Seeking New Gods finds Gruff Rhys once again indulging his yen for mythology. This time, he invents a history for Mount Paektu, a volcano in North Korea. Rhys assembled the album as he toured North America in support of his 2018 album Babelsberg, cutting most of the record in the Mojave desert with his touring band. The finished album, mixed by Mario Caldato, has an immediacy that reflects its relatively quick conception and, coming after the nimble electronic experiments of 2019's Pang!, there's something bracing about the directness of Seeking New Gods. Naturally, Rhys litters the record with fanciful flights and clever juxtapositions, so this isn't necessarily a straightforward excursion. The execution, though, is direct in a way Rhys hasn't been since the dissolution of Super Furry Animals, and that boldness feels something like a homecoming even if he's exploring new ground throughout Seeking New Gods.