Super Furry Animals Break Silence On Turning Down U2 and Oasis
(PC) Super Furry Animals have spoken for the first time as a band since 2016 and revealed why they declined career-boosting support slots with Oasis, how they caused Bruce Springsteen's drummer to fly into a rage and described the 16-foot-tall horses they have as potential stage props.
The rare interview is published as the much-loved, Welsh offbeat legends mark their return for a sold-out Supacabra 2026 Tour and release the 20th Anniversary Reissue of their 2005 album, Love Kraft on Fri 24 October 2025.
Primarily and deservedly known for their nine albums of fearlessly explorative music, adventurously blending and skipping between harmonic rock, psych, folk, electronica and dancefloor indie, Super Furry Animals story also includes the repeated, newsworthy acts that caught the headlines. From the campervan that accidentally drove into the middle of their Glastonbury set in 1999 to spurning mega advertising money from Coca Cola, the band often, usually inadvertently, made their story about more than just the music.
Featured in this month's issue of Uncut Magazine, lead singer, Gruff Rhys not only reflects on the gauntlet of wild street dogs that could have easily hampered the recording of Love Kraft itself (and the emergency measures provided to them to avoid their attention) but also the difficult decisions the band has faced over the years.
Amongst five pages of memories and talk of next year's return to the stage, Rhys says: "We turned down the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury for 'Rings Around The World', because our sound guy couldn't do it, he was going on holiday in France. We turned Oasis down for Loch Lomond, because we were below The Bootleg Beatles on the bill," and goes on to say a potentially career-changing tour with U2 couldn't happen "because the flat fee they offered couldn't cover our expenses."
Signed to Creation Records from 1995, the Furries were label mates to Oasis during arguably the most successful and tumultuous period of the Gallaghers' rise to international fame. Performing together over a period of more than 30 years, the band's encounters with rock legends haven't been limited to Manchester's most famous musical siblings. The band also described how a misunderstanding over classical musicians brought them into rare conflict with an admired icon ahead of an appearance on Late Night With David Letterman.
"We got into a row with Bruce Springsteen's drummer, Max Weinberg," remembers Rhys. "We asked his brass section to do our gig in New York, and he caught wind. We weren't trying to poach his brass section, but he flew into our dressing room... it was unpleasant."
With more stories of big recording budgets replacing Pot Noodles with fresh fish on Brazilian beaches, lip-syncing on Tonight With Richard and Judy and sharing Japanese television appearances with audience members crafting wooden fish with sharp knives, Super Furry Animals' interview with Uncut is on sale here.
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