Two great Celtic bands are performing together. I have reviewed their excellent albums here. In terms of technique and stage presence, these guys are the best. Please don’t forget to watch them live together. I am talking about Poitin and Sliotar. They will be at Zach’s Pub, July 17,2012 Czech Republic! More info here: http://www.sliotarmusic.com/?page_id=10
My friend Pafka Steidl and his band Cheers jamming in Rock Café Prague. He will appear in our interview soon. It will be amazing! Pafka is witty, friendly and he takes his career in Celtic music seriously! Please watch out for that interview because there will be two great tracks that will be available for download.
With Lucie Šmahelová, Alexandra Šantorová, Ladislav Veselý, Obludný Neználek, Tomáš Pergler, Jan Brabec, Jaroslav Macháček and Veronika Perglerová at Bar Klub U Svatého Rocha.
Always expect energy when you listen to a Poitin album. These guys always deliver goods with gusto. Hot Days is an album that looks the way it sounds (note the chili pepper red cover that screams hot hot hot!). The introduction of the didgeridoo and the soprano sax are pleasant surprises. The album has everything that jumps and grabs you from behind.
Step It Out has Jeremy King’s superb vocals. Precision and tight musicianship are the things the band is known for.
For to Free. Wowwowow! The didgeridoo addition here is something I truly dig. It is the right ingredient to the track! It makes you feel like you are in Australia, wearing a kilt and jumping with kangaroos. It begins with this ambient sound of an old vinyl record being touched by a needle.
Who Are Youis a fast traditional song. Every nuance is captured in the recording. The crisp vocals and resonant fiddle jive together with the fiery guitar strums. This song makes me feel like a young man ready for action.
Springtime Frolics is a track I can sum up in one word: stunning. These guys record their albums live. Such precision is not easy to master. I read somewhere that they would do it over again if ever something goes wrong. It’s like me writing this review, having a lot of re-editing to do when the grammar goes wrong wink wink.
Crazy Man Michael starts a capella and then blossoms with a guitar. It is a great title track. It sings about a tragic incident. You know, I read that if you have some Irish in you, then you will understand that the more painful the song is, the more the singing gets better. With its bare arrangement, the vocals gain the dramatic effect making it one of the most memorable singing styles I have heard in years.
Hot Days is a track which begins with both the high and low whistles fencing each other tenderly. The mournful notes progress into a beautiful track with rich arrangements and incandescent beauty which calls to mind a phoenix rising from its ashes. The second half of the track jumps into a jig with an explosive chorus of other instruments.
Midsomer is an energetic traditional track that won’t let you stop tapping your feet.
A Bucket Full of Mountain Dew is another traditional track with fast singing. There are amazing vocal harmonies and a beautiful melody.
March Flowers is a jazzy jig which begins with the acoustic guitar, then the whistle and then other instruments join in. It has this swaying rhythm to it. It makes you think of seaside and relaxing afternoons. I noticed that there is a consistency of clean recordings all throughout the album.
For to Free really frolics into your mood and into your subconscious.
I Was A Young Man is a fast ballad about coming of age. There is great bodhran playing on top of the fiddling. The didgeridoo encapsulates the track like fine moth’s wings. It’s awesome!
Saxet is a jazzy traditional track with a vibe that smells of beer and chips. It is also a sexy track.
Curragh of Kildare ends the track with its amazing fiddling. Hot Days is an album that makes you realize that some very talented Irish music players are also found in the Czech Republic. This is world music at its finest. You can buy Hot Days here: http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/poitin5
Guys who are into Bluegrass and anything Americana might want to get themselves ensnared by the music of these six guys bringing you nothing but the freshness of homegrown freshly brewed American music. The good vibes of Bluegrass and Country music have made their way into my chest and now my head is moving back and forth while listening to tracks like Deep Ellum Blues and I Know You Rider. The band, Appalachian Still, is from Northampton Massachusetts and they have been around since 2005. Bring on the croissants, this is going to be a great day! Just give them a chance and who knows? You might get hooked, head over feet.
Members
Andrew Woodland: Clawhammer Banjo, Vocals & Management
Jared Libby: Guitar, Vocals, Recording & Engineering
Sean Mallari Upright Bass
Sam Barnes: Fiddle
Ivan Ussach: Drums/Percussion
Peter Nabut: Sound-Man
De La BasseBretagneis an album by Poitin, a Celtic band based in the CzechRepublic. Since the release of their first album in 2000, the band have gained a steady cult following around Europe and the UK. Thanks to the wonders of the internet, people don’t have to wait for music to get into their music store. They can just search the web and discover the kind of music they want.
De La Basse Bretagne is a fine example of a musicianship that has grown ripe with challenges, time and passion. The opening track J’ai Une Bonne Amie a Quimperle defines the kind of consistency you can find in the album. The strong and at times silky delivery of the female vocals and also the tight execution of instruments make you hope that there is a follow-up to this Breton flavored album.
They have other releases dealing with other styles around the seven Celtic nations. But what makes this one great for me personally is the dedication to the kind of music that are associated around the geographical the area. And not only do they give justice to tracks like De La Basse and Marv Pontkalleg with mouth-watering instrumental execution but also because of the sensitivity that Jeremy King and the rest of the band put to this recording. I have to say when you reach track 11 of this album called Son Ar Sistr, you would be rolling your eyes and tapping your feet to the exquisite beat of the bodhran!
I learned that Poitin make their recording in a live way and have to do it all over again when there is even a slight mistake. Now that is hard to see in current bands with all the comforts of studio layering and sound engineering. And this makes them the best live band ever.
Members:
Jaroslav “Oto” Machácheck – fiddle ; Jakub Siegl – guitars; Jan Brabets – bouzouki, banjo, tin whistle, backing vocals; Jeremy Marc King – lead vocals, bodhran; Sasha Shantorova- flute and whistles; Dick Savage- Didgeridoo, spoons, egg, backing vocals.
Tracks
1. J’ai Une Bonne Amie a Quimperle 4:11
2. Kan Bale an A.R.B. 4:16
3. Gavotte Des Montagnes
4. File La Laine 3:40
5. Ma Jument Hippoline
6. De La Basse Bretagne
7. La Blanche Biche 6:35
8. Le Loup 2:34
9. La Jument De Michao
10. Marv Pontkalleg 5:14
11. Son Ar Sistr 6:18
12. Lída, Lidunka 4:00
Hi friends. I am subscribed to both Marc Gunn and Poitin so I am always updated when there are releases from them. I am quoting from Marc Gunn’s newsletter :
Greetings Gunn Runners! Mage Records (my label), in conjunction with the Irish & Celtic Music Podcast, is proud to release a brand new CD of Irish Celtic Music. In fact, that is the name of this amazing album.
The CD is released under the name Marc Gunn’s Irish & Celtic Music Podcast. It is a new compilation to promote my hit podcast. However, the album also features the incredible music of two of the podcast’s incredible bands: Poitin and FIMM.
I can’t say enough great things about these two bands. They have some absolutely brilliant music! Neither is signed to a record label. Neither are from the U.S.. Poitin is an awesome, award-winning group from the Czech Republic. FIMM is an all-female group from Rome, Italy.
Who are these indie Celtic musicians?
If you’ve never heard of these two amazing and obscure Celtic group, I won’t hold it against you. Neither has a big budget to promote their music. Poitin is fairly active online. I’ve followed their career for many years now. FIMM is currently on hiatus. I’m hoping we can change that.
But you won’t see them on PBS, like Celtic Thunder or Celtic Woman. You won’t hear them playing for a smash hit show like Riverdance. In fact, you can’t even buy FIMM’s album at all…right now.
I’m hoping we can change all of that with the power of social networking and YOU!
I love these bands and I want you to fall in love with them too. So I want you to buy this CD… but NOT YET.
I need your help to Top The Celtic Top 10
On Wednesday, May 23, we are going to rocket this album up the charts on iTunes and Amazon.
Here’s how it works. On May 23rd, I will ask you to buy the song , “Memories of Ireland” on one of those two sites. You will tell all your friends to do the same. Then we will sit back and watch as Irish Celtic Music gets the attention it deserves.
It will skyrocket up the charts. That will offer it more visibility, which will in turn equal more sales, which will ultimately offer more visibility for the podcast, Poitin, FIMM, and all of the other amazing indie Celtic music groups online.
But to make that happen. I need your help. Here’s how:
Go to http://www.celticmusicpodcast.com/topthecharts/ and sign up to the mailing list so I can send you a few notices on the 23rd. Yes. I will be sending several emails that day and as we approach that day. So be ready.
Share this post with your friends. Start talking about the compilation, this initiative and your plan to help.
Thank you so much for all your help! I look forward to seeing a smashing successful Top the Celtic Charts initiative.
IMM live al Mama’s Ravenna 12 dicembre 2009.
FIMM: Katia Onofri flauto traverso e voce flute and vocals, Francesca Romana Fabris Chicca chitarra e voce, Chiara Cavalli violino, fiddle, backing vocals, Lucrezia Testa Iannilli percussioni bodhràn e darabbukka. http://www.myspace.com/fimm http://www.fimm-folk.com http://www.mamasclub.it
Lignit is another project by Jeremy ( Poitin). You might be interested to know that they play really good Bluegrass music. And they are based in Czech Republic where most of the interesting Celtic bands are coming from these days.
Celtic Music Fan 