"The International Language of Screaming" is the second single from

Super Furry Animals Super Furry Animals are a Welsh rock band formed in Cardiff in 1993. For the duration of their professional career, the band consisted of Gruff Rhys (lead vocals, guitar), Huw Bunford (lead guitar, vocals), Guto Pryce (bass guitar), Cian C ...

' album ''

Radiator A radiator is a heat exchanger used to transfer thermal energy from one medium to another for the purpose of cooling and heating. The majority of radiators are constructed to function in cars, buildings, and electronics. A radiator is always a ...

''. It reached #24 on the UK Singles Chart on its release in July 1997.

Release and critical reception

"The International Language of Screaming" was released on CD, cassette and 7" on 14 July 1997 and reached number 24 on the UK Singles Chart. The cover art is the second in a series of five Pete Fowler paintings commissioned by the band for ''Radiator'' and its singles. Fowler's art was inspired by "The International Language of Screaming" and features "refugees from ''

Star Trek ''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the Star Trek: The Original Series, series of the same name and became a worldwide Popular culture, pop-culture Cultural influence of ...

''" according to ''

Record Collector ''Record Collector'' is a British monthly music magazine focussing on rare and collectable records, and the bands who recorded them. It was founded in September 1979 and distributes worldwide. It is promoted as "the world’s leading authority o ...

''. The packaging of the single features the

Welsh language Welsh ( or ) is a Celtic languages, Celtic language of the Brittonic languages, Brittonic subgroup that is native to the Welsh people. Welsh is spoken natively in Wales by about 18% of the population, by some in England, and in (the Welsh c ...

quote "Teg edrych tuag adref", which roughly translates into English as "Home sweet home". The track was included on the band's 'greatest hits' compilation album '' Songbook: The Singles, Vol. 1'', issued in 2004. "The International Language of Screaming" received a generally positive response from critics. Reviewing the track on its release as a single, the ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

'' called it a "spindly burst of brevity" and suggested that it was inspired by the music of the band

Soft Machine Soft Machine are an English Rock music, rock band from Canterbury, Kent. The band were formed in 1966 by Mike Ratledge, Robert Wyatt, Kevin Ayers, Daevid Allen and Larry Nowlin. Soft Machine were central in the Canterbury scene; they became o ...

. The magazine went on to state, however, that the track is not as focused as " The Man Don't Give a Fuck" or as "quirkily charming" as " Hermann ♥'s Pauline" and that its "sonic doodling" may only make sense in the context of the then yet to be released album ''

''.

Track listing

All songs by

. * CD (CRESCD269) *#"The International Language of Screaming" – 2:12 *#"Wrap It Up" – 3:27 *#"Foxy Music" – 3:49 *#"nO.K." – 2:12 * MC (CRES269), 7" (CRE269) *#"The International Language of Screaming" – 2:12 *#"Wrap It Up" – 3:27

Personnel

Gruff Rhys Gruffudd Maredudd Bowen Rhys (; born 18 July 1970) is a Welsh musician, composer, producer, filmmaker and author. He performs solo and with several bands, including Super Furry Animals, which obtained mainstream success in the 1990s. He forme ...

– vocals *

Huw Bunford Huw "Bunf" Bunford (born Huw Cennydd Bunford; 15 September 1967 in Cardiff, Wales) is a musician best known as the guitarist in Super Furry Animals. Biography Bunford studied at Lanchester Polytechnic (now Coventry University) and worked as a te ...

–

guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...

Guto Pryce Guto Dafydd Pryce ( Welsh pronunciation: ; born 4 September 1972) is a Welsh musician best known as bass guitar player and songwriter in the band Super Furry Animals. With them he has recorded nine UK Albums Chart Top 25 studio albums, plus num ...

–

bass guitar The bass guitar (), also known as the electric bass guitar, electric bass, or simply the bass, is the lowest-pitched member of the guitar family. It is similar in appearance and construction to an Electric guitar, electric but with a longer nec ...

* Cian Ciaran – keyboards *

Dafydd Ieuan Dafydd Ieuan (born 1 March 1969) is a Welsh musician, best known as the drummer with the band Super Furry Animals, The Peth and The Earth. Ieuan played with Gruff Rhys in their early band Ffa Coffi Pawb. He was a drummer for Welsh band Ca ...

–

drums The drum is a member of the percussion instrument, percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophones, membranophone. Drums consist of at least one Acoustic membrane, membrane, c ...

Singles chart positions

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:International Language of Screaming, The Super Furry Animals songs Creation Records singles 1997 singles 1997 songs