Sengl Newydd - New Single! - "Retrofit" - coming soon!!!

 This song will be released on 29/03/24!
smart link: https://ffm.to/retrofit

[English below]
Os rydach chi wedi bod i gig Worldwide Welshman yn ddiweddar, mae'n debyg y byddwch chi wedi clywed fy nghân newydd, "Retrofit". Sgwennais i'r gân yn reit gyflym un prynhawn ym mis Ebrill llynedd, ar ôl sgwrs yn y dafarn y noson cynt efo coursemate am y prosiect adnewyddu/ôl-osod tŷ roedd hi a'i ŵr yn gwneud i wella'r effeithlonrwydd ynni yn eu cartref newydd. Perfformiais i'r gân am y tro cyntaf yn Ganolfan y Dechnoleg Amgen ym mis Mai o flaen fy nghyd-fyfyrwyr a thiwtoriaid. Ers hynny, dwi 'di perfformio'r gân ym Machynlleth, Aberystwyth, Bala, Gaerdydd, Llundain, Lancaster, Gaeredin, Treehouse Festival, Behind the Barn Festival, Festival of Jim, Worthy Earth festival ac ar alwad zoom gyda gweithredwyr amgycheddol yn India! Dwi'n falch i ddweud fod y cân yn mynd lawr yn dda tŷ allan i'n swigod ni.

Yn gyffredinol, mae'r stoc tai yn y D.U.. yn eithaf gwael. Cafodd lot i dai ei hadeiladu i ddibynni ar danwyddau ffosil rhad, ac mae nifer fawr o bobl yn byw mewn tai oer a llaith.
Fedrwn ni wella'r effeithlonrwydd ynni ein tai, a lleihau ein 'carbon footprint' trwy wella'r 'airtightness' (yn ogystal â strategaeth awyru) ac inswleiddio gyda deunyddiau 'breathable'. Yn iaith adeiladwyr a phenseiri, rydan ni'n defnyddio'r gair 'retrofit', neu 'ôl-osod' yn y Gymraeg (ond efallai mai'r geiriau 'adnewid' ac 'addasu' yn neud mwy o synnwyr). Dylid gwneud yr addasiadau gyda deunyddiau cynaliadwy sydd efo effaith isel ar yr amgylchedd cymaint â phosib, neu rydan ni jest yn wneud y broblem o'r newid hinsawdd yn waeth.

Mae'r gân "Retrofit" yn ceisio cynyddu dealltwriaeth am ôl-osod/adnewid ein hadeiladau, y "green transition" a'r economi gylchol. Roedd y fersiwn gwreiddiol yn ffocysu ar stori un teulu yn ôl-osod/adnewidio eu gartref, ond mi ychwanegais ragor o benillion i'r gân ar ôl i fi mynd i digwyddiad cyffroes o'r enw "Retrofit Reimagined" yn CyDA ym mis Hydref. Mae'r penillion newydd yn sôn am drawsnewid y gymdeithas ar y cyfan.

Dwi'n astudio am radd meistr mewn adeiladu cynaliadwy (Green Building) yn Ganolfan Y Dechnoleg Amgen (CAT) ym Machynlleth, a rhywsut dwi wedi lwyddo i adeiladu fy nhraethawd hir o gwmpas y cân hon (roeddwn i'n disgwyl i ysgrifennu "a plan for the efficient retrofit of a typical Welsh terrace" neu "The effectiveness of straw-clay as a low-embodied energy, affordable DIY insulation & airtightness solution" neu rywbeth fel 'na)! Yn fy nhraethawd hir, dwi'n ymchwilio sut gallai cerddoriaeth, chelf a chomedi cael ei ddefnyddio i rannu syniadau trawsnewidiol gyda chymaint o bobl a phosib, ac i gynyddu ymwybyddiaeth am rhai o'r atebion i'n problemau amgylcheddol a chymdeithasol. Dwi'n gobeithio bydd yr ymchwil hon yn ddefnyddiol i gyfansoddwyr, artistiaid a chyfathrebwyr gwyddoniaeth eraill.

Dwi'n bwriadu rhyddhau'r gân ar ym mis Mawrth. Hwn bydd y sengl gyntaf oddi wrth fy albwm newydd sydd ar y gweill. Bydd yr albwm yn dod allan ym mis Hydref 'swn i'n meddwl (ond mae'n anodd gwybod ar hyn o bryd achos mae gwaith ar yr albwm ar-hold rywfaint tan i fi gorffen y dissertation, ac mae fy mrawd a finnau wrthi'n giggio ac yn rhyddhau pethau efo Lo-fi Jones hefyd, felly mae'n gyfnod prysur!).

Dwi wedi rhoi y geiriau i fyny ar y wefan hon yn barod! A gan bod chi wedi ddarganfod y tudalen, mae gen i spesial treat i chi...mae 'na linc preifat ar gwaelod y tudaln i ffrydio'r gân ar Soundcloud: https://worldwidewelshman.weebly.com/retrofit-2023.html

Croeso mawr i chi rhannu'r cân gyda'ch ffrindiau, neu i wneud 'cover' o'r gân!

****

If you've been to a Worldwide Welshman gig lately, then it's likely you'll have heard my new song, "Retrofit". I wrote this song very quickly one afternoon in April last year after a chat in the pub the night before with my coursemate about the never-ending deep-retrofit project that she and her husband had underway to improve the energy efficiency of their flat in London. I wrote the song orignally with my coursemates in mind (Green Building and architecute students), and performed it for the first time at the Centre for Alternative Technology in May. Since then, I performed the song in Machynlleth, Aberystwyth, Bala, Cardiff, London, Lancaster, Edinbrugh, Treehouse Festival, Behind the Barn Festival, Festival of Jim, Worthy Earth festival and in a call with environmental activists in India. I'm glad to say that the song goes down well outside the bubble.

In general, the UK housing stock shockingly bad in comparison with some neighbouring countries. Many houses were built to rely on cheap fossil fuel energy, and people are living in cold and damp conditions. We could massively reduce the operational carbon footprint of our buildings by improving their energy efficiency i.e. improving airtightness coupled with an appropriate ventilation strategy, and the addition of vapour-permeable (breathable) insulation. In built environment lexicon, this is known as “retrofitting”. This should be done using sustainable materials with low embodied energy as much as possible.

The retrofit song addresses the challenges of retrofitting buildings, the need for a green transition, and the circular economy, amongst other things. The first iteration the song focused mostly on one family's retrofitting challenges, but after attending an inspiring, informative and exciting event called "Retrofit Reimagined" at CAT in October, I added a few more verses which talk about retrofitting/transforming/re-imagining society as a whole.

I'm studying a master's in Green Building at CAT, and I somehow managed to build my dissertation around this song (I was expecting to do something technical such as "A plan for the efficient retrofit of a typical Welsh terrace" or "The effectiveness of straw-clay as a low embodied energy, affordable, DIY insulation & airtightness solution")! In my dissertation, I'm looking into how  music, art and comedy can be used to share transformational ideas with as many people as possible, and to increase awareness about some of the potential solutions to the environmental and social problems facing humanity. I hope this research can also be of use to other songwriters, filmmakers, writers and artists.

I hope to release the song in March. It will be the first single from the studio album which I'm currently working on. I hope to share the album with you in October, but its hard to know because its on hold at the moment somewhat until I finish my dissertation. On top of these things, I'm gigging a lot and planning releases with my other band, Lo-fi Jones, so its a busy time!

I've put the lyrics and chords up on this website already, and since you found your way here, I have a treat for you! There's a private link to the song on Soundcloud at the bottom of the page: https://worldwidewelshman.weebly.com/retrofit-2023.html

Please share the song with your friends, and cover it if you like. Here are the lyrics and chords!