Melys

Melys are an indie band from Betwys-Y-Coed in Wales. Formed in 1996, they sing in both English and Welsh, and became virtually synonymous with Peel's programme in its later years: John not only revered their sound but he and his family became close friends with the group (they labelled him "a cool dude" and "god of music" ). Andrea Parker (vocals) and Paul Adams (guitar and keyboards) were both the band's founders and the mainstay of its fluent, melodic character (the band's name means 'sweet' in Welsh). Their first releases were on the Ankst label, but Pinnacle signed them for their first LP, Rumours And Curses: when Pinnacle went bust in 1998 they were left without a deal, and set up Sylem (the band's name spelt backwards) in 1999.

Melys appeared to thrive on the edge playing live gave them: they recorded nine sessions for the Peel Show, five of which were live, and two concert recordings also went out. They gained five Festive Fifty entries, including the number one for 2001, Chinese Whispers: John had told the band a week earlier when they performed it live that he thought it was one of the best songs ever written.

Their 2005 LP Life's Too Short was dedicated to John ("through whom we met some great people who are now great friends. It was an honour."): following this, the band went on hiatus, during which Andrea and Paul raised their three children and ran a Welsh food restaurant. In 2009, Melys re-emerged to play a gig for John Peel Day in Bangor. 

"'John was a very special person, close to our hearts and was a brilliant champion of new music and a fantastic man. We loved spending time with him and his family and consider ourselves honoured to have known him so well.' (Paul Adams)"

Links To Peel
"'I wish that I lived a little closer to Betwys-Y-Coed or that Melys lived a little closer to us, cos not only do I like them as a band, but I like them enormously as people.' (John Peel, 26 November 2002)" Work in progress.

Festive Fifty Entries

 * 1998 Festive Fifty: 'Lemming, Chameleon Of Feelings' #24
 * 2001 Festive Fifty: 'I Don't Believe In You' #35
 * 2001 Festive Fifty: 'Chinese Whispers' #01
 * 2002 Festive Fifty: 'So Good' #43
 * 2004 Festive Fifty: 'Eyeliner' #34

Live

 * 24 October 2000: live from Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff, for Radio 1 live. The BBC's Keeping It Peel site lists this as their 4th session.
 * 1) Tiny Bombs
 * 2) Dwi'N Gweld Yr Haul
 * 3) Lullaby
 * 4) Baby Tornado
 * 5) You Should Have Been There
 * 6) Sumimasen
 * 7) Un Darllenwr Lwcus
 * 8) Disco Pig
 * 09 January 2001: live at Vera for Eurosonic 2001, Groningen (review)
 * 1) Tiny Bombs
 * 2) Dwi'N Gweld Yr Haul
 * 3) Lullaby
 * 4) Baby Tornado
 * 5) You Should Have Been There
 * 6) Sumimasen
 * 7) Un Darllenwr Lwcus
 * 8) Disco Pig

Sessions

 * Nine sessions, none of which have been released commercially. The BBC's Keeping It Peel site claims they recorded eleven (presumably the ones listed here plus the two live concerts), but only list eight, with the live Cardiff set treated as the 4th session and the 6th and 9th here ignored altogether.

1. Recorded: 1997-04-08. First broadcast: 23 April 1997. Repeated: 02 July 1997 2. Live from Maida Vale. First broadcast: 23 June 1998. No repeats. Featuring London Welsh Male Voice Choir, cond. Andy Rogers (choir only in song 4). 3. Recorded: 1999-12-19. First broadcast: 17 February 2000. No repeats. 4. Live from Maida Vale. First broadcast: 16 May 2001. No repeats. 5. Live from Peel Acres. First broadcast: 20 December 2001. No repeats. 6. Recorded: 2001-11-29 (rpt. of acoustic set TX live on The Session in Wales). First broadcast: 10 January 2002. No further repeats. 7. Live from Peel Acres. First broadcast: 29 August 2002 (Peel's Birthday Special Show). No repeats. JP was expecting to play a repeat and the band turned up to surprise him with a live session. 8. Recorded: 2004-06-09. First broadcast: 20 July 2004. No repeats. 9. Live from Maida Vale. First broadcast: 16 December 2004. No repeats.
 * Cysur (Comfort) / Diwiefr / FM Eyes / Acid Queen
 * Ambulance Chaser / Dirty Whore / Hedfan / You'll Never Walk Alone / Matroishka
 * Lullaby / Sumi Masen / Hey That's No Way To Say Goodbye / Puppet / Elenya
 * Chinese Whispers / I Don't Believe In You / Waiting To Fall / Un Darllwenwr Lwcus / Buwch Sanctaidd
 * Chinese Whispers / Silent Night
 * Watercolour / Buwch Sanctaidd / Chinese Whispers
 * I Don't Believe In You (So Good) / Waiting To Fall / Un Darllwenwr Lwcus / Baby Burn / Happy Birthday (& Chinese Whispers, not TX)
 * Treading Water / Casino El Camino / Once Around Again / Girls On Film
 * You Wannit Deep / Treading Water / Chinese Whispers

Other Shows Played
(The following list was compiled only from the database of this site and Lorcan's Tracklistings Archive and is certainly incomplete. Please add further details if known.)

1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001  2002 2003 2004
 * 30 November 1996: ‘Noeth (12 inch – Fragile EP )’ (Ankst)
 * 08 December 1996: ‘Adeiladu Fi (CD single – Fragile )’ (Ankst)
 * 19 March 1997: ‘Cuckoo (CD Single)’ (Ankst)
 * Peel Mid to Late 1997: 'Acid Queen (Peel Session)' 02 July 1997
 * 24 March 1998: 'Diwifr (7")' (Arctic)
 * 08 April 1998: In Love With Danielle Steel (EP: Diwifr) Arctic Frost
 * 29 April 1998: Lemming (CD Single ) Arctic
 * 30 April 1998: When The Sun Went Out (CD Single – Lemming ) Arctic Records
 * 27 May 1998: 'When You Put Leonard Cohen On (LP-Rumours And Curses)' (Arctic)
 * 23 December 1998: 'Lemming (CD single)' (Arctic) FF #24
 * 26 May 1999: 'Baby Tornado (7")' (Sylem)
 * 08 June 1999: 'Baby Tornado (7")' (Sylem)
 * 07 July 1999: 'Baby Tornado (7")' (Sylem)
 * 18 November 1999: 'Disco Pig (CDS-Slagging Off Tourists EP)' (Sylem)
 * 24 November 1999 (BBC World Service): Disco Pig (CD - Slagging Off Tourists) Sylem
 * 02 December 1999: 'Disco Pig (CDS-Slagging Off Tourists EP)' (Sylem)
 * 09 December 1999 (Radio Eins): 'Mae'n Amser I Newid (CDS-Slagging Off Tourists EP)' (Sylem)
 * 15 December 1999: 'Disco Pig (CDS-Slagging Off Tourists EP)' (Sylem)
 * 03 January 2000 (BFBS): 'Disco Pig (CDS-Slagging Off Tourists)' (Sylem)
 * 06 January 2000: 'Porn My Self (EP-Slaggin Off Tourists)' (Sylem)
 * 09 January 2000 (BFBS): 'Porn My Self (EP-Slaggin Off Tourists)' (Sylem)
 * 16 April 2000 (BFBS): Then There Was One (LP - Kamikaze)' (Sylem)
 * 31 May 2000: 'Waiting To Fall (LP - Kamikaze)' (Sylem)
 * 11 October 2000: 'Un Darllenwr Lwcus (CDS)' (Sylem)
 * 18 October 2000: 'Un Darllenwr Lwcus (CDS)' (Sylem)
 * 03 January 2001: 'Un Darllenwr Lwcus (CDS)' (Sylem)
 * 10 January 2001: 'All Played Out (CDS- Un Darllenwr Lwcus)' (Sylem)
 * 18 January 2001 (Radio Eins): 'All Played Out (CDS-Un Darllenwr Lwcus)' (Sylem)
 * 20 March 2001: 'I Don't Believe In You' (Sylem)
 * 05 April 2001: 'I Don't Believe In You' (Sylem)
 * 20 September 2001: 'Chinese Whispers (CDS)' (Sylem)
 * 25 September 2001: 'Chinese Whispers (CDS)' (Sylem)
 * 03 October 2001: 'Chinese Whispers (CDS)' (Sylem)
 * 09 October 2001: 'Chinese Whispers (CDS)' (Sylem)
 * 17 October 2001: 'Chinese Whispers (CDS)' (Sylem)
 * 18 October 2001 (Radio Eins): 'Chinese Whispers (CDS)' (Sylem)
 * 03 December 2001: 'Un Darllenwr Lwcus (CDS)' (Sylem)
 * 18 December 2001: "Your ‘Fuck Me’ Eyes (CDS – Ambulance Chaser)" (Arctic)
 * 25 December 2001: 'I Don't Believe In You (split 7 inch with Seedling)' (Sylem/Transformed Dreams) FF #35
 * 27 December 2001: 'Chinese Whispers (CDS)' (Sylem) FF #01
 * 03 January 2002: 'Diwifr (7")' (Arctic)
 * 08 January 2002: 'Mae'n Amser I Newid' (Sylem)
 * 15 January 2002 / 16 May 2002: 'Chinese Whispers (CDS)' (Sylem)
 * 06 February 2002: 'Disco Pig' (Transformed Dreams)
 * 07 March 2002: 'I Don't Believe In You (LP-Suikerspin) (Transformed Dreams)
 * 04 April 2002 (Radio Mafia): 'Mae'n Amser I Newid' (Transformed Dreams)
 * 26 April 2002 (BBC World Service): I Don't Believe In You (LP - Suikerspin) Transformed Dreams
 * 02 May 2002 (Radio Mafia): 'In Darllenwr Lwcus' (Transformed Dreams)
 * 07 November 2002: 'So Good (CDr)' (Sylem)
 * 13 November 2002 (Radio Mafia): So Good (CD Single) (Sylem)
 * 19 November 2002: 'We Had Our Chances (EP-So Good)' (Sylem)
 * 26 November 2002: 'So Good (EP-So Good)' (Sylem)
 * 26 December 2002: 'So Good (EP-So Good)' (Sylem) FF #43
 * 02 January 2003: 'When It All Comes Down (LP-Casting Pearls)' (Sylem)
 * 07 January 2003: 'My Downer Pill (LP-Casting Pearls)' (Sylem)
 * 30 January 2003: 'Puppets (LP-Radio Cymru Playlist Vol. 1)' (Ankst)
 * 06 February 2003: 'Plasticine (LP-Casting Pearls)' (Sylem)
 * 11 February 2003: 'When It All Comes Down (LP-Casting Pearls)' (Sylem)
 * 12 February 2003: 'Baby Burn (LP-Casting Pearls)' (Sylem)
 * 13 February 2003: 'Achub Fi (LP-Casting Pearls)' (Sylem)
 * 18 February 2003: 'So Good (LP-Casting Pearls)' (Sylem)
 * 20 February 2003: 'Dirty (LP-Casting Pearls)' (Sylem)
 * 26 February 2003: 'Take Me Out (LP-Casting Pearls)' (Sylem)
 * 05 March 2003: 'Adrift (LP-Casting Pearls)' (Sylem)
 * 26 March 2003: 'Adrift (LP-Casting Pearls)' (Sylem)
 * 23 December 2003: 'Eyeliner (CDr demo)' (white label)
 * 08 January 2004: 'Eyeliner (CDr demo)' (white label)
 * 22 January 2004: 'Eyeliner (CDS)' (Sylem)
 * 21 April 2004: 'Eyeliner (CDS)' (Sylem)
 * 06 May 2004: 'I Can't Stop This (Even If I Wanted To) (CDS-Eyeliner)' (Sylem)
 * 11 November 2004 (Rob Da Bank): 'Eyeliner' (CD Single) - (Sylem)
 * 22 December 2004 (Rob Da Bank): 'Thought You Would Never Go' (LP- Life's Too Short) - (Sylem)
 * 28 December 2004 (Rob Da Bank): 'Eyeliner (CDS)' (Sylem) FF #38
 * Pop Depresija (Pop Depression): Adrift (Peel Session)