Founded in London in 1985 by John Griffiths and Kevs Ford, the two teens had spent the 1970s growing up in
Blaenau Ffestiniog's decaying industrial surroundings. The two were heavily influenced by reggae and the punk scenes that were sweeping the UK. After several years touring northern Europe with punk/ska band The Managing Directors, the turning point came in 1984 when John Griffiths was on vacation in
New York City and was impressed by a group of youths he saw at the Roxy nightclub
breakdancing, and the sounds of
DJ Red Alert. After returning to Wales, Griffiths fixed on the idea of marrying hip hop and left wing politics with the Welsh language. Llwybr Llaethog's debut release was an EP for the Welsh record label
Anhrefn Records in 1986, titled
Dull Di Drais, which combined Llwybr Llaethog's leftist political messages with what would become the band's trademark sound of turntable scratching,
audio sampling, hip-hop, and cut-and-paste production. The band were also heavily promoted by English radio
DJ John Peel. ==Discography==