as the group made a conscious decision to create a "simple record" which "capture[d] the spirit of the band playing live in a room".

[4][7] Dave Newfeld took over production duties from Mario Caldato Jr., who had worked on both Phantom Power and Love Kraft, as the band didn't want to "repeat [their] past two records".

[4] As with Love Kraft, all members of the band contributed songs at the recording stage but, besides chief songwriter Gruff Rhys, only guitarist Huw Bunford ("Battersea Odyssey") and keyboard player Cian Ciaran ("Carbon Dating") ended up with their tracks on the finished album.

[11][12] Some critics, however, pointed out that the album has the "faint whiff of musical conservatism" and "must rank as [the Super Furry Animals'] least adventurous" record.

[13][14] In an interview with Tiny Mix Tapes in January 2008, the band's vocalist, Gruff Rhys, stated that Hey Venus!

[4][6] Towards the end of the tour the setlist had become "full of fast songs from [the Super Furry Animals] back catalog" and this had an effect as the band entered into the studio for the Hey Venus!

[6] Rhys used his second solo album, Candylion, as an outlet for the quiet, acoustic songs that he had written rather than put them forward for inclusion on Hey Venus!

[9]The majority of the album was recorded at Miraval Studios, France,[16] picked, at keyboardist Cian Ciaran's request, because of its large live room which enabled all the band to set up and play as a group.

'[17]Rhys has praised Newfeld for his "knowledge of pop and what makes people react" stating that "most of the time he just stood there by the desk" and "wouldn't accept a take until he was physically moved by it".

[6] Newfeld also encouraged the group to improvise songs, two of which, "Semi Pro" and "Hot Nutz", appear briefly on footage of the recording process streamed at the band's website and included with American editions of the album.

sessions) would "probably never be released" but give "a glimpse into the magic of the Super Furry Animals in the studio, and the kind of atmosphere that Dave created".

[2] The finished track (which features Huw Bunford "impersonating a police or ambulance siren with the backing vocals") was mixed three or four times and "barely resembles the original".

[10] The latter had a strong influence on the album with Rhys stating: "when we found the harpsichord everything started to go 1960s... and we kind of followed that feeling..."[15] Although Gruff Rhys had initially told fans to expect a "speaker-blowing" LP the addition of instruments such as the harpsichord meant this was not the case; the album instead highlights the band's "musical sweet tooth".

[9][22] The band enlisted the help of several musicians when making the album including string arranger Sean O'Hagan (of The High Llamas), percussionist Kris Jenkins and others who the group have "built up relationships with over the years... the brass players we've toured with a lot ... Sean O'Hagan ... brought his string section in ... they've played on almost all our records".

[23] The band made a conscious decision to keep the number of tracks, and therefore the running time of Hey Venus!, down "because the last three albums have been almost an hour-long".

[4][6] Rough Trade Records boss Geoff Travis told the group that "Show Your Hand" was his favorite song and, following the tracks reworking to include a French horn part, it was reinstated.

[5][15] The album documents the life and adventures of a character called Venus as she moves "from a small town to a big metropolis".

[1] The band has been consistent when describing this central story of "running away from relationships, breaking up in a small town, moving to the big city, losing yourself, having your innocence completely corrupted, and living to tell the tale as a wiser person",[9] however, several conflicting explanations have been given for the appearance of this narrative arc.

However, as Rhys and Guto Pryce in particular were fans of the band, they reasoned that it "wasn't necessarily a bad thing to share a name" with the song.

According to bassist Guto Pryce the band was "blown away" by Tanaami's art during a tour of Japan a few years before the release of Hey Venus!

[30] The latter came packaged with a bonus CD containing the b-sides of the "Show Your Hand" and "Run-Away" singles as well as video footage of the band recording the improvised songs "Semi-Professional" and "Hot Nutz" at Miraval Studios.

[28][51] However, some reviews pointed out that the album has the "faint whiff of musical conservatism" with both Uncut and Q calling it a "missed opportunity",[13][14][44] the former going on to describe the record as "a consolidation of affairs rather than a step forward" and suggesting that, "while no means a stinker" it "must rank as their least adventurous" LP.

[12]The track "Run-Away" was singled out for praise by several publications with the Independent on Sunday calling the song "outstanding",[52] Culture Deluxe claiming the track showed the Super Furries at "their pop-best" and proved they "could do no wrong" and the NME stating that "with a chorus as big as guitarist Huw Bunford's new serial-killer beard, it's up there with the most finely polished weapons in the SFA armoury".

in the United Kingdom the Super Furry Animals embarked on an 11 date tour of Great Britain and Ireland, ending with two shows at London's Roundhouse.

[62] Huw Bunford told a Times journalist in August 2007 that the tour would be "like that bit at the end of the Mike Yarwood shows where he said, 'And this is me', no gim-micks.