After a year in the studio Florida’s Clover’s Revenge new album is out featuring mostly originals and a few rousing trad. pub songs you will love… or at least mildly appreciate.
Clover’s Revenge are just about to celebrate their 10th anniversary together and how better than with the release of a new album? Based in Sarasota in Florida where a staggering one-in-nine Florida residents are of Irish or Scotch-Irish ancestry. The band are famous for playing not only the length and breadth of their home state but also for venturing over this side of the broad Atlantic several times including their debut London gig in 2022 which we were privileged to arranged. Pubs, wakes, festivals, streets and anywhere else mandolin player John Barron, guitarist Zach Johnson, and cajon player Beau Wilberding can set up in.
the Bhoys left to right: Zach Johnson – Guitar / Vocals* Beau Wilberding – Cajon Drum * John Barron – Vocals / Mandolin / Guitar *
With a bunch of singles behind them and two albums, Gotta Get O’Raggednized in 2018 and Truants And Absolution in 2020 a decent run only interrupted by Covid. Clover’s Revenge music straddles both standard Irish Folk and acoustic Celtic-Punk with tight upbeat arrangements and rich, three-part harmonies based around often humorous and uplifting energetic Irish Folk music. The new album is ten songs of which six are original compositions written by all three members of the band inspired by the band’s favourite bands including the Waterboys, Nick Drake, Led Zeppelin, the Pogues and the Ventures that the band call Irish Speed Folk.
Among Your Friends kicks off with the famous Irish trad ‘Cunla’. This was the first (and so far only) single to be released accompanied by a trademark Clover’s Revenge offbeat humorous video channeling both The Monkees and Buster Keaton as they tell the ancient story of a hesitant lover. ‘Just Comes Out Hello’ has a slight Latin influence and sees a rare electric guitar solo as well! ‘Pauline’s Place / Otter’s Hold’ is a wonderful two piece traditional instrumental which showcases exactly what the guys mean by Irish Speed Folk. Played at breathtaking pace it’s followed by the title song and ‘Among Your Friends’ slows things down and gives band founder John an opportunity to flex his mandolin which is excellent throughout and though loud in the mix doesn’t overpower but to be honest I wouldn’t care if it did. ‘Zep Jig’ is another Irish Folk influenced instrumental with Zach’s superb guitar playing the right foil for John’s mando while all the time Beau keeps the beat flowing with the cajon, a box-shaped percussion instrument played with the hands. We’re halfway through and I’m wondering where the drinking songs are and then ‘If There Is No Pub In Heaven’ hits the decks. Don’t worry lads I’m sure there’s a pub in heaven! Paddy On The Railway / Hills Of Connemara’ is another two part song that sees the infamous Dubliners / Pogues raucous trad. Folk classic given an almost unrecognisable instrumental turn before swiftly dropping into Sean McCarthy’s famous belter about poitín (Irish moonshine). ‘We Will Not Grow Old Together’ is one of the albums highlights while being one of the least Irish songs on the album. Written by Zach it’s a sad song but beautiful about the break up of a relationship. Beau’s ‘Sky Full Of Birds’ continues the sad theme and finally, the curtain comes down on Among Your Friends with ‘6 1/4’ and shows exactly what sound you can get out of one of them cajon things.
The album runs a very healthy 35 minutes. Recorded, mixed and mastered over a period of 53 weeks, by Dr. Erol Ozsever at the Del Couch Studio at Manatee School for the Arts, back home in Ellenton, Florida. For fans of the sun drenched trio you probably think you know exactly what to expect and while the first half of the album you’d be right its the latter part of the album where the band has experimented and it works extremely well for in amongst the trad. Irish Folk is some varied influences and and dare I say it some quite serious subject matter wrapped up in some beautiful tunes.
LONDON CELTIC PUNKS WEB-ZINE 
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