Cian Ciarán (born 16 June 1976) is a Welsh musician best known as the keyboard player in the band Super Furry Animals. In addition to keyboards, he plays guitar and drums and sings, and is a songwriter, composer and producer.

Career

Cian was born in

Bangor, Wales Bangor (; ) is a cathedral city and community in Gwynedd, north Wales. It is the oldest city in Wales. Historically part of Caernarfonshire, the community had a population of 15,060 at the 2021 census, and the built up area had a population ...

. Prior to the formation of Super Furry Animals, he played in the electronica groups Wwzz and Aros Mae. He has been a member of techno collective Acid Casuals and is currently producing under the names Paps, Kirkland and as himself. He has guested with, produced and mixed several artists, including

Kaiser Chiefs Kaiser Chiefs are an English indie rock band from Leeds who originally formed in 1996 as Runston Parva, before reforming as Parva in 2000, and releasing one studio album, ''22'', in 2003, before renaming and establishing themselves in their cur ...

Mogwai Mogwai () are a Scottish post-rock band, formed in 1995 in Glasgow. The band consists of Stuart Braithwaite (guitar, vocals), Barry Burns (guitar, piano, synthesizer, vocals), Dominic Aitchison (bass guitar), and Martin Bulloch (drums). Mogwa ...

, and

Manic Street Preachers Manic Street Preachers, also known simply as the Manics, are a Wales, Welsh Rock music, rock band formed in Blackwood, Caerphilly, in 1986. The band consists of Nicky Wire (bass guitar, lyrics) and cousins James Dean Bradfield (lead vocals, le ...

. His first solo single "Martina Franca", was released in June 2012, with the full album, ''Outside In'', released in July 2012 on Strangetown Records. Ciarán's second solo album, ''They Are Nothing Without Us'', was released in 2013. In 2013 and 2014 Ciarán took part in several anti-nuclear and pro-clean energy protests, including a solo performance at the top of a wind turbine in Norfolk in September 2013. In 2013, he travelled to Fukushima, Japan to witness the devastation from the nuclear power plant meltdown in the wake of the 2011 earthquake and tsunami. He appeared as a guest on the Channel 5 programme '' The Wright Stuff'' in 2013 to discuss his views. Ciarán is also label manager for SomBom and Strangetown Records. As part of Strange Village, a television production company, Cian and his brother Dafydd Ieuan were presented with a BAFTA Cymru Award for the soundtrack to ''Pen Talar'', and were nominated for awards in 2012 for ''Alys'' and 2013 for ''Gerallt''.

Personal life

Cian's brother is musician Dafydd Ieuan and he also has two sisters. His father, Dr. Carl Iwan Clowes, OBE, was an anti-nuclear campaigner, health consultant and official consulate in Wales for African country

Lesotho Lesotho, formally the Kingdom of Lesotho and formerly known as Basutoland, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Entirely surrounded by South Africa, it is the largest of only three sovereign enclave and exclave, enclaves in the world, t ...

. His mother's name is Dorothi. Cian's partner is musician Estelle Ios. The two lead the band Zefur Wolves, while Ios is also a member of the group Baby Queens, which Cian manages as part of Strangetown Records.

Campaigner

In September 2018, Ciaran launched a legal challenge against the decision by EDF to dredge mud from the seabed near the Hinkley Point C building site in Somerset, and dump it in the

Bristol Channel The Bristol Channel (, literal translation: "Severn Sea") is a major inlet in the island of Great Britain, separating South Wales (from Pembrokeshire to the Vale of Glamorgan) and South West England (from Devon to North Somerset). It extends ...

near

Cardiff Bay Cardiff Bay (; colloquially "The Bay") is an area and freshwater lake in Cardiff, Wales. The site of a former tidal bay and estuary, it is the river mouth of the River Taff and River Ely, Ely. The body of water was converted into a lake as part ...

. On behalf of the Campaign Against Hinkley Mud Dumping, he submitted an application for an interim injunction against the dumping.

Discography

Solo albums

*''Outside In'' (2012) Dell'Orso Records *''They Are Nothing Without Us'' (2013) Strangetown Records *''Rhys a Meinir'' (2016) Strangetown Records *''20 Millisieverts Per Year'' (2018) Strangetown Records

Acid Casuals

*"Omni" (2006) Placid Casual Recordings

Ciaran & Wilding

*"Missing Her" / "Stuck in the Middle" (singles, 2014) Strangetown Records

Filmography

2000 '' Beautiful Mistake (Camgymeriad Gwych)'' (with Super Furry Animals) (himself)
2004 '' 9 Songs'' (with Super Furry Animals) (himself)

References

External links

Acid Casuals
at SomBom website * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ciaran, Cian 1976 births Living people Welsh keyboardists Super Furry Animals members Welsh-language singers Musicians from Bangor, Gwynedd People educated at Ysgol David Hughes