Irish

Beannacht and the Sound of Summer

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Their debut CD, “Gra na Firinne” was released in November 2011.

As summer approaches, more and more Celtic bands are putting out albums that have that feel of white sandy beaches and bonfires. I can cite Beannacht as an example. The duo of Tom Johnston and Dierdre Forrest show that carefree simplicity. The tracks in the album are arranged in a way suited for few instruments. There are other instruments that embellish this silky project but mostly, the focus of Gran a Firinne is to project that languid poetic style reminiscent of Christy Moore and Luka Bloom.  Margarita, sunset and the music of Beannacht. Sounds like a perfect combination. Aloha! Summer is here.

Notable tracks: Upon Your Ocean, Why’d You Go, And I Love and many more.

Brian  Ostering captures the silky sound which borders on the wispy yet making sure to add that warm touch especially on middle frequencies. Great mastering by George Wirth. Sounds like this album is great both in artistic and technical aspect.

Thanks to Anita Daly for the taste of the music 🙂

https://www.facebook.com/BeannachtMusic

About

Writing great songs, playing great shows, supporting venues and fellow musicians.

Biography

Beannacht was named one of the Top Irish Music Makers of 2011 and Rookie of the Year by Mike Farragher and the Irish Voice!

Beannacht was named Best New Act at the 2011 Jersey Acoustic Music Awards in Asbury Park, NJ!

Beannacht is the musical duo of guitarist/singer/songwriter Thomas Johnston and his niece, lead vocalist and lyricist Deirdre Forrest. Both musicians are heavily influenced by nearly all genres of music and especially enjoy being able to share their Irish culture through their music. Beannacht is a famous poem by Celtic writer and spiritualist John O’Donohughe and the word beannacht translates to “blessing” in the Irish form of the Gaelic language.

Description

An acoustic duo creating original songs that are a blend of contemporary Irish, classic rock, folk, and blues. Their debut CD, “Gra na Firinne” was released in November 2011.

Harp Music, Good Mood!

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Scott Hoye takes harp music to the next level!

I think  these days the harp has been overlooked in much of Celtic music. Chicago based harpist/singer/composer Scott Hoye has added charm and elegance to this instrument making it fresh as a ripe fruit ready to be plucked for your sonic hunger. He weaves his personal style to traditional tunes  to create something new out of the old.

As for the singing, this man can sing! Right now the rain is falling as I write this piece. His music is a perfect companion to that mood. You should try this: make yourself hot chocolate with bread and butter. Find a great spot by your window. Look at the glistening leaves under the gray sky.. and smell that wet scent of the earth rising along with other organic scents. Close your eyes occasionally to the sound of harp music. You will be in a good mood later. I am at peace oh yes! Feeling calm now.

http://www.reverbnation.com/scotthoye

Blurb about Scott Hoye:

Scott was a founding member of the Celtic ensemble The Spriggans, as well as the progressive rock band Seranati. His repertoire includes traditional and original tunes on Celtic harp, vocals, whistles, and percussion. Scott gathers inspiration from traditional sources of Irish, Scottish, other Celtic, folk, and world music, while mixing them together with contemporary sounds to create a new, sonic brew.

Lúnasa: A Band with Consistently Beautiful Artwork?

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Mirror mirror on the wall, who has the best album cover of them all?

I believe that every topic merits an article. The little conversation that I had with Christi and Connie inspired this piece. It has something to do with the post Christi made of the Irish band Lúnasa. Through the years this band made amazing recordings of top notch traditional interpretations that got them into the global spotlight.

They have a new album out called Lá Nua’. As always we expect nothing but amazing music . However something has been overlooked in forum discussions as well as reviews from other Celtic magazines. It is the amazing album artworks. My first Lúnasa album was Otherworld(1999). The impressionistic photography and dashes of blue and green colors are really eye-catching.  There are albums out there that sound really great but the artwork don’t really give justice to the music.  To see more of the band’s album artwork just visit the photogallery section of the official site.

Marc Gunn’s Music Revolution

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It’s a breeze for big record labels to push songs up the charts. They just open up their pocket books and wave a wad of cash around. Boom! They own the Celtic Top 10.

If you listen to the Irish & Celtic Music Podcast, you know that it’s not that big labels have better music, it’s that they have more money and expertise to promote the music they own. That is not the case for the indie Celtic musician… all we have is YOU!-Marc Gunn

I like Marc Gunn’s idea of breaking down the walls of major record labels. For musicians out there who might be having cold feet, this is the time to stop the hesitation and I’d say go for whatever musical ideas you have. Don’t be afraid to form a band or play solo, don’t be afraid to record and MOST of all don’t be shy to spread your music.

Talent is one thing but confidence is another. If we read the bios of famous bands or singers, we learned that they started like everyone else. They aren’t gods. U2 did not become U2 over night. So let us all start a music revolution and start recording whatever you got there. So get up, get on and get everyone involved. If you are a blogger and you are reading this, I hope this will help you start a chain of events in your community by helping out artists that you think deserve such attention.

Check this link out to learn about Marc Gunn’s Top of the Charts.

http://www.celticmusicpodcast.com/topthecharts/

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Stetrice are a band from Nantes and they are making waves in the local scene right now. Time for giving these fellas a much wider audience.

www.stetrice.com.

If you have bands you want me to feature just email me and I will check them out.

The Feekers-Tarbolten

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If you want your Irish music to be straight ahead traditional with no frills, just delicious home grown music, then Tarbolen is for you. I love folk instruments and the combination of the octave mandolin and banjo can be irresistible. The Bluegrass lover in me says it is one of the best releases this year. Traditional music is alive and kicking!

More about Tarbolen:

The Feekers are a folk music duo from Dublin. Darren Lynch plays mandola and octave mandolin and Johnny Keenan plays banjo and whistle.

This is the title track from their album Tarbolten.

Their debut album is now available from Claddagh Records:
http://claddaghrecords.com/WWW/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=3447

They can be contacted through their website:
http://www.thefeekers.weebly.com

They can be followed on FaceBook:
http://www.facebook.com/the-feekers