Le Bon, who sings delightful closer “From Morning Sunshine”.” 4/5
Artrocker:
"It sounds predictably fantastic. This lead off single is one of those weird instances where minor chords make you happy: a farewell in the rain kind of affair, tearful but ultimately well-wishing. Welcome back, Mr James." 4/5
iTunes, What's Hot ("You Stop the Rain"): "The co-founder of much missed Welsh indie legends Gorky's Zygotic Mynci returns with a new, weirdly wonderful and typically idiosyncratic new album, entitled We Went Riding. The album features Cate Le Bon and former Gorky's cohort Euros Childs. "You Stop the Rain" is a very lovely ditty with a psychadelic dusting that raises it well above the ordinary"
Miniature Music Press:
“We Went Riding is laced with music that stains the imagination, with imagery embroidered in melancholy feeling like a sunset goodbye in Alberta. Frankly outstanding stuff.” 4.6/5
Buzz Magazine:
“Ex-Gorky’s Zygotic Mynci bassist Richard James follows the quiet folk loveliness of solo debut The Seven Sleepers Den with the equally lovely but often less quiet We Went Riding. The gentle acoustic tunes are here aplenty, but sit alongside some surprising shots of psychedelic alt-pop.Summer on a silver disc.” 4/5
music OMH:
“an explorative, cosy blend of surprising folky-pop hooks. From the off, it wraps you up in a blanket of warmth. Like Gorky's at their best, We Went Riding is upbeat with a sprinkling of melancholy and edges to the left of centre, firing the imagination.” 4/5
Culture Deluxe:
“Richard James’ latest offering We Went Riding is one of those effortless, breezy, unexpected pleasures that just happened to come wisping into my ears and into my life.”
Wales Online:
"At times raucous, psychedelic and plugged in, at others gentle, folky and countrified, We Went Riding is a fully realised mini-masterwork."
Album outtakes
The Line of Best Fit: You can listen to the album outtake, "On the Waters" here.
Drowned in Sound: Collaboration between Richard and producer Iwan Morgan, "Autovahn" is an instrumental piece recorded during the We Went Riding sessions and can be downloaded here.
Videos
Video for single "When You See Me (In The Pouring Rain)" filmed and edited by Ewan Jones Morris and Casey Raymond.
Acoustic version of "Aveline" from Artrocker TV. Filmed and edited by Ewan Jones Morris and Casey Raymond.
Acoustic version of "We Went Riding". Filmed and edited by Ewan Jones Morris and Casey Raymond.
Richard James - We Went Riding from Ewan Jones Morris on Vimeo.
Seven Sleepers Den Press
Mojo: “Gorky’s Zygotic Mynci member cuts loose…a solo record that shines brilliantly in its own right”
Plan B: “slips effortlessly from one perfect noise to another”
The Times: “this is a triumph of quiet perseverance: crafted, insidious and, at last, cool.”
Drowned in Sound: “The songs ebb and flow in creating an overall sense of happiness and wellbeing. Music for the soul”
Uncut: “a sultry charming collection…carefully distilled influences: John Fahey, snatches of Dylan, Simon & Garfunkel and the atmospheric folk of the late 60s”
The Times: “Falling in love with a guy like Richard James would be as easy as falling off a log. Ditto his music”
