Northern Irish singer-songwriter Eve Williams has carved a musical path that is not for the faint of hearts. It is not easy to just have a beautiful voice and songwriting skills these days. You gotta have grit. And grit is the very thing that pushed the release of her new album Peregreni. The new album has nine songs-a labor of love and took a lot of time to make.
Although Williams did not encounter any writer’s block after the release of Twenty Miles From Home, health issues along with other personal challenges almost drained her creative energy. Yet those challenges did not deter her from finishing these nine songs. You can hear the inner strength in each of them. Even if her lyrics talk of something else, her voice is unmistakably saying, I’ve been through a lot. This is my story.
With her supple Mezzo-soprano, Eve Williams can glide between power ballads and Celtic folk with remarkable ease. Peregreni is a delightful album that showcases her songwriting genius and impeccable power of interpretation.
The album will be released on June 10, 2016. I am so glad to get a preview and I think with Peregreni, Williams has achieved another musical height that is more confident than her previous efforts. The album sees her growth both as a poet and arranger. This is also a work of endless chores in front of the computer (if she is not with her piano)mastering Excel and also Accounting.
Yes, all musicians should be taught accounting and how to use Excel!!! She replied in one of our online conversations about the plight of indie artists.
I get the feeling that Illumination is going to be a single off this album because it has this catchiness that is pure pop, even though the song is grounded on acoustic folk and gospel. Her voice sounds at home with a big bands(complete with strings). But there are also moments when her simple arrangements shine through like the haunting Ailsa Craig. Big voices are a trend these days and I think Eve Williams has this lighthouse effect that will continue to attract travellers from all walks of life.
So many tunes, to little time. It’s always like that year after year. But I got a few of these goodies from the artists I’ve interacted in the last few weeks so I am bringing you their Christmas musical efforts. They are all great to hear and the tunes will add warmth to this month of reflection and joy.
Listen to this beautiful instrumental track from Dee McIlroy. By the way if you haven’t known yet, he runs a venture called McIlroy Guitars. Beautiful acoustic guitars for musicians of fine taste.
Happy Christmas from McIlroy Guitars with this piece of acoustic guitar music, written by Dee McIlroy.
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Corpus Christi Carol
One of the track I play ever year from my dear friend Paula. She is primarily an electronic singer/composer but once in a while she dabbles with other types of music and is also a huge supporter of Celtic music. She made the Cara Dillon interview possible early this year. You can hear her voice and instruments in this tune called Corpus Christi Carol. She is also a history teacher.
Background(written by Paula):
This is referred to as a carol although it contains no reference to the Nativity….the predominant interpretation of the lyrics (below), which were found in a manuscript c.1504, is that they refer to Arthurian legend / holy grail quest.
The track was recorded with this historical interpretation in mind and the theme is reflected in the slideshow paintings. The melody is a traditional melody,not the Benjamin Britten arrangement.
Lulley, lully, lulley, lully,
The faucon hath born my mak away.
He bare hym up, he bare hym down,
He bare hym into an orchard brown.
In that orchard ther was an hall,
That was hanged with purpill and pall.
And in that hall ther was a bede,
Hit was hangid with gold so rede.
And yn that bed ther lythe a knyght,
His wowndes bledyng day and nyght.
By that bedes side ther kneleth a may,
And she wepeth both nyght and day.
And by that bedes side ther stondith a ston,
“Corpus Christi” wretyn theron.
Glossary:
faucon: falcon
mak: mate, love
bare: bore, carried
purpill: purple (the royal color)
pall: a funeral pall, a cloth spread over a coffin
bede: bed
rede: red
lythe: lieth, lies
wowndes: wounds
bledyng: bleeding
kneleth: kneeleth, kneels
may: maid, maiden
wepeth: weepeth, weeps
stondith: standeth, stands
ston: stone
Corpus Christi: body of Christ (Latin)
wretyn: written
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In the trail of her shows all over the United States, it is always important to remember that Moya Brennan will always be the first lady of Celtic music.
I will be bringing you more tunes in days to come.
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Upcoming: 2 albums from Allison Crowe!
I will be reviewing her two albums. I enjoyed her Newfoundland Vinyl(vol.1) and now she has released two goodies. Watch out for these peeps.
The thing I like about Robert Doyle is that he has a lot to say about creativity. It is always exciting to eavesdrop inside a creative mind and discover what he does in a day-to-day basis when not working on music. This interview sent me looking for his last CD Life in Shadows and played the album once again. I remember the day it got to me. Like music, the artist has many layers. You can read between the lines or you can listen to the songs: They are all a part of him.
You have just released a new single Flags of Belfast with other musicians playing on this track. Are you taking a new direction for the new album?
‘Flags of Belfast’ is a reworking of the melody to ‘Star of the County Down’ with new lyrics. When I began working on it I knew I wanted to add other instrumentation when recording the song. I recorded a lot of demos of the track and some of these were done in Flood Plain Studios here in Dublin which is run by Graham Watson. He suggested trying a second vocal along with uilleann pipes and Aoife Dermody and Eoin Dillon were the perfect choice for this. So yeah there’s going to be some other musicians involved on parts of the album but it will still mostly be a solo record. Sometimes it feels right to have different instruments and then sometimes the music feels better played solo.
You mentioned the new album will be released in 2015. How’s the recording going?
I had hoped to have the album ready by the end of this year but that probably won’t happen now so 2015 is more realistic. From a recording perspective the last single was interesting for me because I got a new preamp for the home studio which now lets me record a guitar sound I’m happy with. This was always a problem in the past. So for the single I recorded the guitar and vocal myself and then we put the other parts down in Flood Plain. This gives me some flexibility for the next record that I didn’t have before. So for now I plan to record most of the album myself and for any extra instrumentation I’d like to work with Graham again. This will be a totally different recording process to last time when I only recorded two of the tracks myself and the rest with an engineer. There are a number of advantages and disadvantages to recording yourself and I’ve been debating these with myself over the years. We’ll soon see if I’ve made the right choice this time round!
How will the tracks differ from your last album Life in Shadows in terms of arrangements and lyrics?
At this stage I still have a lot of work to do on writing and arranging. Like the last album it’ll be a mix of original and traditional music but there’ll be a different feel because hopefully I’m a better musician now and this should show in the music. I have about 15 or 16 separate ideas that I’m working on. Some of that material will get cut and hopefully there’ll be a good album in what’s left. Also there’ll be more songs in English this time. In the past I was mostly interested in singing in Irish but there’ll definitely be more English on this record. There’ll be some new instrumental pieces and I want to push those arrangements further on this record. I love to improvise when playing fingerstyle because you have the chance to play basslines, harmony and melody altogether so I’ll improvise around the themes and try to work out the arrangements that way.
Aside from music, what are the other projects you are working on? Can you tell us a bit about your day job?
Work and music takes up a lot of time so aside from that I don’t have any other projects. There are other important things in life though so I hope I make time for them too. The day job is in IT and this comes in useful when invariably you have technical problems in the studio. Obviously not being a full time musician means you can’t spend as much time as you’d like on the music but you try to use the time you have and always stay with it. It would be great to have time to play more gigs and record more often but the important thing is to keep playing music.
After the last album what has changed so far?
Well I think I’ve learnt a lot since then. Each project is a great learning experience and it’s worth all the work for that alone. There was a big jump from the EP I released in 2008 to the album in 2011 and I think it’ll be a similar step this time. Overall I was very happy with the last record. It was great to get a positive reception and some good coverage and radio play. Of course listening back there’s some things that I’d have done differently both in the recording and post-production but that’s all part of it.
What do you plan to accomplish musically this year?
Work on the album is the priority now and if I can get a good piece of it recorded by the end of the year I’ll be happy with that. I’m also working on a collaboration with a bouzouki player based around some traditional songs which hopefully will get to involve other musicians too.
Where can listeners buy your last album Life in Shadows?
The CD is available from Claddagh Records and will soon be for sale again directly from www.robertdoyle.net. A digital download is available from iTunes, Amazon and eMusic.
What other instruments do you play?
I’m learning to play some piano at the moment. It’s not serious piano study but I’m enjoying playing some chords and seeing how they’re built on a different instrument. It would have been great to learn piano when I was starting out all those years ago because as a guitar player you’re often trying to play like a piano player if that makes any sense! I think it’s important to not get too obsessed with the instrument you’re playing so spending some time on another instrument is something I’d recommend.
Boundaries are drawn
On council walls
Divisions are made easily
When a vote was called
The decision did say
The flag won’t fly daily
The Union remains
But the North had changed
Some divisions are the same
Next time you hear the Lagan sound
See the flags of Belfast town
When the protests began
Where are the leaders now
Heard with nothing to say
If there was a chance or a call for calm
It was soon swept away
Living on the sides
Of religious divides
Faith not faded with time
Next time round can you ask the crown
Has she seen the flags of Belfast town
At the start of the night
Through empty streets with dark light
Marches begin to pass
Along an enclave
Calls of an old age
Armed guards to defend both sides
Segregation in schools
Teaches old rules
Lessons begin early
As the children plan
To not let tradition down
And wear the flags in Belfast town
With the city closed
Blockades along the roads
Wasn’t this all a thing of the past
A sectarian divide
A part of city lives
No need to portray any side
Masks leave faces with no names
One after another taking aim
As broken bottles fall all around
The flags of Belfast town
Two years ago, Life in Shadows was released. It is still one of albums I listen to because of its timeless appeal. Artists are like heavenly bodies that shine when its their moment, and then they leave the orbit to give way to their creative period. In this gestation time, they leave us wondering about what might be in store when it’s their season to arrive once again.
The thing about Irish singer/songwriter Robert Doyle is that his songs always touch the human soul. They are always about life, the internal and external struggles one must face. No matter how we try to divorce ourselves from the politics of life, we can’t deny that everything affects us. In every discord, in every violence, life is always threatened. Sometimes it happens to people close to the artists ..and sometimes it happens to them.
We all want a better world and this is what the song Flags of Belfast is all about. The song features uilleann piper Eoin Dillon, who plays with the Irish band Kila, and also a singer named Aoife Dermody. Doyle explained that it is a traditional melody and the lyrics were written during the protests which took place in Belfast earlier this year about the flying of flags although the song is not political.
It has the unmistakable vocal style of Doyle which is very unique as I am yet to hear anyone who sings that way. It also has his signature guitar technique which he elaborated in the interview I did with him two years ago. Will this be the start of a new collection of songs that will become another album? Only Robert Doyle can say.
Robert Doyle – guitar and vocal
Aoife Dermody – vocal
Eoin Dillon – uilleann pipes
Boundaries are drawn
On council walls
Divisions are made easily
When a vote was called
The decision did say
The flag won’t fly daily
The Union remains
But the North had changed
Some divisions are the same
Next time you hear the Lagan sound
See the flags of Belfast town
When the protests began
Where are the leaders now
Heard with nothing to say
If there was a chance or a call for calm
It was soon swept away
Living on the sides
Of religious divides
Faith not faded with time
Next time round can you ask the crown
Has she seen the flags of Belfast town
At the start of the night
Through empty streets with dark light
Marches begin to pass
Along an enclave
Calls of an old age
Armed guards to defend both sides
Segregation in schools
Teaches old rules
Lessons begin early
As the children plan
To not let tradition down
And wear the flags in Belfast town
With the city closed
Blockades along the roads
Wasn’t this all a thing of the past
A sectarian divide
A part of city lives
No need to portray any side
Masks leave faces with no names
One after another taking aim
As broken bottles fall all around
The flags of Belfast town
I have been checking out the instagram pics of my online pals. I see snow everywhere. Sad to say, there’s no such thing where I am. The tropics can be cold but not THAT cold. I take comfort in the way music takes us to places we’ve never been. Like books, they let you live life vicariously. And such is found in the album And Winter Came by Enya. Yes I have mentioned that this month is mostly about holiday albums, and I am taking my time to listen to albums I bought through the years.
I think I raved about AWC when it first came out yes, I am writing about it again yay! It is such a joy to talk about music with someone who shares the same interest. I like the white theme of the album. Enya has themes running through all her albums. The Celts- black ,Watermark – orange, Shepherd Moons – blue, The Memory of Trees – gold,Paint the Sky with Stars – sepia,A Day Without Rain- emerald, Amarantine – Red and finally, And Winter Came -white.
The white horse in the cover art. Take a look at that. Is it about The Order of the White Horse? I suggest you Google that and you might find interesting bits in the internet 😉 Her voice has evolved. I sometimes hear a likeness to Karen Carpenter as her voice started to acquire that deeper and warmer shade. Those who listened to her when she was still with Clannad would notice that incredible softness. It is not a girlish kind of softness. It is more like, diaphanous and otherworldly kind of softness. Yet she can hit very low notes that at times made her sound androgynous. But after later albums that signature voice has evolved and became more expressive.
She and producer Nicky Ryan always like trying something new in the studio. I remember after recording A Day Without Rain , they gutted their Aigle studio and replaced everything with hi-tech recording equipment. I keep tabs of anything Enya through the Unity forum. Although, I’ve not been very much active there these days. Her fans are always patient and passionate with whatever she puts out. It is true that any artist can build a career out of looks or spectacle. But when the music is bigger than the artist, fans will stick around.
I like O Come, O Come Emmanuel. I think it’s the Latin verses that really define the power of the melody. Her lyricist Roma Ryan(from Northern Ireland) has a huge background in different languages, mythology and history-Irish or whatever. I think the reason why the songs will remain fascinating through the years is because listeners can uncover different layers and references all the time. For instance, the song Aldebaran (from The Celts) is a tribute to director Ridley Scott ( who also gave us Blade Runner ). There are more things you will discover when you listen to her albums.
My next favorite track is Last Time by Moonlight. (I know Trains and Winter Rains, a single from the album is everyone’s favorite. But I always choose something that doesn’t usually make it to the singles).I used to play this track to my late mom. She would say that Enya has a beautiful voice. My mom passed away this year. But when I play Enya albums, the music brings me closer to my mom because we used to listen to her together. Oiche Chiuin (Silent Night) has a fantastic re recording. This is the second version of the same song she recorded in the late 80s.
I hope there will be another holiday album from her in 10 years. For now, this is my comfort music.
Celtic Music Fan 