It is past 4 a.am. I am listening to the amazing remix of Hot Days by Dick Savage. If you are not aware yet, Hot Days is the third album by Poitin. It was released in 2006. It has a more ‘pop’ appeal, focusing more on vocal harmonies and ‘tunes you can sing along.’
The remixed version contains many surprising things. Think of Sonic Youth meets Nine Inch Nails doing Dubstep but with the soothing sound of Afro Celts. I like the difference. It is good to step out of one’s creative environment once in a while. Just to avoid being pigeonholed I guess. Listening to the remix album of Hot Days gives me a different perspective of Poitin. They are not afraid to experiment with different sounds. My favorite track is Crazy Man Michael for its amazing soundscape.
Dick Savage has an eclectic taste. He fronts a band by the name of Cold Feet. Their music is more post-punk/gothic-oriented, incorporating good melodies. You should check his/their work out through my other blog Sphere Music. I posted their youtube video about a song inspired by author Neil Gaiman.
It’s really a good thing listening to this type of music at 4 a.m. while multitasking with work.
I am blogging from work today. Yay, I am the first person to arrive so I am taking this opportunity to blog about the music video I saw very early this morning. It is called “Cuisle” (Irish for pulse). According to the info I gathered, they (Michael Mc Cague and Donal Mc Cague) both recorded as the final track on Donal’s debut album “Bits N Pieces.” This was filmed in An Culturlann in Belfast on 17th July 2012 and publicly aired around Feb 2013.
For those who don’t have copies of Waylaid Man, it is time to look for that album. IT’s fantastic and many notable Irish musicians contributed their talents to record that album really one of a kind. Looking forward to more trad releases this year and beyond. You all have a great day.
As the extraordinary fiddler of the Canadian Celtic trio NUA, his projects don’t go unnoticed. As in the case of this Neknomination, where he shows his amazing instrumental excellence through guitar and fiddle. I did a brief message exchange with him and came up with interesting facts, including a forthcoming new album from NUA!
1. Can you tell us more about this project?
This isn’t so much my project as it is an interpretation or a reinvention of the original Facebook game called neknominate. Neknominations was originally when people consumed an alcoholic beverage in one gulp and posted the video of them drinking on facebook. You then nominated two other people to do the same within the next 24 hours and post it. More detail at this link. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neknominate
2. What is this tune you are playing?
James M Law
The tune I am playing is one that I wrote in the last week or so as I was working on new material for an upcoming NUA album. It doesn’t have a name yet but I’m sure one will soon enough. Graeme McGillivray (guitar player from NUA) also assisted on composing this composition.
3. This is a musical side of you I haven’t seen before and I am impressed . Is there a solo project you are working on as of the moment?
I am not working on a solo project at the moment. This video came about because Kerry and Julie Fitzgerald nominated me to play a fiddle tune. The reason I picked the tune was because it was something new that I had just written and was inspired to try and put some chords to it and work on some of my DADGAD guitar playing. Before this video, I have never done a solo video of this nature with me playing all the parts. I enjoyed the new experience and think there might be a few more videos to come in the future.
4. What are the things you want to accomplish this year?
I am looking forward to the summer this year as I have a lot of exciting gigs coming up. I will be teaching the Trad Band at the Sunshine Coast School of Celtic Music during the first week of July. NUA is playing at Mill Race Festival for our second year in a row this August. We are also playing at Goderich Celtic Roots Festival this August which is very exciting. NUA is expecting a new album to be released early 2015. The other big project I am a part of is The Marwills. The Marwills have a tour coming up in late July out to the East Coast in Halifax. The Marwills are planing gigs in Barrie ON, Toronto ON, Ottawa ON, Montreal QC, Fredericton NB, Halifax NS and Tay Creek NB where they will be playing at the Tay Creek Music Festival. Other than that I am concentrating on my music / instruments as well as my production skills as I record other artists.
5. Thanks for the time James!
Thanks Baxter, let let me know if you want more info. Here are some links to things I talked about in the questions. I will upload the video to youtube just now and send you the link when its done uploading.
Wow it’s just the middle of the week and more phantasmagorically smashing updates are coming up from the world of music. OUR world of music 😉
Moxie announced their plans of recording a new album late last year. Now, they are in the middle of it and the effort looks and sounds really promising. Check this amazing link. It gives the new meaning to the word busy :
Robert Doyle is releasing his new album next year. Here’s a sneak peak at the tunes he’s making. Arrangement by Mark Thomson and video by Alan Lambert .
Yes you heard it right. The new album Wish by Poitin is finished. The main reason to rejoice.
Just when the thought the seas have calmed, Poitin brings out a new album called Wish. I am not sure about the details of the album yet, but I know the band have worked in recording tracks around Autumn last year. They uploaded two track via soundcloud: The Broomfield Wager and Toffee Jigs. The former is a vocal track showcasing the versatility of Jeremy King’s voice. It is also an acoustic and bodhran driven song. The latter is an instrumental collection of traditional tunes.
Like I said, I have not listened to the whole album yet, but I can tell this is something new. The poitin flavor is still there. But there is that slick and superb texture that I noticed in these two tracks. It is easy to judge that the album will sound this way. And this is an exciting release!
The album will be available everywhere and I will tell you more about it in my future post about the guys of Poitin.
Celtic Music Fan 