Interviews

One on One with Luke Fraser of The Bombadils.

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I  like both The Bombadils and Raftmen. The former is a Celtic fusion band and the latter a classically influenced folk/rock band. What do they have in common? Both are from Canada and they are bands where my featured artist Luke Fraser plays for. He is a native of Nova Scotia . Now he is basking under the musical diversity of Montreal, Quebec where the rest of the band members are located. We both like  The Punch Brothers and I remember how he was excited about going to their concert when they toured Canada. These days, he is busy with music. The Bombadils has just released an album called “Fill Your Boots”. Music can be sampled via streaming through their website http://www.thebombadils.com/ 

By the way I just heard the first track from “Fill your Boots!” while writing this introduction and I love it! So let’s get to know more about Luke:

Favorite color: Blue

Guitar man.

Zodiac sign. Cancer
Pet peeve: Apathy

Tell us what Raftmen is all about?
* The Raftmen started as the brainchild of the lead singer and bassist Ben Duinker. He is a great musician all around and thought that it would be fun to bring together all of us Nova Scotian friends to start a rock project. This is the second time we have all played together – the first time was in a cover band, put together to play the Dalhousie University music faculty ball. The first album is based on selections from an old popular TV commercial series entitled “Canadian Heritage Moments”. Some of them were used in the lyrical content of a few of the songs.

What are the challenges playing an electric guitar for the Raftmen, as opposed to the usual mandolin/acoustic guitar type of music you do for The Bombadils.
* I began playing electric guitar before acoustic guitar, so it is easy for me to switch back to electric for this project. Since I have been focusing on acoustic guitar and mandolin these days, I forgot how different it really is between acoustic and electric. For one thing it is so much easier to play and you don’t have to really have great technique to play it well, although it helps. You don’t have to really worry about tone production in the picking hand because most of the tone comes from the guitar and amp you use. I enjoy electric for different reasons, but nothing will ever replace my passion for making a hollow sound chamber resonate. It just feels more personal to me.

You list Chris Thile as one of your heroes. How was the Punch brothers concert?

Session.Picture by Aaron Hull

* The Punch Brothers show in Montreal was amazing. Chris Thile and the band are a huge influence on me and they are such solid musicians on their recordings and especially live. They are returning the September, 2012 to Montreal and I will be in the front row again!

Fans are waiting for the Bombadils album. How’s it going in terms of recording and production?
* The Bombadils album has arrived! We are very proud of our first full length album and we will be officially releasing it this Friday at Burritoville in Montreal.

How’s your own solo project?
* At the moment I don’t really have a solo project, but I am thinking about new future side projects, which may take the form of a duo project with Sarah Frank, and/or a full-on bluegrass band with some of Montreal’s finest players.

What are the funniest moments you experienced being on the road/tour?
* We are a crazy bunch of bandmates, so there were a lot of funny moments. We had a lot of fun carrying on during the drives and especially making the Vlog videos that can be found on Youtube.

Sad experiences while on tour.
*Overall, it was a great tour. We were all sad to see it end!

With Raftmen

Is it true that you are originally came from Cape Breton? I have friends from that region and all of them are very musical. Can you give us a little picture of the Fraser household when you were a kid?
*Actually, I am not from Cape Breton specifically, but I am from outside Halifax which is in the same province where Cape Breton is located. That being said I have been influenced by the music of CB. We sometimes perform a song by one of CB’s hometown heros, J.P. Cormier.
In the Fraser houshold when I was a kid, you would find me alone in my room listening to cassette tapes of the Beatles, The Rankins, Alvin and the Chipmonks, The Eagles, Lovin’ Spoonfull, and lots more. Also, CBC radio was constantly on in my house.

With The Bombadils

What are the albums that you listen to right now.
* I am currently listening to my new vinyl collection, inherited from my lovely aunt. Aka-everything bluegrass, newgrass, classic rock and blues. Also on constant spin – Punch Brothers. (go figure).

Complete the sentence: ” I dreamed of________________ last night and I____________ when I woke up this morning.

” I dreamed of the ocean last night and I did songwriting exercises when I woke up this morning.

You can get your copy of Fill your Boots by The Bombadils through:

CD Baby

Band: https://www.facebook.com/thebombadils

Wow! The vocal capabilities of Sarah Frank even without the mic shocked me. This is outdoors. She is one of a kind singer/fiddler.

Chat with Iolo Whelan of Jamie Smith’s MABON

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Jamie Smith’s MABON:  Concerts, changes and the new album.

I posted my first article about Jamie Smith’s MABON in May 5,  2010. Back then the band were known as Mabon. They  appeared in  posts as it is hard not to notice them. Everyone  was either tweeting about them or just posting status updates with youtube videos of the band.

The music is a mix of all the influences from the seven Celtic nations. That is why apart from being a Welsh band , they officially label themselves as playing  original, Interceltic, world music. To quote from the band: ” it draws inspiration directly from the traditional folk music of the Celtic countries. This is not Welsh music, nor Scottish or Irish; this is Interceltic music, a true exploration of forms and styles found in Celtic music and their forging into something bold and new.”

It is interesting to observe how this band continue to grow in their sound. After three albums(one is  alive concert)  they are working on the latest album. It is an honor to catch up with Iolo Whelan the drummer and official spokes person for the band to gather thoughts that very few know about yet. I am glad to know one thing and that is(sound of trumpets)……the name of the new album!

Band members

Jamie Smith – Accordion, Oliver Wilson-Dickson – Fiddle, Adam Rhodes – Bouzouki, Matt Downer – Electric & Upright Basses, Iolo Whelan – Drums and Percussion: Calum Stewart (special guest) – Flute & Pipes

Iolo interview answers for The Celtic Music Fan, May 2012.

 

Website: www.jamiesmithsmabon.com   FB: www.facebook.com/jsmabon

 

What’s the best part about touring with the band?

We are very fortunate in this band that we get to travel: as well as touring in the UK, which I love, we’ve also traveled in Europe, Canada, Australia and Mexico.  When we travel, we meet so many wonderful people, and see so many amazing things.  I always feel when you visit another country as a working musician, you see a very different picture than if you were a tourist.

As a brilliant example, I remember the first time we went to Poland: we were in the country for less than 24 hours, but by the time we left, I felt as though I had had an amazing insight into Polish life, Polish culture, Polish people’s lives, which will stay with me for ever.  It’s the same everywhere we go.

And apart from the travel of course, there are two obvious but very important things which I love about working in this band – the friendship and the music!  Playing with great musicians who are also your friends makes any performance a joy.

Tell us about the new project you are working on at the moment.

 

For us, this year is all about our new album, Windblown.  We were preparing  new material in the winter, and we’re recording it over spring and summer ready for an album release tour in the autumn.  Our last album was recorded live, so it’s a while since we were in the studio, and it’s interesting to see how things have changed.

The biggest change is the inclusion of songs in our repertoire now as well as the established instrumental aspect.  I was interested to see how the two things would sit side by side on the new album: and I think because we treat our songs the same way we treat our instrumental material, they form one unified collection very well.

We’re very excited about the way it sounds so far and can’t wait to get it out there for our friends and fans!

Has there been a change in the traditional Welsh music scene recently and what are they?

 

I think if there is a change in the traditional music scene in Wales today, it is a new confidence amongst musicians and bands.  I feel that more bands are happy to do their own thing and chart their own course.

Some are returning to the roots of the music and further exploring that material at its oldest sources; some are still mixing traditional material with rock and pop influences; others are exploring new realms of fusion with a broader palette of genres.  Our approach is to work without a specific niche or brief, and to make music as we fancy, taking in different influences from all the great music we hear, and seeking whatever sound we enjoy in our own original music.

Maybe that confidence in the Welsh folk scene is reflected in the appearance of more Welsh roots bands on the world music stage: Jamie Smith’s MABON, 9Bach, Calan, Burum, Catrin Finch and others are appearing more often on international stages now.  Indeed, I think some of these bands receive more attention on roots and world music platforms internationally than they do in Wales – maybe with time that will change too!

How do you define the music of Jamie Smith’s MABON and what are the things we will be expecting from the band this year in terms of concerts and collaborations, if there are any?

 

We describe our music as original, Interceltic, world music.  Original because, even though we work in a roots field and with trad music influences, our music is mostly composed by our accordionist and lead vocalist Jamie Smith; Interceltic because our primary influences are the cultures of all the Celtic nations; and world music because we do not feel we need to restrict ourselves to that field, and because our brand of original roots music sits so well on a world music stage.

Our main focus for this year is our new album, as I mentioned, and while that keeps us looking inward for a while, we will also be featuring several new and established collaborators on the recording.  Old friends Calum Stewart and Will Lang will contribute on wooden flute and on bodhran respectively, but our friend and recent collaborator Tom Callister will be guesting on the album too, as well as some other very special musicians yet to be revealed.

We’re hoping, after some festival appearances this summer and our album launch tour in the autumn, to be taking plenty of bookings for 2013’s festival season.  Hit our ‘Like’ button on Facebook or bookmark the concerts page of our website, and you can you can keep an eye out for a gig or a festival near you this year, next year and beyond!

You are the skins man and what can you tell us about the drums that we don’t know yet?

 

I often say that mine is the best seat in the house for any concert, but a Jamie Smith’s MABON concert in particular provides really interesting challenges.  For me, I feel my task is to support the melodies and the songs without getting in the way.  The sound of the accordion, fiddle and bouzouki is so full that it can be easy for the bass and drums to distract from that fullness, without adding anything special in its place.

So I tread a fine line between lifting the music and spoiling it, and I enjoy having to make those decisions from one moment to the next: I hope I get it right enough of the time!  There are many challenging roles out there for a drummer, but I’ve been doing this gig for twelve years now, and it’s still constantly stimulating, and fresh and somehow different every time.

One of our most faithful long-term fans told me last year that he can listen to us play a piece of music which he’s heard countless times before, but will hear something new or different in it each time he sees us perform – that gives me great inspiration for every concert we play.

You can buy albums of the band here: http://www.jamiesmithsmabon.com/shop/

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Today in the Celtic world….

New album from an American harpist!

Congratulations to harpist friend Scott Hoye for releasing the album called Black Rose today! Listen and buy the album here: http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/scotthoye

Tarbolten: Q&A with Darren Lynch of The Feekers

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Album launch, great instruments and feeking around: The Feekers!

Album launchings online and offline are interesting. You always get to pick the unexpected. Such as the luck I found with Tarbolten. It’s the debut album from Dublin based duo The Feekers. Aside from the interesting album title and of course what their band name means, we find some interesting bits about these two musicians. They have such passion for traditional Irish music. And well, because it is the thing that they do best.

Traditional music has really achieved such soaring popularity lately. I think with the gap between the ‘insiders’ and ‘outsiders’ in the music scene has been narrowed down. It is only a matter of time when the world finally redefines what is considered as hip and what isn’t. Radio is no longer as influential as it used to be and more and more people catch what’s being streamed online or what they come across on blogs and websites. This where , social butterflies(those with over 2000 friends) and megaphones(those who love posting links to videos and music) in facebook come in.

So please have the pleasure of reading my Q&A with Darren Lynch. And I hope you get to spread this to your friends. Let’s put the spotlight to The Feekers.

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Sample mp3s

What has happened to the trad scene for the past 10 years in your opinion?

Trad music has remained strong here in Ireland and continues to grow. Unfortunately, I don’t think there has been any recent bands that have broken the mould like the way some of the greats have done in the 60’s and 70’s folk revival. The final members of the legendry Dubliners and Clancy Brothers have unfortunately passed away in the last 10 years. I hope the passing of these legends will bring about a calling for more trad and folk music and maybe even another folk revival as people seek other bands to replace these.

 

What were the memorable things that happened during the recording of Tarbolten?

Recording sessions were very relaxed, with John and myself having very little planned beforehand. We didn’t record in layers or double track, so what you hear on the album is a direct recording of what and how we play. We think this gives the music more energy and a closer realism that represents how we sound at live gigs and performances. It was also less time consuming and allowed us to get more tracks recorded in a short time. Chris Marshall was our recording engineer in the Elektra studios in Temple Bar, Dublin. Chris has a very laid back attitude and left us to do things in whatever manner that made us comfortable while offering us his expert advice and guidance.

   John plays the banjo and whistles while you play the octave mandolin and also do vocals. What are the things about playing the octave mandolin (or the instrument in general) that we listeners don’t know of ?

I play the octave mandolin, which some people call the Irish bouzouki. I play in a similar tuning to the mandolin and Irish tenor banjo so I think octave mandolin is more accurate name for my instrument. I find it to be an all round instrument, in that it can play both melody and a rhythm equally well.

Why did you choose the title Tarbolten for your debut album? And also why the band name The Feekers?

Tarbolten is the name of one of the tunes played on the banjo on the first track of the cd. It was recorded in one straight take and we thought it captured the energy and character of The Feekers.

We called ourselves The Feekers after a couple of years of going nameless. John suggested the name as a joke originally, and it grew and stuck over time. Feekers isn’t really a word, but the verb ‘to feek’ is a slang name Irish travelers sometimes use which means… I’ll leave it to your imaginations!

Please tell us more about the album and also the tracks in term of styles.

As a duo, The Feekers basically consists of John looking after the playing of tunes and melody while I look after vocals and rhythm. We wanted an album that had a good mix of both tunes and songs that represented us both as a band, so that’s why we put a 50/50 mix on it. The 10 tracks on the album consist of 5 songs, along with 4 banjo tracks, and we couldn’t resist slipping a slow air on the whistle in!

  What can we expect from you guys in years to come in terms of your music. What is the next level for The Feekers?

This year is just really about getting our name out there. We have a few Irish festivals to play in 2012, which include the Ballinamore Festival in Leitrim, The Prosperous Festival in Kildare, and The Banjo Festival in Tullamore. Next year we plan to start recording our second album and spread our wings further afield and play a few festivals around Europe. Playing some Celtic and folk festivals around Europe is something we’d be really looking forward to.

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You can buy or sample the music from Claddagh Records

Or their music page: http://thefeekers.weebly.com/audio-samples.html

Please add and say hi t them in facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thefeekers

Short band bio:

The Feekers are a traditional and folk music duo from Ballyfermot, Dublin.
Darren and John have known each other as teenagers when they hung around as friends in nearby Bluebell, but only met up again about 5 years ago to form a band after realising each other’s interest in folk and trad music.
Darren Lynch (Vocals/Octave Mandolin) and John Keenan (Banjo/Whistles) have played together for a number of years around numerous pub sessions, gigs and festivals, and plan to release an album in the near future.
Darren started off playing music after finishing a successful amateur boxing career with Crumlin Boxing Club. It was then in his late teens that he picked up the banjo and then later the octave mandolin and mandola. He
learned from some of the great folk and trad musicians in the area: that included Tom Moran, Liam O’Neill, Darach de Brun and John Lane. He then went on to play and record with the bands The Broadside Merchants, So-Ranna and Tam-Lin before forming Feekers with John in 2007.
Darren plays a mixture of folk songs from Ireland, Scotland, England and America, and is influenced by The Dubliners, Planxty, The Fureys and Sweeney’s Men.
John plays Irish tunes on the tenor banjo that he learned from his grandfather John Keenan Snr. John has been
playing banjo since the age of 10 and has also learned from his uncles who he has also played with over the years. John’s uncle Paddy Keenan plays the uileann pipes and played with the Bothy Band, and John’s other uncle Johnny is known today for his banjo playing and for the festival set up in his honor ‘The Johnny Keenan Banjo Festival’.
This year, The Feekers are due to perform at the Ballinamore Festival in Leitrim, The Prosperous Festival in Kildare and The Banjo Festival in Tullamore.The Feekers form a unique and fresh folk sound that is rooted in tradition and this sound gets across in their first album ‘Tarbolten’ which was released on 1st May 2012. The album is available from Claddagh Records – www.claddaghrecords.com

Bodhrán Gigs with Jacob McCauley

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Bodhran players have all the fun in the world as shown in this interview I did with award-winning Bodhrán player Jacob McCauley. He moved around a LOT in February. His numerous gigs in Europe proved to be an exciting story and I am capturing that spirit here and what he took with him in his travels.

1. So what  memorable things  happened during your European tour?

Well, it wasn’t exactly a tour since usually a tour consists of travelling from one city to the next. For this last trip I was primarily in Glasgow, Scotland during the Celtic Connections festival. Although I wasn’t officially booked to play this year, I had a variety of other things on the go during my stay. Besides doing a bit of guest playing at the festival, I had some planning to do for an upcoming Scottish album, and a variety of teaching. I will be back in Scotland in a few months to start work on a new project.

Lastly, I spent a few days in Germany visiting with my Bodhrán maker Christian Hedwitschak. We have had some new projects on the go and are working towards a very special goal…but I’m afraid that’s all I can say for now! 

2. March happened. What did you do last St Paddy’s day?

St Paddy’s day this year was another fun-filled day and night. I did two gigs with a new trio of mine. An afternoon gig at an art gallery and then a much less formal pub gig at night. This was a very nice change of pace to play a comfortable, easy-going pub gig as opposed to a big concert. A few years ago on St Paddy’s day I did a gig with The Chieftains at a huge concert hall in Toronto. As much fun as that was, I always enjoy the more easy-going gigs on Paddy’s day!

3. You are doing something in the studio again right? Tell me all about this facebook update about tinkering with your mic placement.

As you may have already noticed from many previous Facebooks updates… I am currently in the last few stages of Bodhrán testing for Christian Hedwitschak. I am testing his new TwinSkin innovation and seeing how they compare to his previous single skins, as well as how different skin combinations compare to each other. There are other small tests on the go comparing his latest Compressor tuning system as well. The mic placement update referred to working on finding the best mic placements for each specific TwinSkin drum. There are new sound samples that will be posted in a few days so take a look!

4.This month seems to be picking up for you with the Irish fiddler
Maeve Donnelly and Guitarist Andy Hillhouse in Concert.Tell us about your part in this wonderful event and how was it for you.
I was very pleased to open for my good friends Maeve Donnelly and Andy Hillhouse this past Saturday. Our new trio (of which I spoke of above) did a half an hour opening set which kicked of the show quite nicely. I enjoyed doing some playing with Maeve and Andy as well. It was a great evening! There should hopefully be some live video clips posted soon.

5. More updates?

The drum testing is currently the main focus for myself right now, but there are many other projects coming up and some smaller side projects. We have started work on the debut album for the new trio and will be posting a Single off the album in the coming weeks. So keep an eye out for that. I will be posting updated information with new projects as soon as time permits.

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Pierre continues to be a great force in the propagation of Celtic music via facebook.

My special thanks  to Pierre Deragon for uncovering this old Gem that inspired generations of singers :

Irish Tradition : “Ailiu Ennai” sung by Mary O’Hara

Fiona J Mackenzie and The Kilmarnock Edition (Interview)

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Generally we have an idea in our heads of what sort of ‘feel’ we can imagine for a song but sometimes it ends up being totally different to the first template! For instance, in ‘Gazz’,  that developed from Roberto playing a riff on the upright bass then each of us just joining in with some little snippet, then I threw in some odd Gaelic words which then developed themselves into a wee new genre- Gazz- Gaelic Jazz! It’s great fun as well as being completely inspirational, working with the others.
 
 

http://www.kilmarnockedition.com/ 

Gaelic/Traditional Vocalist/Member of The Kilmarnock Edition talks to The Celtic Music Fan about her new exciting musical project.

So excited to feature this band from Scotland. I follow Fiona Mackenzie’s update so that’s how I was able to read about The Kilmarnock Edition. What got to me was their reggae sound on top of the distinctive Scottish trad tune. And yes folks ’tis the season to party! I set this interview up to know more:

1. After your last album A Good Suit of Clothes which I enjoyed so much, this is one good news! Your voice is really beautiful. What is the most exciting thing about The Kilmarnock Edition?

The most exciting thing about being part of the KE is the realisation that we are bringing a new style of Scottish music to the public ear.  We are all well known in our own individual genres but as we work together, we are creating something that I think is very special and that wont be found anywhere else on the Scottish music scene. We are thrilled to have the chance to work on establishing what is in effect, a new genre of Scottish music- we are not a folk band, we’re not a classical band, we’re not a rock, jazz or reggae band- but we have  elements of all this within our style-  but it doesn’t emerge as if we are a real ‘hotchpotch’ of sound, the music presents itself as an exciting, hopeful and inspirational style, all  of its own.  

2. The members are high-powered coming from their own bands and projects. Is it a great experience working with the rest of the band?

 It is hugely exciting with the band. We all manage to get along together very well socially as well as professionally and we have formed  very strong personal bonds, as well as various other duo/trio partnerships for other gigs. Everyone is very generous with their Songwriting and willing to ‘let their songs go’ to others in the band, for vocals, instrumentation etc  if  they feel that is what the song needs. When we get together for writing/rehearsals we are always very excited to see what the latest sounds will emerge- we never quite know what’s going to happen, but we do know when its right! We are very lucky to have such a diverse range of talents within the group, both musically and in writing. Roberto for instance, is hugely talented at writing funny, observational but very incisive songs about normal day to day life, which are really brought to life in his own Italian accent and style. Lisa writes beautiful songs about the world today, political/socio-economic environments as well as taking history as inspiration for example.  Yvonne writes truly stunning lyrics of life and love and gives us the gift of her beautiful keyboard skills. Alex writes wonderful songs which are easy for audiences to pick up as well as the most tender of love songs.  I write contemporary songs incorporating Scottish Gaelic with English and the Scots tongue-  on contemporary subjects such as technology and ‘empty nest syndrome’!  It gives me the chance to experiment with new ways of making Gaelic accessible to a wider audience. And Stu, our cajon player  and percussionist  gives us that fantastic extra brilliance of beat for whatever the style and tempo.

3. What can we expect from this project musically?

Musically we want to show an audience that Scottish music does not have to be traditional to be representative of our language and culture. That is is possible, in the hands of good musicians and writers, to take elements from all aspects of the Scottish musical spectrum and blend them into something new, fresh and invigorating, a new face of Scottish music. All members of the band are well established and well respected in their solo careers and we only perform to the highest professional standards. We are all passionate about what we do and we believe that is evident in our performance.  

4.Is there an album coming out soon?

We will be going to Watercolour Studio on the lovely Ardgour peninsula at the end of April to record our debut album “Pay it Forward” and we are hugely excited by the prospect of working very very hard at producing what we hope will  be a truly special and indigenous album.  We are totally delighted and honoured that the album will be released on the Greentrax label and we are very grateful to Ian Green to having faith in us to produce an album for his catalogue. He has been following us since our first rehearsals and says that he did indeed spy something unique about us right from the beginning. We take our title from the fact that , having been lucky in being given support from various people over the last 2 years, we now want to ‘pay a little forward’ and do something for other people or groups in the Community. To date , we’ve done some local charity gigs to raise money for the new Church roof in Prestonpans, where  Alex comes from.. The album will be out during the Summer.  

5. I heard a few sample tracks and I understand what makes the band exciting. The tracks are really groovy and good enough for dancing. I am sure fans of Reggae, Traditional music as well as Jazz will love the music. Who lays down the musical ideas for the tracks?

 All the ideas for the tracks come from ourselves. We bring an idea to the group then just jam for a while until something gels then we work on that basic idea.  Its often easier working with others than on your own as you can bat ideas around and someone will play a wee riff or sing a ‘doo wop’ that sparks something interesting and unusual.  Generally we have an idea in our heads of what sort of ‘feel’ we can imagine for a song but sometimes it ends up being totally different to the first template! For instance, in ‘Gazz’,  that developed from Roberto playing a riff on the upright bass then each of us just joining in with some little snippet, then I threw in some odd Gaelic words which then developed themselves into a wee new genre- Gazz- Gaelic Jazz! Its great fun as well as being completely inspirational, working with the others. We’re all so thankful that we met in the Burnsong House in 2009- Kilmarnock Edition has given all of our musical careers a totally new direction and hopefully it will take us to all parts of Scotland, the Uk and to further afield too- we really do believe that overseas markets will find out new style of Scottish music, appealing whilst still drawing on our traditions and respecting where we come from.          

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