www.sligolive.ie

Ireland’s Folk, Roots & Indie Festival
23rd – 28th October 2013

Presents

Liam O’Flynn, Andy Irvine, Paddy Glackin and Dónal Lunny, aka   LAPD
MIDLAKE
LIZ CARROLL
THE LOCUST HONEY STRING BAND

Get ready for another great SLIGO LIVE, Ireland’s Folk, Roots & Indie Festival which takes place from 23rd – 28th October 2013. In the year of The Gathering it is the festival that brings together Irish and U.S. musicians to show the influences that are evident in both directions on Folk, Roots and Indie music.  This is a festival celebrating The Gathering by showing how our music has travelled across the seas and returned changed and enriched.

The weekend takes place on the October Bank Holiday from 23rd to 28thOctober when the North West of Ireland comes alive for more great music. The first acts confirmed to perform at this year’s Sligo Live are  Liam O’Flynn, Andy Irvine, Paddy Glackin and Dónal Lunny, aka LAPD, MIDLAKE, LIZ CARROLL AND THE LOCUST HONEY STRING BAND.

Early Bird Weekend Tickets are priced at a very reasonable €95 and are on sale from www.sligolive.ie. Tickets for individual concerts can be purchased from the website or by telephone from Hawk’s Well Theatre 00 353 71 916 1526.

Named Best Live Act by Mojo Magazine, MIDLAKE garnered rave reviews at Electric Picnic and Live at the Marquee Cork.  Every once in a while, a band comes along that undoubtedly evokes something special.  MIDLAKE is one such band.  MIDLAKE stays ahead of its own time by making music that transcends it.  The Denton, Texas band’s 2006 release ‘The Trails of Van Occupanther’ got fans and bloggers re-evaluating dormant ancestors like Fleetwood Mac, America, Crosby Stills Nash and Young and Bread – music that has been embedded in the indie world’s unconscious (Bon Iver, Fleet Foxes, Grizzly Bear) ever since.  On their 2010 release ‘The Courage of Others’, MIDLAKE reinvented themselves with influences from British folk to Russian Cinema – and received rave reviews culminating in the band being named Best Live Act by Mojo Magazine.

Liam O’Flynn, Andy Irvine, Paddy Glackin and Dónal Lunny, aka LAPD, collectively inhabited the bands Planxty, The Bothy Band, Sweeney’s Men, Moving Hearts and many more through decades of Irish music. Anyone who was lucky enough to attend their performances will testify that their energy and amazing telepathic chemistry hasn’t waned. They lit up Electric Picnic, they mesmerized Vicar Street. The concerts they have played to date have been extraordinary events. The audiences are made up of music veterans, folkies, artists, hippies, teenagers learning instruments, parents and kids coming together with equal excitement. Ancient tunes, old songs, funny stories, and most importantly, brand new arrangements.   LAPD are the coming together of some of Ireland’s greatest musicians all of whom contributed immensely to the popularisation of our native music, which has gone on to enchant audiences worldwide.

Liz Carroll, the renowned Chicago fiddler, regarded by many as the most eminent Irish roots player to emerge from the US tradition, makes a welcome return to Sligo Live.  Liz Carroll and her fiddle have been amazing audiences around the globe.  She has been honoured with many accolades, including the nomination for a 2010 Grammy, with John Doyle, for their duet album, “Double Play.”  In 2011, Liz was awarded the TG4 Cumadoir (composer’s) Award, the first American-born composer honoured with Ireland’s top  traditional music prize.

The Locust Honey String Band have been making a big impact on both sides of the Atlantic following the release of their superb new album, He Aint No Good. It has attracted widespread praise following its UK and Ireland release.  These three gorgeous girls, from North Carolina kick up a storm that is guaranteed to keep both old-timers and younger fans happy, injecting gorgeous nuggets from the past with a vibrantly earthy spirit which sparkles with feel-good freshness, while seamlessly blending in self-penned compositions.  Verity Sharp is the latest presenter to feature their music on BBC Radio 3’s Late Junction programme.

MIDLAKE:

MIDLAKE is an American rock band from Denton, Texas.  The band first gained popularity in Europe, singing to Bella Union Records and later playing at festivals such as Les Inrockuptibles, Wintercase, End of the Road and South by Southwest.  Midlake was formed in 1999 by a group of jazz students at the University of North Texas College of Music.  The original line-up consisted of Tim Smith (vocals, guitars, keyboards), McKenzie Smith (drums), Paul Alexander (bass), Eric Nichelson (guitar), and Evan Jacobs (keyboards).  Their initial work – under the name “The Cornbread All-Stars” – consisted of funk/jazz explorations heavily influenced by Herbie Hancock.
Later the band began to lean more toward an indie-rock sound.  Tim Smith quit playing saxophone and began writing songs that were heavily influenced by bands such as Jethro Tull, Radiohead, Bjork and Grandaddy, artists who experiment, while still remaining accessible.
Jacobs left the band and Eric Nichelson took over on keyboard.  Jason Upshaw joined the band as a guitarist.  Not long before the band recorded their debut EP, Milkmaid Grand Army, Upshaw was replaced on guitars by Eric Pulido, a longtime friend of drummer Smith, to form the current line-up.  Their debut full-length album, 2004’s Bamnan and Slivercork, was recorded at home in Denton, Texas and mastered at Abbey Road Studios.  It showed a move in the direction of lo-fi psychedelic electronica, embracing influences such as Grandaddy and The Flaming Lips.  The album even caught the ear of skateboarder-turned-actor Jason Lee, who produced and directed the music video for the song “Balloon Maker”, and who continues to support and promote the band.
In 2006, after nearly a year-and-a-half of recording and re-recording, they completed their second release for Bella Union, The Trials of Van Occupanther.  The album was a venture into classic-rock revivalism, with a sound reminiscent of Bob Welch-era Fleetwood Mac.  The album was met with great reviews.
In January 2009, their song “Bandits” was featured in an episode of the FOX television drama “Fringe”.
In February 2010 the band released The Courage of Others, which has garnered great reviews, notably “album of the month” in Mojo.
Tim Smith is featured on the Chemical Brothers’ 2007 album We Are the Night, contributing vocals to the track “The Pills Won’t Help You Now”.
In 2007 Robert Gomez and Midlake guitarist Eric Pulido recorded a version of Feliz Navidad for a “Merry Christmas from Bella Union” CD.   Midlake also co-produced, engineered and played on an album for their friend John Grant, former singer with label mates The Czars.  The album, Queen of Denmark, was released in April 2010.

LAPD:

LAPD is the affectionate acronym attached to a quartet of Irish music legends who have recently graced us with their combined presence and beautiful music. They are three-quarters Planxty and the original Bothy Band fiddler, also collectively featuring past and present members of Moving Hearts, Sweeney’s Men, Mozaik, Patrick Street and numerous other ensembles of the past five plus decades of Irish music. In the 60s and 70s they were trailblazers and groundbreakers, and when you see them onstage in 2013, bar the odd grey hair, not a lot has changed.

Liam O’Flynn: Master piper of Ireland. Heir to the uileann pipes of Willie Clancy and Seamus Ennis. Master of this deep complex instrument, Liam O’Flynn has performed in all genres, beside great collaborators such as Seamus Heaney, with orchestras, or simply alone in the ancient reverie of the drone & chanter. Alongside these gentlemen he can re-open much of the repertoire of songs, slow-airs and dances that they began to develop in 1972 with Planxty and which has been expanding ever since.

Andy Irvine: Andy Irvine turned 70 in 2011 and performed two career-spanning concerts in June in Vicar Street, and proving, as always, he is ultimate rover, flew off after the second night to the folk clubs of Argentina. Andy, inspired by his hero Woody Guthrie, is a socialist folk icon and so much more; a brilliant collaborator, a stunning instrumentalist, an encyclopedic song-machine, and a master of between-song banter! Although English born we consider him a national treasure.

Paddy Glackin: Perhaps the dark horse of the LAPD squad, Paddy Glackin was the original fiddler of the Bothy Band when they were original known as Seachtair. But he took a position as Sports Editor in RTE rather than a life on the road. Nonetheless, he has etched a reputation as one of our premier fiddlers, steely yet divinely delicate. He is Dublin born but adopted his father’s Donegal stylings and has taken a unique route from 1973 All-Ireland fiddle champion to the groundbreaking experimental-trad treasure Hidden Ground with Jolyon Jackson in 1980, not to mention performing with minimalist icon John Cage, and coming full circle of sorts with his old peers of the 1970s in LAPD.

Dónal Lunny: What can you say about this man? Emmet Spiceland, Planxty, The Bothy Band, Moving Hearts, Mulligan Records, producer, arranger, curator, soundtracker, wisecracker and bouzouki icon. A true artist and a phenomenal collaborator, Dónal has nurtured Irish music for many decades. He is constantly pushing it forward and with no less gusto today than in the hey-day of the seminal bands he was a member of throughout his career.

And there you have LAPD. They lit up the Electric Picnic, they have mesmerized Vicar Street. The concerts they have played to date have been extraordinary events. The audiences are made up of music veterans, folkies, artists, hippies, teenagers learning instruments, parents and kids coming together with equal excitement. Ancient tunes, old songs, funny stories, and most importantly, brand new arrangements.

LIZ CARROLL:

Liz Carroll was born in Chicago of Irish parents.  She’s featured on nine albums and has appeared on many more.  In 2010 she became the first American-born Irish Traditional musician nominated for a Grammy.  In 2011, she became the first composer born outside Ireland to be honoured with theCumadoir TG4, Ireland’s traditional music prize.  She was named theFemale Musician of the Decade by Bill Margeson in the Irish American News and live Ireland’s “Best of The Decade in Irish Music.”   She was honoured at the 2010 iBAM (Irish Books, Arts, Music) Cultural Arts Awards forOutstanding Achievement in Music.  She was “Top Fiddle/Violin” in the 2010 Irish Music Awards poll.  The Irish Voice named her one of their 2010 50 Most Influential Women.
Liz is a recipient of the National Heritage Fellowship Award (1994).  The list goes on.  When you listen to a Liz Carroll album, you are hearing the tunes of a composer celebrated for invigorating the traditional styles of Irish music.  Her compositions have entered into the repertoire of Irish and Celtic performers throughout the world.  2013 will see the release of Liz’s first solo album since 2002’s “Lake Effect.”.  Produced by Seamus Egan, and with many guests, including Sean Óg Graham from Beoga and Trevor Hutchnison of Lunasa who join Liz’s Sligo Live concert. The album and concert will feature new tunes composed by Liz.

THE LOCUST HONEY STRING BAND:

The Locust Honey String Band have been making a big impact on both sides of the Atlantic following the release of their superb new album, He Aint No Good.   The album has had some mighty fine reviews, winning the girls from North Carolina a batch of great quotes.  Reviewing the album for American Roots UK, Mike Morrison said: “The real Appalachian feel that they seem to bring to everything they do is one that calls up those legendary far off days of the late 1920s when “Hillbilly” music took off.  There is a really authentic front porch feel to everything on this outstanding album”.

Sitting in the Blue Ridge Mountains, The town of Asheville has some of the best live music venues in USA and has spawned a community of musicians that includes many names such as Woody Pines, Laura Boosinger and The Steep Canyon Rangers – all acts who have toured extensively in Europe, and each of whom began their musical journey there and now well-known far beyond its precincts.  Its rich roots-of-country/bluegrass/Appalachian old-time tradition dates back to the 1800s and many of the big personalities of the past have links that can be traced to its heart.  It is not surprising, then that a new generation has grown up listening to the sounds of the old hands, inspired to follow in their footsteps.  The Locust Honey String Band, out of Swannanoa, NC is the latest to emerge intent on keeping those traditions flowing.  Their passionate understanding of what it takes to interpret anew while honouring the past makes them stand out.  Their debut album attracted widespread praise when it got its UK and Ireland release at the start of 2013.  These three gorgeous girls kick up a storm that is guaranteed to keep both old-timers and younger fans happy, injecting gorgeous nuggets from the past with a vibrantly earthy spirit which sparkles with feel-good freshness, while seamlessly blending in self-penned compositions.

Sligo Live presents a stellar array of top quality music spanning 6 days over the October Bank Holiday Weekend, October 23rd – 28th 2013.    Sligo Live is now widely considered to be Ireland’s premiere folk, roots and Indie festival, bringing together established Irish and international acts with some of the best emerging talent on the scene. This Gathering is the nineth year of the festival and each year it grows from strength to strength appealing to ever greater numbers of both Irish and International fans.”

For full festival line up log onto: www.sligolive.ie