So what's the story behind the band name "Cwn Annwn"? As young high school students, bass player Mike Strohkirch's German teacher, Mr. Rutledge, mentioned that he always thought "Cwn Annwn" would be a good name for a band. Pronounced "coon-uh-NOON" (think Raccoon at noon) Cwn Annwn loosely translates as 'The Hounds of Chaos' from Welsh mythology.

Having a band name that is unpronounceable by English conventions definitely evokes strong opinions. Some have told us they think it's ridiculous, while others have told us it's genius. Perhaps the most poignant thoughts came from a fan who after a show in 2004 commented that the "the name made me want to learn more about the band." P.T. Barnum once said that nobody ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American public. Respectfully, we disagree. Gojira, Erykah Badu, Hoda Kotb, and Mr. Mxyzptlk are all examples of successes in our culture despite the "handicap" of unconventional spelling.

Anybody who has gotten to know a community of musicians knows that there is no shortage of people for whom "what's popular now" is a major consideration in cultivating their image. For Cwn Annwn, what's popular now couldn't be more irrelevant. If what we do is in aligns with current trends, great. If not, so what. What we do, we do to satisfy ourselves first.

To that end, we think the band name Cwn Annwn perfectly represents the iconoclasm with which we ply our craft. If you are too stubborn to look past what is admittedly a little unconventional yet perfectly reasonable name, as far as we're concerned, you aren't going to appreciate the nuances of what we think makes our music special and unique. If you made it this far, you're probably ready to digest what we have to offer.