With a good four weeks to go until the first Westport Festival the stage times are live here! I can't wait for this. Bands I'm really looking forward to seeing are Rhob Cunningham, Sam Amidon, The Waterboys, Rainy Boy Sleep, Damien Dempsey, The Plea, Eoin Glackin, Raglans, Duke Special, Wallis Bird, David Kitt, Lloyd Cole and Colin Devlin! Tickets here: http://www.westportfestival.co m/ Tweet
One of the highlights of 2011 for me was the inaugural Spirit of Folk festival in Dunderry, Co. Meath. Well news has come through that 2012 will be bigger and better! Along with all the folk games, experimental archaeology, medieval village, falconry, storytelling .... there will be an extra night at the festival and a second stage to keep the music flowing all day. Here's a lovely wee animation announcing the headliners: A limited supply of Early Bird weekend ticketsfor €65 and day tickets for €35 will be available until [...]
The full line-up for Spirit of Folk Festival , which takes place September 21st-23rd at Dunderry Park, Co. Meath has been revealed. This weekend celebrating Irish music, folk, bluegrass and country will feature live performances from John Spillane , The Lost Brothers , Lisa O'Neill , I Draw Slow , Spook Of The Thirteenth Lock , Tucan , The Hot Sprockets , Mossy Nolan , The Henry Girls , The Young Folk , Tir na nOg , Aoife Scott , Jig away the Donkey , [...]
![Top 50 - Part 6 [21 - 50]](http://cdn.elbo.ws/posts/4232611_lg.jpg)
Here's the top 50 acts in Ireland according to my humble tastes. The list acts as a guide to the music which excites me at this moment in time. It excludes bands not currently working in Ireland or who have been dormant for some time. So in basic terms here's a list of bands to watch out for on a random night in Dublin, Cork, Galway, Dundalk etc .... 50. Heritage Centre http://www.facebook.com/theher itagecentre [...]
![Top 50 - Part 5 [26 - 50]](http://cdn.elbo.ws/posts/4222033_lg.jpg)
Here's the top 50 acts in Ireland according to my humble tastes. The list acts as a guide to the music which excites me at this moment in time. It excludes bands not currently working in Ireland or who have been dormant for some time. So in basic terms here's a list of bands to watch out for on a random night in Dublin, Cork, Galway, Dundalk etc .... 50. Heritage Centre http://www.facebook.com/theher itagecentre [...]
There can't be a better line-up for a festival than the Westport Arts & Music Festival . A quick look at the line-up reveals such legends as Ray Davies, Nick Lowe and The Undertones, current favourites Imelda May, Seasick Steve, Tom Baxter and a whole range of great Irish musicians! It's all set in the grounds of Westport House and is a very child friendly festival with free admission for the under 12s. Here's a mix of tunes from Irish Artists confirmed for [...]
Here's a few Irish love songs to listen to on this special Hallmark Day! If we still did actual mixtapes I think this is possibly one I'd make for the good wife! The Crayon Set - No. 1 Fan Julie Feeney - Valentine's Song Fiach - [...]
Simplicity is often an overlooked and unappreciated virtue in music, one not lost on The Lost Brothers. This as before remains their forte, on So Long John Fante, the duo's second album. As does their capacity for soft and delicate folk songs, underlined by delicious, harmonious vocal interchanges between Mark McCausland and Oisin Leech and wonderful acoustic guitar-picking. We are treated [...]
Recorded in 2010, released in 2011 and reviewed here in 2012 'So Long John Fante' is the second album from the harmonious duo 'The Lost Brothers'! I really want to shout about this album but instead I'll whisper ..... "It's a really nice pleasant little collection of inoffensive songs sung beautifully!" According to Wikipedia: " John Fante (April 8, 1909 – May [...]
With 2011 at an end I'm bringing my 'Amhrán Gach Lá' project to a close with my Top 10 songs of 2011 by Irish artists. 1. Jukebox Gypsy - The Month For me the lyric 'These are fading pictures now falling from our wall' is exactly what it's like looking back with memories of people who've passed away. It's a poignant track about a month in the songwriter's life which was devastating and turning it into a [...]
With 2 days left in the year I'm going to bring my 'Amhrán Gach Lá' project to a close by bringing my Top 10 songs of 2011 by Irish artists to the blog in 10 installments! Beginning at 10 and heading to 1! 2. I Draw Slow - Goodbye Beulahland My top ten was picked based on the songs that demanded repeated listening and the line in 'Goodbye Beulahland'; ' .. and I keep coming back to the [...]
With 3 days left in the year I'm going to bring my 'Amhrán Gach Lá' project to a close by bringing my Top 10 songs of 2011 by Irish artists to the blog in 10 installments! Beginning at 10 and heading to 1! 3. Declan O'Rourke - Be Brave and Believe I wrote about this song a few weeks back and I've kept listening to it since. This is a life changing song about hope and belief. If [...]
With 4 days left in the year I'm going to bring my 'Amhrán Gach Lá' project to a close by bringing my Top 10 songs of 2011 by Irish artists to the blog in 10 installments! Beginning at 10 and heading to 1! 4. Lisa Hannigan - Paper House This track is all about the charm Lisa's vocals, the strings and the harmonium create. The lyrics are heartfelt and beautifully crafted. This was the highlight of Lisa's album [...]
With 5 days left in the year I'm going to bring my 'Amhrán Gach Lá' project to a close by bringing my Top 10 songs of 2011 by Irish artists to the blog in 10 installments! Beginning at 10 and heading to 1! 5. Autumn Long - Ten More Reasons The debut album from Autumn Long to be released next Spring is an album I'm really excited about. Padraig Digan's vocals and more importantly his lyrics are top [...]
With 10 days left in the year I'm going to bring my 'Amhrán Gach Lá' project to a close by bringing my Top 10 songs of 2011 by Irish artists to the blog in 10 installments! Beginning at 10 and heading to 1! 6. The Gorgeous Colours - It's OK to be Normal This epic tune from start to finish hits the spot for me. It's a perfect indie song from the strings at the beginning to the vocals and the sentiment [...]
With 10 days left in the year I'm going to bring my 'Amhrán Gach Lá' project to a close by bringing my Top 10 songs of 2011 by Irish artists to the blog in 10 installments! Beginning at 10 and heading to 1! 7. Favourite Sons - The Great Deal of Love The title track of New York's finest Favourite Sons is a tragic tale of love sung perfectly by Ken Griffen formally of Rollerskate Skinny. This song for me [...]
With 10 days left in the year I'm going to bring my 'Amhrán Gach Lá' project to a close by bringing my Top 10 songs of 2011 by Irish artists to the blog in 10 installments! Beginning at 10 and heading to 1! 8. Joe Chester - Most of the Time This song is another recent favourite of mine. 'Most of the Time' is the standout track from Joe Chester's new album 'She Darks Me'. It's a beautifully written song [...]
With 10 days left in the year I'm going to bring my 'Amhrán Gach Lá' project to a close by bringing my Top 10 songs of 2011 by Irish artists to the blog in 10 installments! Beginning at 10 and heading to 1! 9. Storyfold - The Sweetest Silence From the first few seconds on this track you know this is a special tune. Lindsay's lead vocals are delightful and work so well with Paddy's backing vocals. The [...]
With 10 days left in the year I'm going to bring my 'Amhrán Gach Lá' project to a close by bringing my Top 10 songs of 2011 by Irish artists to the blog in 10 installments! Beginning at 10 and heading to 1! 10. The Lost Brothers - Goodbye Kid This is a recent favourite of mine. It demands repeat listening. The vocal harmonies of Mark and Oisin are wonderful as well as that playful guitar rift. It's [...]
The Lost Brothers hail from Ireland and have just released their album So Long John Fante on Bird Dog Records. Boasting one of the sleeves of the year, it is a follow up to debut Trails of the Lonely . Tipping a hat to their literary hero (and one of ours), John Fante, this is an album which effortlessly, and brilliantly, wallows in a gumbo melting pot of influences. Calling to mind The Everley Brothers and Simon & Garfunkel on the one hand to Richard Hawley (who produced) via [...]
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