An up-and-coming band from Mid Wales has won a music bursary from BBC Cymru Wales and the Arts Council of Wales.

Moletrap’s Matt ‘Malwyn’ Ball, Drew Carrington and Rhys Davies are set to receive their share of £35,000 to complete their debut riff-rock album - ‘West’ - inspired by their Mid Wales roots, spaghetti westerns and Kanye West.

Drew responded to the news of their funding: “We’re really excited about it. It’s great and hopefully we can play loads of gigs and play together around the country.”

The trio, from Llanwrtyd Wells, Rhayader, and Llandrindod Wells, first met at Builth Wells High School and performed together in bands until they left for university. They reformed as Moletrap eight months ago and have since released their first EP, three singles, and sang on the BBC Radio 1 stage at Reading Festival with alt-rock band Deaf Havana.

They are currently in the studio completing the final three tracks for their debut album with Cardiff-based producer Romesh Dodangoda who has worked with bands such as Motorhead, Funeral For A Friend, Bullet For My Valentine, Kids In Glass Houses and Twin Atlantic.

“He’s our dream producer. We’ve wanted to record with Romesh since our mid-teens.,” Drew added. “We knew he was super busy but we sent him a demo and he said that he liked the sound.”

Moletrap is one of 28 Wales-based contemporary artists and bands who have been successful in their bid for a music bursary. They follow in the footsteps of previous Radnorshire winners such as Farm Hand and Jess Hall, from Llandrindod Wells.

The Launchpad fund, part of the BBC Cymru Wales and Arts Council of Wales’ Horizons project is made possible by funds from the National Lottery.

Mid Wales’ Bethan Elfyn, Horizons project manager, said: “We’ve seen Welsh music enjoy a particularly prolific and lucrative time in the past 12 months so it’s good to see Launchpad continue to inject much needed funds to some of the exciting new crop of artists coming through. These grants can really make a difference in injecting some money at a vital time for new artists either in recording or promoting new material.

“You’ll see from the list of artists how exciting the range of musical genres and creative ideas are right now in Wales, from those starting out to those taking the next step and pushing themselves a bit further”.

Lisa Matthews-Jones, Arts Council of Wales added: “Launchpad is always one of the most lively and difficult decision panels to be involved in. It was inspirational to see the range and diversity of music projects coming forward, from across Wales. We hope these awards will enable emerging musicians across Wales to take their plans forward. We can’t wait to experience the results.”

Panel Member Joel De’ath, of Sony Records added: “Wales continues to deliver creative talent, and the Launchpad fund is there at every step of the way to help develop this emerging talent, with not just cash, but advice and guidance. Essential in helping Wales continue to deliver artists who compete on a global level.”