Blue Syndrome

Blue Syndrome is a great band from Dublin, Ireland. They signed to Blastbeat Records in 2008 after coming runner up in the Blastbeat competition the previous year. The band have come a long way in their 4 years together, playing Dublin’s most popular venues, including world famous Vicar Street. Their single “Tomorrow I’ll Be Gone” achieved 38% of downloads in last summer’s Coca Cola iTunes Promotion.

Their debut cd Over and Out was released in October 2009 and the single from it Kiss the Girl is also enjoying success. The band has recently had a personnel change and now have a new bass player. We look for their success to continue. Here is a sample of their music:

Their album can be purchased here You can find them at myspace here and follow them on twitter here

Paul Shevlin

Paul Shevlin is a singer songwriter from Northern Ireland. He calls his music Piano Pop. I first heard of him when I downloaded his song from the NI Charts site. He is very talented and I think we will be hearing a lot more from him. He is playing at the Glasgowbury Festival in Draperstown NI this weekend. You can find him on myspace here facebook here and on twitter here He is definitely an up and coming star so get in on the ground floor Here is the video of his song Good Morning

Ghost Trains

Ghost Trains are a UK alternative acoustic group consisting of singer-songwriter Tim Ellis and guitar player Elijah Wolfenheart. Whilst essentially a duo, they often appear on stage with a live percussionist. Their sound has been described as Simon & Garfunkel meets Crowded House – although considerably darker than both – and this is well demonstrated on their new album Where Lovers Die.

Formed in 2009, Tim & Elijah began work on their record at once. Rehearsing & recording in their Staffordshire based ‘Bad Apple’ studios their first offerings soon found their way onto the internet and word began to spread fast. In late 2009, despite having only been together for a matter of months, the band were featured on the Trebuchet Records compilation album Love Letters From The Underground. Daubed ‘the very best of the UK acoustic underground’ the album made the UK Top 100 folk chart in early 2010.

By March of this year, the band had completed work on their first 12 track album and placed it free to download from their website (ghosttrains.net). Tim’s songs are written in a popular vein, with plenty of infectious hooks, whilst Elijah providers counter melodies and inspired arrangements with his alternative guitar tunings and distinctive playing style. At the time of writing (May 2010) the album has been downloaded over 5000 times from fans all over the globe.

DJ’s from New York to Sydney are playing tracks from the album and the group has just signed with a European agent for tours of Europe and Russia in 2011. Keen to sign with UK & US agents as soon as possible, the band are determined to take nothing for granted. Having recently shot a video for lead album track Miss Emily and producing a fantastic set at The Acoustic Festival of Britain that had punters talking all day. Shows are booked for London, Birmingham and Manchester later this summer and on June 20th the band will be in session with Genevieve Tudor on her BBC radio show.

You can find them on myspace here and facebook here Here is a sample of their music:

2Numb2C

2Numb2C is an indie performer from Belgium. His actual name is Joel and he has a very unique sound. I first encountered him on myspace when he sent me a friend request. I went to his page and listened to his music and I was very impressed with it. After doing some stints as the lead singer with cover bands he has decided to strike out on his own. He certainly has the talent to do so.

You can find his myspace page here, his facebook page here and his Bebo page here I will add his ReverbNation widget below.

Sienna

I have covered Sienna here before but I am such a huge fan that I decided to include them in this post in case anyone may have missed them. They are a German band and call their musical style Rock/Brit Pop.

You can find them at myspace here, at facebook here and at twitter here or just play their widget below:

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The Saw Doctors have released the single Takin’ the Train from their new cd. The video of Takin’ the Train can be seen here

Other samples from the new cd can be found on their myspace page http://www.myspace.com/sawdoctorsofficial

On Saturday July 3 The Saw Doctors will appear at the Millennium Forum in Newmarket Street, Derry. They will be at The Diamond as part of the Donegal Summer Festival in Donegal on Sunday July 4th.

Celtic Thunder

A few more cities are now selling tickets for the upcoming Celtic Thunder tour. The tour will run from Sept – Dec and include cities in both Canada and the US. To check out the updates just click here In addition to the cities that are newly added, Minneapolis will be doing a pre-sale on July 7. The pre-sale code for Celtic Thunder shows is generally DUBLIN. I will keep checking with both the Celtic Thunder website and Ticketmaster and let you know when more cities are on sale.

Celtic Thunder has two new cds in the works. One will be a Christmas Album and the other is an album of Irish tunes tentatively called Heritage. No release date has been given for either CD but I would expect they would be available in time for the fall tour.

Gaelic Storm

The long awaited new cd from Gaelic Storm, Cabbage is available for pre-order in advance of the August 3rd release date. When you pre-order your cd from the Gaelic Storm website you get:

* Your CD shipped to you to arrive on or before August 3rd
* A digital download of the song “Green Eyes, Red Hair” from the new album IMMEDIATELY upon purchase of your pre-order
* An autographed copy of CABBAGE for the first 500 pre-orders
* AND, pre-order the album by July 28th and you will receive an email with instructions on how to download a FULL digital copy of the album on Thursday July 29th, 5 days before it even hits the stores!

ALSO AVAILABLE – A SPECIAL PRE-ORDER BUNDLE of the new album PLUS a brand new Gaelic Storm T-shirt (not available anywhere else) for a super discounted price of $28!!

To take advantage of this great offer click here

Coyote Run

Coyote Run has announced the release of their new cd Ten Years Running: A Retrospective To celebrate both the cd and the anniversary of the band they are holding two special concerts in their hometown of Williamsburg VA on July 16th and 17th they will perform at the Kimball Theater. These shows are must see for all Coyote Run fans. Former band members will be joining them on stage and they should bring the house down. Tickets are available by calling 1-800-HISTORY.

Coyote Run will also appear at the Virginia Highlands Festival in Abington, VA later in the month. For more info on the festival check this post

Marc Gunn

Marc Gunn’s latest cd Kilted For Her Pleasure is at the printers and will be ready soon. Marc is one of the poineers of the whole Celtic/Indie movement that we all enjoy today.

You may know him from his podcast Irish & Celtic Music Podcast which is coming up on its fifth anniversary. For more info on this and his other cds please check out his website http://www.marcgunn.com

Catch Marc at one of his upcoming gigs.

Jul 2-4: Indianapolis, Indiana – InConjunction
Jul 16: Savannah, GA – Lawson House Concert
Jul 17: Crestview, FL – Leake House Concert
Jul 24: Round Rock, TX – Grace Concert
Jul 30: New Orleans, LA – Fair Grinds Coffeehouse
Sep 4-7: Atlanta, GA – DragonCon

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Band members Alec Dalglish, Daniel Gillespie, Martin Gillespie, Craig Espie, Fraser West and Barry Caulfield got together in 2004 and have released two cds. Their first one, titled West Coast Life was a collection of traditional song performed in their high energy stile. Their current cd, On The Road has more original music. This one is being launched tonight. Tickets can be found here: www.ticketweb.co.uk or 0844 477 2000 also see poster at the right.

Their cds can be purchased through their website http://www.skerryvore.com/store/index.aspx They accept PayPal and Paypal will handle the currency conversion for you.

Skerryvore tours internationally and has wowed audiences from Chicago to Bejing appearing at festivals, concerts and on television. They look forward to their debut appearances in Oman, Spain and Bahrain as well as returning to Holland, Denmark and the US. I will update as needed so fans in North America can catch this exciting band in concert.

Here is a sample of their music. Enjoy!

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We now have the ability to change backgrounds so I will most definitely be playing more with that.

Music News

The Saw Doctors have been selling out concerts showcasing their new album. Here is a link to a press conference announcing the concerts http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SeqTPikB2Zk

Celtic Thunder performed at the International Rotary Club in Montreal on Sunday. If their fans would like to catch a glimpse of their performance in the opening ceremonies they can check out this video They sing at the very end of the video. This is just a clip not their complete performance. They sang for two sessions, playing for about 15,000 convention attendees each time. They did the show they are planning to tour in the fall at the aptly named Thunder Bay, in Ontario, last night.

Marc Gunn to play three upcoming conventions. I first heard Marc at a con and he really shines in that atmosphere. If you are attending any of these, be sure you find Marc and listen to his show. It will make the con!

07/03/10 – InConjunction – Indianapolis, Indiana
08/06/10 – GenCon Indianapolis – Indianapolis, Indiana
09/03/10 - DragonCon – Atlanta, Georgia

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Now that that business is taken care of time for some music. I will showcase three bands who each represent one of our musical interests – Celtic, Irish and Indie Music.

Celtic Music

In this case it’s Celt Rock but we also follow bands and artists who play more traditional Celtic Music.

Seven Nations

I have been a fan of Kirk McLeod forever so becoming a fan of Seven Nations was a no brainer. This great band is from Orlando, Florida and play a lot on the east coast and at festivals. If you get the chance to see them live, don’t pass it up.

The band members are: Kirk McLeod, Struby, Crisco, Victor Gagnon, Will MacMorran

Here is their bio from ReverbNation:

The story of SEVEN NATIONS is that of a truly original and determined band based in Orlando, Florida. They have for years booked their own tours,and have had their own PBS and CNN specials. Throw away any preconceived notions you may have about Celtic music…this is a band that has invented its own sound and attracted a prodigious national and international following.

Through its touring schedule and dynamic live performances, SEVEN NATIONS has become one of the fastest growing live acts nationwide. They have logged in more than 300,000 touring miles trying to make the music universal for old and new fans alike. To the five member band, that means being on tour 85 percent of the year, melding guitar and vocal elements of American pop and rock with Highland bagpipes and fiddle. The result is a high-energy performance that has fans jumping out of their seats, and has sparked interest industry-wide.

Equally at home in front of 40,000 cheering fans at an international festival, with the widely recognized, Grammy award winning, symphony orchestras, or with 300 fans in a small Midwest club, SEVEN NATIONS has created a truly hybrid sound and transient live show. The depth and complexity of SEVEN NATIONS’ music is astounding, each listen reveals a deeper layer of intricacy that has been embraced by an ever growing audience. “We are lucky,” says McLeod, lead singer/songwriter and founding member of the band, “because we come from two unique cultures. We love American pop and rock and roll, but we also love our Celtic roots. We want to touch everybody with our music,” he continues, “and so far, we have been very, very fortunate.”

Enjoy their music!

Irish Music

We feature a lot of bands and solo singers from Ireland. There is a lot of musical talent in Ireland in all genres but since I am in a rock mood today, I will showcase an Irish Rock band.

The Plea

I discovered this band when they sent me a friend request at MySpace. They are from Ballyliffen, IE. The band members are brothers Denny and Dermot Doherty, Paul Toland, and Gerry Strawbridge.

The Doherty brothers started their first band when they were in their teens. They eventually relocated to London to follow their dream and then onto Boston all the while working day jobs and gigging at Irish pubs at night. Fate took them to Minnesota where they recorded an album that the record company never released. This kind thing happens more than you might think in the record business. Disgusted by record company promises that proved to be fairly empty,they returned to Ireland to regroup. There they were joined by bassist Paul and drummer Gerry. They began to write new music and post them on their myspace page. Fan interest was immediate and other record companies began to take notice. The band finally accepted an offer from R & S records to release a cd on their Indie offshoot label Apollo Records. Their debut cd Nothing But Trouble was produced by Cenzo Townsend, who has worked with U2, Snow Patrol and many other top bands. The Plea is definitely a band on the move up.

Here is a sample of their music, not included here is the beautiful song Windchime. You can hear that one at their myspace page – http://www.myspace.com/thepleamusic

Indie Music

The early experience that The Plea had with record companies was not that unusual for new and unknown bands. This is why more and more bands prefer to start out as Indie Artists. With the internet and all the social networking sites a band can build up a pretty good following and can record their own cds and sell them directly to their fans.

Sienna

I literally stumbled upon this band at ReverbNation and I am already a huge fan. They are an indie band out of Augsburg, Germany. They classify their music as Rock/Brit Pop/Indie. The band members are: Sascha Schütz, Stefan Spoo, Chris Höfle, Christoph Elwert. Here is their bio from ReverbNation:

Sienna – four musicians on a quest for a common goal, driven by the simplicity and the purism that modern music so often lacks. Sienna is the yearning, the lust for life and the pain; it is the impulse and the reaction at the same time, and the unquenchable thirst for grand melodies that life holds for you after letting off the hand-brake. The band draws on familiar sources, relying on an effortless economy of sound without over-stretching their ideas, combining the various musical backgrounds of four guys on a single quest for that one perfect song.

The band will simultaneously put you in mind of a casual busker and Wembley Stadium reverberating with delayed distortion. Oasis’ “Definitely Maybe” meets U2’s “Achtung Baby”, The Verve’s “Urban Hymns” meet Coldplay’s “Parachutes”

Bringing together members of three southern German bands, Sienna was founded in the summer of 2009 by singer/guitarist Sascha Schütz (The Monument), guitarist Stefan “Spoon” Spoo (Jeffrey), bassist/backing singer Chris Höfle (Purblind) and drummer Christoph Elwert (Jeffrey).

Here is a sample of their music:

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AUGUST
1 Dayton, OH RiverScape Metro Park
3 Indianapolis, IN The Vogue
5 Detroit, MI St. Andrews Hall
6 Dublin, OH Dublin Irish Festival-Coffman Park
7 & 8 Waterloo, IA Iowa Irish Fest
11 Okoboji, IA Lakes Art Center
12 Apple Valley, MN Minnesota Zoo
13 & 14 La Crosse, WI Irishfest-La Crosse
15 Fish Creek, WI Door Community Auditorium
18 Bayfield, WI Lake Superior Big Top Chautauqua
20-22 Milwaukee, WI Milwaukee Irish Fest
28 & 29 Loveland, CO Rocky Mountain Irish Festival

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The next thing I want to say is that we are in no way affiliated with Celtic Thunder or any other band. Most of our readers are not fans of Celtic Thunder but since most of the staff has at one time or another been a fan of the show we do know how hard it is to find info on the web so we are posting what we find for the convenience of the fans of the show.

In addition to people contacting us directly, we find out what questions people have because when we are clicked on in a search we can see the keywords or question that was in the search box. Most of the time when we come up in a search the answer is on the site so I am assuming the searcher finds what he/she is looking for.

Here are a few searches that we came up in that we didn’t have the answer for so in case anyone else is looking for the same thing. I will try and answer some.

We came up in a search for Gaelic Storm Green Swirl shirt. Gaelic Storm merchandise can be found here: http://gaelicstorm.shop.musictoday.com/

Someone asked “do the tartan terrors have a website” The answer is yes it’s: www.tartanterrors.com

Another search was “what is pmfan” This is the code to put in for pre-sale tickets to most Paul McCartney shows. Speaking of Paul, he has added a new show to his tour. He will be at Foro Sol in Mexico City on Friday May 28. Tickets are on pre-sale May 4 11 AM – 8 PM CDT here: http://www.ticketmaster.com.mx/event/1400448AC7708F78?did=pmfan The code is pmfan Tickets are limited.

There were lots of questions about Celtic Thunder again. Staying away from the personal questions I will try to answer what I can. There have been searches for Damian McGinty shirts and posters. Official Celtic Thunder merchandise can be purchased at show or at their online shop which can be found here: http://celticthunder.shop.musictoday.com/ CDs and DVDs can also be purchased online though Amazon.com.

Another search was “keith harkin answers questions” I believe he has answered some at his website www.keithharkin.com The answers are probably in his forum and you will have to join it to see them.

One thing that came up in a search that stood out to me was “was Paul Byrom in a fight with Russel Crow?” While I have no personal knowledge of such a fight I am reasonably certain it never happened. I think the confusion might be with a Gaelic Storm song called The Night I Punched Russell Crowe which is the story of Patrick Murphy’s encounter with the actor which he swears is the truth (Gaelic Storm also does a song called Don’t Let the Truth Get in the Way of a Good Story).

There are a lot of people looking for tickets for venues that don’t appear to be on sale yet. I will keep checking and update when new cities come on sale. Nothing new is listed since my last post. There are also a lot of searches for the Celtic Thunder show called Storm which was taped last October at the same time as It’s Entertainment. Mention of this show seems to have disappeared from the Celtic Thunder website, at least the public parts. The last I heard was that this show, dvd and cd presumably, would be released this summer. I would have thought it would be up for pre-sale by now but have found no trace of it at Amazon. The release date may have been pushed back. These things happen all the time in the record industry. I do know that Celtic Thunder are in the studio recording their upcoming Christmas cd.

Their producer is working on finalizing their fall tour. Pulling a tour together is only just a wee bit easier than parting the Red Sea. It involves getting venues, promoters, publicists, tour managers and other behind the scenes people all on the same page AND not being scheduled to have back to back shows that are too far apart to get from one to the other overnight by bus. They travel with several tour buses and tractor trailer trucks to haul the sets and other large gear so good highway access between and at venues is also a consideration. You also have to schedule a few days off for the talent and since the tour is in the fall and early winter, weather is also a factor. Most, if not all, of this generally has to be finalized before ticket outlets will sell tickets. But we will keep you updated as we can. Check with the websites of the venues or call them for more info.

The other burning question regards what Celtic Thunder wears under the kilts. Traditionally nothing comes between a kilt wearer and the kilt but anyone who wears a kilt on stage learns to rethink that tradition. So in the case of Celtic Thunder the thing that is worn under the kilts is – drum roll please – Thunderpants (feel free to groan).

Another thing that came up in search was “celtic thunder in raleigh nc” I have always thought that Raleigh would be a great place for them to play. They do have a show this fall in Durham NC at the Performing Arts Center. I will paste the ticket widget it here. It’s supposed to update itself as new shows come on sale.

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The top album of the year is Everything is Alright by Burning Bridget Cleary. This is the second album from this great high energy band following their debut album Catharsis which was released in 2006. If you have never heard them you are missing a real treat. Two of the songs from this album also made song of the year in the individual song awards. Soldier, Soldier (my personal favorite BBC song to date) won in the Contemporary category and Three Set won in the Jigs and Reels category.

Other individual song winners were Murphy’s Ashes by Enter the Haggis from the album Gutter Anthems in the Celtic Rock category; Caledonia by Celtic Thunder from the album Act Two in the Traditional category; The Queen’s Piper Medley by Jim McRae from the album Global Gathering in the bagpipes category; Raggle Taggle Gypsy by Celtic Thunder, also from Act Two, in the Roots Traditional category. Congratulations to all the winners.

Both of Burning Bridget Cleary’s albums are available at cdbaby

If you have never seen this band live this is a great time to do so. They have a show coming up on April 17 at the Colonial Theatre in Phoenixville, PA. This show will also include two of my other favorite bands Tempest and Coyote Run. This is a can’t miss show so get your tickets now.

For more tour dates for the great band check their website http://burningbridgetcleary.com and for samples check their myspace page http://myspace.com/burningbridgetcleary3
I was hooked the minute I heard them.

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Spain

Hevia He was recommended to me by my daughter. Really interesting sound. If you have never heard Flemenco overtones on pipes you are in for a treat. Two great cultures that sound great together. For samples check out his myspace page http://www.myspace.com/joseangelhevia His music is for sale on Amazon.

Poland

Greenwood Their music and the art on their myspace page has a ren faire or fantasy feel to it. Done on traditional instruments sometimes very pretty other times pure pub fair. Well worth a listen even if you don’t speak Polish. http://www.myspace.com/greenwoodfolkband

Germany

Cara Winners of the 2010 Best New Irish Artist in the Irish Music Awards this group of traditional musicians are really making their mark on the Irish Music Scene. They will also be appearing at the Fort Collins Irish Festival in Loveland CO August 28-29 and the Kansas City Irish Festival in Kansas City MO Sept 3-5 Check our festival page for more details on these great festivals. Samples can be heard on their myspace page http://www.myspace.com/caralive

The Green Shamrock Another traditional Celtic band whose music will transport you to Ireland by way of their own beautiful country. You can hear them at their myspace page http://www.myspace.com/thegreenshamrock1

Connemara Stone Company If you want something a bit more moody and with a celtrock feel this is your band. Lots of pipes and very high energy music. You can hear samples at their myspace page http://www.myspace.com/connemarastonecompany Info on purchasing their cds can also be found on this page.

For more Celic acts from around the world check this page

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Glad this silliness is only once a year.

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