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LONDON CELTIC PUNKS PRESENTS THE BEST OF 2019!

Album Review, Americana, Argentina, Australia, Bagpipes, Belguim, Best Of's, Boston, Brittany, Canada, Catalonia, Chicago, England, EP Review, Finland, Folk, Folk-Punk, Germany, Holland, Ireland, Irish-American, Italy, Japan, Live Album, London, Netherlands, New York, Punk, Romania, Spain, Steampunk, Switzerland, Traditional, USA, Yorkshire January 14, 2020 Comments: 14

Well here we go again. It only seems like five minutes since I was compiling all the votes into last years Best Of that saw The Rumjacks romping home with Album Of The Year. This year has been a bit quieter on the Celtic-Punk front but as last year was so busy that is perhaps not surprising. That’s not to say their weren’t some fantastic releases as their were plenty and it was still really difficult to come up with the various lists below. Not so many big bands this year so it was left to the lesser known bands to shine but remember this is only our opinion and these releases are only the tip of the iceberg of what came out last year. Feel free to comment, slag off or dissect our lists. As a bonus we are adding the Readers Poll again this year so you can even vote on your favourite release of 2019 yourself. If it’s not listed then simply add your choice.

We don’t pretend to be the final word as that my friends is for you…

(click on the green link to go where you will find more information on the release)

1. THE WALKER ROADERS – Self Titled

2. MICKEY RICKSHAW – Home In Song

3. FEROCIOUS DOG – Fake News And Propaganda

4. GREENLAND WHALEFISHERS – Based On A True Story

5. BARLEYJUICE – The Old Speakeasy

6. THE NARROWBACKS – By Hook Or By Crook

7. McDERMOTTS TWO HOURS – Besieged

8. PIPES AND PINTS – The Second Chapter

9. THE RUMJACKS – Live In Athens

10. SELFISH MURPHY – After Crying

11. TORTILLA FLAT – Live At The Old Capitol

12. FIDDLERS GREEN – Heyday

13. THE RUMJACKS – Live In London Acoustic Sessions

14. THE WHIPJACKS – This Wicked World

15. 13 KRAUSS – Redención

16. ALTERNATIVE ULSTER – Craic Agus Ceol

17. AIRES BASTARDOS – Self Titled

18. THE TEMPLARS OF DOOM – Hovels Of The Holy

19. THE FIGHTING JAMESONS – A Moment In California

20. ANGRY McFINN AND THE OLD YANK – Songs of Whiskey, Women & War

21. THE SHILLELAGHS – Ripples In The Rye

22. HELLRAISERS AND BEERDRINKERS – Pub Crawl

23. BODH’AKTAN – De Temps Et De Vents

24. HEATHEN APOSTLES – Dust To Dust

25. SONS OF CLOGGER – Return To The Stones’

26. THE CHERRY COKE$ – Old Fox

27. THE FILTHY SPECTACULA – The Howl Of The Underclasses

28. THE POTATO PIRATES – Hymns For The Wayward

29. TC COSTELLO– Horizon Songs

30. THE TENBAGS – ‘Bags o’ Craic’

How to compete with last year? Every single top band in the genre released an album so things were always going to be a bit quieter for 2019. Top spot this year unsurprisingly goes to The Walker Roaders Celtic-Punk super group! With Pogues, Mollys and Dropkicks making up the team how could they possibly go wrong! Everyone’s ‘next big thing’ Mickey Rickshaw came in a well deserved second and Ferocious Dog took third after releasing their best album, for me, since From Without. Greenland Whalefishers celebrated 25 years on the road with their best album for quite a while and what Best Of would be right without some bloody brilliant Irish-American bands challenging at the top too. Pipes And Pints new album with a new singer received acclaim from across the Punk media and The Rumjacks couldn’t follow up last years unanimous victory despite having two album releases (both sort of live) in the top thirteen. Fiddlers Green continue to make consistently great albums and go into 2020 celebrating thirty years together! Good to see homegrown bands The Whipjacks, The Tenbags, The Filthy Spectacula and Sons Of Clogger making it too. The top thirty was made up of thirteen countries from USA, England, Norway, Czech Republic, Australia, Switzerland, Germany, Argentina, Japan, Quebec, Hungary, Spain and Japan.

1. THE LUCKY TROLLS – Self Titled

2. DRUNKEN DOLLY – The Party

3. LORETTA PROBLEM – The Waltz Of My Drunken Dream

4. THE CLOVERHEARTS – Sick

5. KRAKIN’ KELLYS – Irish Tribute

6. THE PLACKS – Rebellious Sons

7. GYPSY VANNER – Five Distilled Celtic Punks

8. THE RUMPLED – Grace O’ Malley

9. FOX’N’FIRKIN – Hey Ho! We’re Fox n Firkin

10. SHANGHAI TREASON – Devil’s Basement

The Lucky Trolls took #1 spot with their brilliant self-titled EP following on from fellow countrymen the Krakin’ Kellys multi award winning 2018. Trust me it would have taken an exceptionally good release to keep The Party by Drunken Dolly off the top spot but that is what happened. Dolly’s excursions over to these shores this year j=has seen them grown in stature and you can’t go to a Ferocious Dog gig without spotting at least a dozen of their shirts. Loretta Problem wowed us with their single ‘Waltz Of My Drunken Dream’ which took us right back back to The Pogues glory days and what about that accompanying video too!! If we had a award for best video then that would have walked it. The Kellys had a quiet year with comparison to ’18 but still managed a respectable #5 and great debut releases from The Placks our sole representative from a Celtic nation (big things are going to happen to this band in 2020 mark my words), Italian/Aussies The Cloverhearts and, from just down the road from my Mammy, Shanghai Treason from Sheffield who only put out one song… but what a song! Eight countries represented from Belgium, Netherlands, Finland, Italy, Scotland, Argentina, Australia and Yorkshire!

AIRES BASTARDOS– ‘Self-Titled’

Argentina is becoming a bit of a hot-spot for Celtic-Punk with not only some well established bands but also some new ones starting up too and with this release Aires Bastardos announced their arrival on the international scene too. Not afraid to dive straight into a folk number after a Cock Sparrer cover they veer from standard Celtic-Punk to Folk and back to fast as hell Punk but in that really accessible way that only Celtic-Punk (and maybe Ska-Punk) bands can do.

1. THE DREADNOUGHTS – Into The North

2. CROCK OF BONES – Celtic Crossbones

3. 6’10 – Where We Are

4. BRYAN McPHERSON – Kings Corner

5. CALLUM HOUSTON – Gravities

6. PYROLYSIS – Daylight Is Fading

7. SEAMUS EGAN – Early Bright

8. LE VENT DU NORD – Territoires

9. DONNY ZUZULA – Chemicals

10. DERVISH – Great Irish Songbook

The Dreadnoughts don’t really think of themselves as Celtic-Punk so I reckon they’d be happier to win this than Celtic-Punk Album Of The Year. A superb collection of sea shanties that is a pleasure to listen to that was always going to be #1. Crock Of Bones representing the London Irish in 2nd with an album of trad folk with punk rock attitude and it’s especially good to hear some originals done in the style of the ‘auld ways’. 6’10 challenged for the top spot as they always do with everything they release and Bryan MacPherson and Callum Houston both produced great releases of singer-songwriter acoustic folk with Irish roots.

Sadly the Celtic-Punk world has shrunk a little regarding Web-Sites. Winners of the last two years the Mersey Celt Punks have been slacking (sort it out lads!) and enjoying their gigs too much to tell us while Shite’n’Onions have been too busy transferring everything onto a different platform and preparing for a bit of a re-launch I expect. Sadly celtic-rock.de have shut up shop after twelve years so it just makes it all the more clear how much we all miss Waldo and his fantastic Celtic-Folk-Punk And More site. As regular as clockwork and all the news that was ever fit (or not!) to print. Closing down the site in its 10th year in March must have been a tough decision to make and so this year we award best Website to Waldo and let it be known that no Celtic-Punk site will ever come close to replacing you. We would certainly not exist without his kind help and inspiration. All the best comrade enjoy your retirement! One welcome addition is Michu and his Celtic-Punk Encyclopedia site from Poland. Worth checking out especially if you are in a band.

We are not alone in doing these Best Of 2019 lists in fact all the major players in celtic-punk do them so click below to check out what they thought.

THE CELTIC PUNKCAST

FOLK’N’ROCK

MERSEY CELT PUNKS

So there you go. Remember we don’t pretend to be the final word on things in fact if you check the other Celtic-Punk media I’m sure we’ve all come up with relatively different lists. Our Best Of’s are cajoled and bullied out of the admins from the London Celtic Punks Facebook page. The assorted scraps of paper and beer mats were then tallied up please remember not all of us heard the same albums so like all the various Best Of’s ours is also subjective.

This is our 8th year of making these Best Of lists so if you would like to check out out who was where in our previous ones then just click on the link below the relevant year.

: https://wp.me/p3Huvn-es

: https://wp.me/p3Huvn-Oq

: https://goo.gl/RXNtMC

: https://wp.me/p3Huvn-21o

: https://wp.me/p3Huvn-29L

: https://wp.me/p3Huvn-37h

: https://wp.me/p3Huvn-3EI

Last year we introduced a new feature THE READERS PICK. We had no idea if it would work or not but it was a raging success so we going to do it all again this year. With well over 500 votes cast you lot chose the debut album from the Krakin’ Kellys as a worthy winner. Only the Top Ten albums are listed but there is an option to write in your favourite release or just to send us love… or abuse!

You are allowed to vote twice but not for the same artist.

The Poll will close at midnight on Friday 31st January with the result announced soon after.

remember any views, comments or abuse or slander we would love to hear it…

Sláinte, The London Celtic Punks Crew- January, 2020

NEW SINGLE RELEASE FROM LOUIS RIVE ‘THE STATE OF THE NATION’

Barcelona, Catalonia, Folk, Scotland, Single Review November 20, 2019 Leave a comment

Brand new single from one of our favourite artists the Catalonian based Scots singer-songwriter Louis Rive. Together ‘The State Of The Nation’ with the B-side ‘In The Shadows Of Big Ben’, takes a critical look at the double standards of living in Great Britain in an age defined by Brexit.

Scottish singer-songwriter, based in Barcelona, Louis draws on all aspects of folk music from the traditional ballads of the barroom to the modern day tale-tellers and poets. Influenced by The Pogues, Hamish Imlach, Matt McGinn and The Corries, to name but a few, Louis has set out to continue the grand tradition of the storytelling musician. His debut album, The Cheap Part Of Town, featured here last year and even went as far as #2 in our Top Ten Folk And Trad releases of 2018. The album was a truly wonderful and original half hour plus in the company of a singer-songwriter that deserves to more widely heard. Telling tales of working class life in folk music is not unusual but what is unusual is for them to be told with such passion and feeling and the taste and smell of authenticity that fills your senses with the legends of Louis life across Europe.

“Folk music is storytelling. Storytelling is poetry. Poetry is songwriting when you can’t play the guitar. Collecting stories of people and places and putting them into song is what I do. I’ve met every type of person there is to meet, especially through my work over the last decade. These are their stories, the stories of the street.”

The new single is available across all digital platforms and ‘The State Of The Nation’ aims to capture one of modern life’s most mysterious of traits, that of being Scottish in the modern day, and what relevance, if any, that moniker has any more. It’s nostalgic in a pointless way, and fairly lacking in optimism, so at least analogous with the general experience of being from north of the border.

The ‘State of the Nation’ is about the UK. It’s about being Scottish and it’s about living in Europe during a time of uncertainty. It may not be feel-good, but it might make you think, something that’s been fairly absent in the UK of late, in the wake of the great Brexit divide. In the wake of his critically acclaimed debut album and fresh from a summer of festival appearances across the UK, including Black Deer Festival and the Edinburgh Fringe, Louis’ new single provides a soundtrack to a land at odds with itself.

THE STATE OF THE NATION

Two-hundred years being wrapped snug in tartan

Made to sing ‘God Save the Queen’

Your forefathers say ‘Be a proud son of Scotland’

But in this day and age what do they mean?

We’re all rebels and princes, fighters and lovers

Feeling on top of the world

Oh the few who will feature on the pages of schoolbooks

And the many who’ll never be heard

We’re solving the mystery without any proof

Oh enough of your lies, won’t you tell me the truth?

Are we up to our necks in the blood of old Jock Thompson’s bairns?

All the sugar, tobacco, cotton, molasses

Looking at history through rose tinted glasses

Nemo me impune lacessit, and other such joys

Be you Scottish or British or English or Irish

Tick the box for your colour or creed

Cultural appropriation on a packet of biscuits is the only real reference I need

From Ossian’s diaries to the Highland Societies

Inclusion behind padlocked doors

But the word ‘Caledonian’ was coined by the Romans

Just to mark out the mad bastards up north

Is it ‘yes’ is it ‘no’, is it getting beaten 3-0 at home?

Is it a pregnant teenager at the end of a phone?

But she hasn’t the time to read ‘Rob Roy’ nor ‘Ivanhoe’

Nothing to do so go out for a pint eh?

The blue-blooded bowler hats shout 1690 Next generation take heed and sharpen their swords

All suited and booted all dressed to the nines

In a Royal Stewart kilt from some factory line

‘Made in China’ hiding away under a plastic cockade Is it brains over brawn?

Is it link over lorne? Is it choosing the right football team?

The echoed frustrations in a half-empty Hampden With Gemmill, Dalgleish and Gordon McQueen

How do you feel about god or the devil? The ‘Flowers of the Forest’ for sale?

The young ones will pays for their parents’ transgressions

While the old ones rehash the old tales

Night by 15:30, cold mince and tatties

A wink to the lads and a toast to the lassies

A night at ‘Her Majesty’s Pleasure’ to round it all off

The blue and the white on a sky of slate grey

The grovelling politicos with nothing to say

But it’s hard getting by given neither the time nor the day

Hey for ‘Bobbin’ John’, hey for cockolorum

Tha tighin fodham, fodham, fodham

Oh well you take the high road and I’ll take the low

The ‘Skyscraper Wean’s’ got nowhere to go

Now the blue paint’s all smudged on the face

Of the star of the show

(you can stream/download State Of The Nation below for just £2)

Download State Of The Nation Bandcamp

Contact Louis Rive Facebook Instagram Spotify Twitter YouTube Soundcloud

2018 REVIEW ROUND-UP’S. PART TWO: EUROPE- SIGELPA, EAST TOWN PIRATES, LOCKS, IRISH STEW OF SINDIDUN,

Album Review, Barcelona, Catalonia, England, Folk-Punk, Free Download, London, Serbia, Traditional January 7, 2019 Leave a comment

Here is Part 2 of our 2018 Round Up’s where we catch up with some of the releases that we missed first time round. Here are four bands and a whole load of music to take in all at once so make yourself a cuppa and relax. Their is something here that anyone can enjoy I’m not kidding. From Celtic-PUNK to Irish trad and Nick Cave-esque Murder Ballads-ish folk-noir all these releases are highly recommended. We prefer to do more detailed reviews but we just couldn’t keep up with everything so a few slipped the net and ended up here as we didn’t want them to be missed out completely. After doing bands from the Celtic nations last week (here) today we are in Europe. Check up again soon where we will be featuring bands from across the world

SIGELPA- ‘País De Titellaires’ EP (FREE DOWNLOAD)

Sad to say this is the final release from one of the Celtic-Punk scene’s most innovative bands. Formed in Barcelona in 2010 this Catalan band are named after the acronym of the initials of the seven deadly sins in the Catalonian language. Superbia/ Pride, Ira/ Wrath, Gula/ Gluttony, Enveja/ Envy, Luxuria/ Lust, Peresa/ Sloth and Avaricia/ Greed making up the letters in their name. With several great releases behind them (all available for *FREE* from the bands Bandcamp page) Sigelpa have sadly thrown in the towel and bow out with this fabulous three track EP which is also available for *FREE*! In the Sigelpa tradition its over in a flash in only seven minutes. Iits all played at a frantic pace with accordion and fiddle leading the way but the standout thing about Sigelpa has always been the dual female/male vocals used to such great effect on the opening song ‘Oda A l’Odi’ which flashes by in a superb 100 seconds.

Not a bad song here with the single ‘País De Titellaires’ a high point but the final track for me cannot be beaten. Slow(ish) but catchy as feck with great rock guitar and fiddle and those gang vocals working brilliantly together. Sigelpa were always a brilliant band and one of my favourites in the scene. Everything they did had a great deal of thought put into it. With great politics, great musicians, great songs and a great spirit too they will be sorely missed. R.I.P. Sigelpa.

Contact Sigelpa- Soundcloud YouTube Facebook Twitter Bandcamp YouTube

EAST TOWN PIRATES- ‘Ship Of Fools’ (BUY)

A home grown band now hailing from the smugglers dens along the East Suffolk coastline of ye Olde Ipswich Towne they have come. With two critically acclaimed album’s behind them, 2011’s self-titled debut album on their own Rumrunner Records label and the follow up, 2013’s Seven Seas Of Sin they have been labelled quite appropriately as ‘Motorhead meets The Pogues’! A regular feature on the UK’s punk circuit and with regular headline appearances they are rapidly becoming one of this island’s better known punk bands. Similar in style to Pirate Copy from Kernow, who we featured in Part One of our Round-Up’s, in that while they have no Celtic instrumentation they do play in that style that is probably best known as Pirate-Punk that crosses into Celtic-Punk quite easily. So has the five year wait since the release of Seven Seas Of Sin been kind to them? Well you bet you last doubloon it has!!

We have twelve songs here clocking in at thirty six minutes and it is as catchy as hell throughout. It’s most definitely punk ROCK but has that accessible feel to it without compromising on their sound at all. At times it has the bluesy hard rock of AC/DC or The Quireboys and others the simple three chord majesty of vocalist Rikki’s last band Red Flag 77 who played just about every square inch of this fair isle in their time together. It’s not all fast as feck though and, it must be my old age, but I really loved ‘Dead Man’s Cove’ and ‘Betrayal’ which even though are the slowest songs here could hardly be described as ballads!! They even slip in a reggae tinged track ‘I, Hedonist’ which I’m not a big fan of but then I’ve always been in the minority there. Otherwise it’s the fast songs that dominate with the title track, the appropriately titled ‘Fast Track’ and ‘Voodoo Pirate Rock ‘N’ Roll’. The album ends with the standout track a re-working of ‘Prisoner’s Lament’ which appeared originally on Seven Seas Of Sin showcasing Rikki’s great punk rock vocals with just acoustic guitar backing before the song erupts and the rest of the band join in and leave the album on a real high. It’s all great stuff and just recently they have even been venturing to London a bit more so keep you eyes peeled for their next visit dust your waistcoat off, get your ‘Arrrghs’ in gear, shake your booty, and join in the fun with the motliest of motley crews around.

Contact East Town Pirates- WebSite Facebook Soundcloud ReverbNation YouTube

LOCKS- ‘Skeletal Blues’ (BUY)

Now this is not the sort of release that features on these pages much but I’ve loved this record from the moment I first heard it. LOCKS are a four piece band from North London comprising singer-guitarist Locks Geary-Griffin, Andy Marvell on drums, Marian McClenaghan on fiddle and Mike Byrne on double bass. Together the band have dabbled in various musical genres prior to LOCKS including blues, rockabilly, trad Irish, indie, nu-folk and our very own Celtic-Punk as well. So the Celtic connections are high and on this basis they would easily qualify for the Irish football team! Having known Mike for more years than I care to remember since his days in one of the original London Celtic-Punk bands Pitful Of Ugly who later became Skibbereen and his rockabilly band The Obscuritones it’s nice to see him continuing to play in really interesting bands. LOCKS have been described as smoky, cinematic, and ghostly and the band themselves play up the comparisons to Tom Waits and Nick Cave and on hearing their debut album Skeletal Blues it is a comparison well worthy of them.

Locks voice is dominant throughout the album and its perfectly pitched accompanied by the fiddle, double bass and rattling drums which on album opener ‘Bones’ sound just like… well bones. The tone is set on ‘Bones’ with a song about burying dead bodies on the moors and be sure to check out the utterly fantastic video above written, produced and starring Abigail Hardingham. While it is ‘Bones’ that steals the show for me they also come close with ‘The Chase’, ‘Toes’ and ‘Skin’.

Back in 1996 Nice Cave brought out a CD Murder Ballads which comprised of him singing songs (old, new and traditional) of death and violence. It’s to that tradition that LOCKS come from with their tales of dead bodies, strange creatures and dark family secrets and like Murder Ballads is complete with both morbid humor and sobering horror. Dark lyrically the music veers from straight up gently played folk into eastern European at times while even finding time to pay the first couple of bars of The Pink Panther theme tune. Skeletal Blues ends with ‘Laveau’ about the voodoo Queen of New Orleans Marie Laveau. Though she died in 1881 it’s still a title she still holds today with people still visiting her grave to leave tokens in exchange for small requests. The longest song here at well over five minutes it gives LOCKS the chance to shine with Mike’s bass rumbling away fantastically and Marion’s fiddle drifting in and out of Celtic airs.

On first play I had assumed it was all fairly similar fair, due mainly to the hypnotic drumming style and Locks laid back vocals but upon a few more plays it became clear there’s a lot more to the songs than I had given credit. It’s a fascinating album and as I have said before man cannot live on Celtic-Punk alone so stretch your horizons beyond the Dropkick Murphys and be prepared to get into someone new and imaginative.

Contact LOCKS- WebSite Facebook Bandcamp YouTube Soundcloud

IRISH STEW OF SINDIDUN- ‘City Of Grigs’ (BUY)

We end Part Two with easily the most blatant Celtic of our releases today, the fourth album from Irish Stew Of Sindidun. Born in Belgrade, Serbia back in 2003 it’s been six years since their last album, New Tomorrow, was released so it’s been quite a long wait but worth it! On City Of Grigs they have never sounded so Irish! With ten songs and three traditional Irish covers, ‘Paddy’s Lamentation’, ‘Step It Out Mary’ and ‘Down By The Glenside’, that are well chosen and show the bands connection with Irish music goes well beyond that of just a covers band. These songs topics feature the three most important subjects in Irish music, emigration, rebellion and romantic tragedy! It’s indeed a shame we don’t more folk like Sindidun vocalist Bojan Petrovic back at home when he explains

“these songs are not included merely to be album fillers, but because they speak of themes which are still actual. Irish music is much more than quick melodies, dance and fun; through traditional folklore Irish songs we keep remembrance of values of one culture, which are still worthy of reverence.”

City of Grigs is their most ‘trad’ sounding album so far and it really cannot be faulted. Besides the three fantastic covers are the bands original songs which are equally as good and they don’t get any better than the album’s lead single ‘Heavier Than Sin’. Absolutely amazing banjo from Ivan giving it a ‘Wild-Western’ feel but based firmly you know where. Bojan’s vocals are smooth and deep and fit in perfectly with the upbeat Irish music and dark lyrics. The song ends with an Irish reel and shows exactly what Irish Stew Of Sindidun are capable of. How these guys aren’t touring Ireland teaching the Irish to re-connect with their culture I don’t know!

All the songs here are great and as catchy as hell to boot but the standout tracks for me are the uptempo opening song ‘Strangers’, the jolly short’n’sweet ‘Drink And Sing’ and, the closest they get to a ballad here, ‘Holiday’. They even find time to mix in a bit of reggae alongside trad Irish on the superb instrumental ‘The Old City Keeper’ where Nemanja and her utterly amazing fiddle playing shines. Irish Stew Of Sindidun are one hell of a band and are absolutely massive at home in Serbia. That they aren’t as well known outside is criminal. Over half an hour of traditional Irish music with folk and rock not just welded on but added with care and love. It may have been six years since their last album but the band have spent it wisely improving on their sound when I didn’t even think it would be possible!

Contact Irish Stew Of Sindidun- WebSite Facebook YouTube

So ends the second part of our 2018 Round-Up’s and apologies again to all the bands as each and every release deserved that full London Celtic Punks treatment. I can guarantee we have probably still missed more fantastic music so all the more reason to send us your releases to review. Get in touch via the Contact Us page to find out how. We are also always looking for people to join the reviews team so don’t be shy if you fancy giving it a go. If you don’t want to miss any of our posts then you can follow us by simply filling in your e-mail address in the box that is either below or to the left depending how you are viewing and you will receive every post to your in-box.

ALBUM REVIEW: EBRI KNIGHT- ‘Guerrilla’ (2018)

Album Review, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain February 26, 2018 1 Comment

FREE DOWNLOAD!

A superb mix of traditional Catalan music and punk-rock.

Ebri Knight hail from the Maresme, a region where the sea and the mountains meet halfway between La Selva and Barcelona in Catalonia. If you have been living under a rock over the last couple of years Catalonia is currently a region of Spain. I say currently as there is a massive groundswell of support from the Catalan people to leave Spain and forge ahead as a nation in its own right.

Catalonia is is located on the extreme north east of Spain and is home to around 7,500,000 people and its capital is one of the worlds greatest cities in Barcelona. They have their own language and culture that is different to that of Spain and the wish to be independent has occupied the minds of many Catalan’s for decades. Back in the general election of 1931 the Catalan people voted heavily for the left-wing Republican government that promised greater autonomy but when Franco’s fascists moved against the democratically elected government causing the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939) the Catalan’s sided with the government. Three years of heavy fighting throughout Spain but especially in the republican stronghold of Catalonia led to the devastation of the country and eventually to the defeat of the Republican forces and Franco brought in a dictatorship in which he never forgot the role that Catalonia had played. Franco’s regime banned the use of the Catalan language and all institutions of self-government were abolished. It wasn’t until the death of Franco and the return of democracy that Catalan self-identity was again tolerated and the people were allowed to express their national pride without fear of repercussion. This eventually led to the controversial referendum held last October in which than 2,020,000 voters (91.96%) voted for independence. This led to a crackdown on those the Spanish government considered responsible but the fact is that independence is inevitable and Spain are playing a risky game by denying the people of Catalonia their wish to take their place amongst the nations of the world.

The La Senyera Estelada is used by supporters of Catalonian independence. It was inspired by the stars on the Puerto Rican and Cuban flags, who gained independence from Spain in 1898 and 1902 respectively, Catalan independentists began including stars on their symbols from the early 20th century onwards.

Like most nations struggling for freedom across the world the use of traditional/folk music has been one of both uniting the people and a way to protest. With their language banned for decades it was mainly in song that Catalan was kept alive. Ebri Knight are firmly rooted in traditions that have been known across the streets of Catalonia for centuries. The melodies and traditional instruments that inspired them don’t belong left in the past but need to be brought to the fore again. To take from the past and not change it or reinvent it but add to it something. Music is constantly changing and adapting and Ebri Knight are no different to bands like The Dubliners, The Pogues and Flogging Molly. Three bands that show nearly sixty years of evolving and developing traditional Irish folk music.

Guerilla kicks off with ‘Carnaval’ and like a lot of European celtic-punk bands they love the flute. Not an instrument I was always fond of but over the last couple of years (ever since seeing Firkin from Hungary in fact) I have fallen for in a big way. The song is loud and bombastic with plenty of shouty gang vocals and what we might think of here as Spanish touches but all along have unbeknown to us are actually Catalan ones. The accordion is particularly good here. Next up is the lead single and title track ‘Guerrilla’ and Ebri Knight nail their colours to the mast and they are RED! The video was directed by Eloi Aymerich and shot on the beach of Callao de Mataró standing on the horizon of the Mediterranean Sea.

The song is a tribute to self-organization, to those that fight side by side together to overcome injustice and those who perpetuate them and to awaken those who remain alienated in the society in which we live.

“The days of the crumbs have been finished, We have already risen and we will make the executioner fall”

The video ends with a shot of a mother feeding her son wrapped in a red cloth, a symbol of revolt, dignity and the future. The music is catchy as hell, fastly played mainly acoustic and while the Celtic melodies may be missing its not a million miles from celtic-punk and in fact could be described as a next door neighbour. Almost the entire album is sung in Catalan so I can’t explain much about whats going on but its a thoroughly enjoyable album with plenty in it to keep both folkies and punkers happy. Not knowing much about the band previous to this album I can’t say how they have developed over their career but they certainly kick up a storm here and on ‘Venim’ it’s a perfect marriage of punk and folk music. The sort of music that could keep everyone happy but without wimping out. The guitars are turned up loud and the whole song bounces along with an almost Ramones feel to it but totally accessible at the same time. On ‘Rosa De Foc’ they slow it down beginning with just voice and acoustic guitar before the band join and while still keeping it slow(ish) the sound is massive. They can’t help themselves though and then BOOM and they off again and the Bhoys push it to max before slowing down again towards the end. ‘Filla’ is the quickest song here and sounds like a traditional song with vocals dominating over a bongo. A nice interlude and very much a salute to the past. ‘La Nit Encesa’ and ‘Mai Més’ are back firmly within punk territory with the folk instruments loud and proud in the mix with flute, fiddle and accordion competing with chugging electric guitar. If you were to pick a celtic-punk tune from this album then ‘El Nostre Dia’ is the one. A more folky number and the closest here to an Irish song. Slower but still massive as with all their slower songs with a swirling movement that you can imagine would be the pint in the air, arms round your mates on the dance-floor moment of the album. I would definitely suggest a visit to the bands YouTube page as well (link below) as they have obviously put a lot of work into their videos and ‘Vientos Del Pueblo’ is a great example. Using illustrations from the Civil War and the words of Republican fighter and poet Miguel Hernández the video is an incredible and powerful work of art.

Born into a poor family and with little education he published his first book at 23 and gained considerable fame before his death. He fought gallantly through the war before eventually being arrested and sentenced to death but Tuberculosis beat the hangman to it and before his death he scrawled his last verse on the wall of the hospital:

“Goodbye, brothers, comrades, friends: let me take my leave of the sun and the fields”

We are steering up towards the end now and ‘Cridarem’ again has a bit of a celtic-punk feel to it with a great shouty but tuneful chorus with what sounds like the whole band joining in. ‘Tornaria’ is a gentle song which makes me think that it’s the words that are important here. They are that kind of band. The lyrics are more important than the tunes to them but lucky for us that there’s more than enough to enjoy even if you don’t know any Catalan! The album ends with the fine anti-fascist anthem ‘Viva La Quinta Brigada’. Written by the legendary Christy Moore and sung here in English it’s an absolutely fantastic version and not very recognisable with Ebri Knight putting their own stamp all over it and defiantly making it their own. In Christy’s version the words pay tribute to the Irishmen who fought in the Spanish Civil War against Franco but here some lines are missing perhaps they found it too difficult to pronounce the Irish names! Nevertheless an awesome song, an awesome version and a great way to end the album.

Guerilla was recorded and mixed in Terrassa in their home region by Marc Bória and Oriol Bacardit and was released at the beginning of February. Twelve songs and forty-three minutes and as good a production as you will ever hear, as clear as the proverbial bell! We are all lucky that the band have made it available for free download so we recommend that as soon as you finish reading this you follow the link below and get downloading! We all owe bands like Ebri Knight a great service. Bands that keep our traditions alive that keep the songs in our memories that provide a link from the past to the present. Music on its own cannot change the world but it can inspire people to read, to think, to act. Music can rouse a people from its slumber its exactly why those that manipulate us and control us promote music that stops people thinking, reading, acting. Music can have the weight of the people behind it and bands like Ebri Knight have the strength of a people who want to change the world.

That’s why they make the music they do.

(you can listen to Guerilla on the Bandcamp player below)

Discography

Tonades Of Time Ago (2011) * La Palla Va Cara (2013) * Foc! (2015) * Cridarem Foc! (2017)

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FromTheBand (the option is Buy Now or Name Your Price which includes the option to get the album for **FREE**. It’s up to you folks be as generous as you feel.

Contact Ebri Knight

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LONDON CELTIC PUNKS PRESENTS THE BEST OF 2016!

Album Review, Australia, Barcelona, Belarus, Best Of's, Boston, Brazil, Catalonia, Czech Republic, EP Review, Germany, Glasgow, Holland, Indonesia, Italy, Netherlands, New York, Russia, Scandinavia, Scotland, Spain, Sweden, USA January 16, 2017 Comments: 7

Yes I know it only seems like five minutes since the last one but it’s that time of year again when we give you, for what it’s worth, our opinion on who made the best music in the celtic-punk scene over 2016. It’s been another outstanding year for the music that we all love and some truly fantastic records came out in the last twelve months. So read on to find out who came #1! Remember though this is only our opinion and these twenty-five album’s are only the tip of the iceberg of what was released last year. Feel free to comment, slag off or dissect our lists. We don’t pretend to be the final word as that my friends is for you…

TOP 25 CELTIC PUNK ALBUMS

1. THE RUMJACKS (Australia)-‘Sleepin’Rough’ Review

2. THE NARROWBACKS (New York)- ‘Arrogance & Ignorance’ Review

3. THE CLOVES AND THE TOBACCO (Indonesia)- ‘Across The Horizon’ Review

4. MICKEY RICKSHAW (Boston)- ‘Behind The Eight Ball’ Review

5. THE WAKES (Glasgow)- ‘Venceremos!’ Review

Absolutely no surprise here at all. For the first time we had an unanimous vote from all the admin’s that sees The Rumjacks sail away with the #1 spot for the second year running. It’s been an outstanding year for the Bhoys and with an American tour on the horizon they about to take another giant step in their campaign of world domination! Other notables were NYC’s Narrowbacks whose second album really showed the depth of their songwriting and could just have easily won the folk/trad best of too! The Cloves And The Tobacco deserve plaudits galore in another fantastic year for Indonesian celtic punk bands while Mickey Rickshaw could probably be said to have won the ‘unified title’ across all the various celtic-punk sites. In all we have twenty five bands from fourteen countries including USA x 6, Australia x 3, Indonesia x2, Germany x2, Netherlands x2, Catalonia x 2, Scotland, Italy, Sweden, Brazil, Spain, Czech Republic, Russia and Belarus with The Wakes being the only Celtic country based band which goes to show how international the scene has become.

6. THE CLAN (Italy)- ‘All In The Name Of Folk’ Review

7. HOIST THE COLORS (USA)- ‘Mourners’ Review

8. SIR REG (Sweden)- ‘Modern Day Disgrace’ Review

9. FOX n FIRKIN (Australia)- ‘No Vacancy’ Review

10. FIDDLER’S GREEN (Germany)- ‘Devil’s Dozen’ Review

11. LUGH (Brazil)- ‘Histórias Do Mar’ Review

12. JAY WARS AND THE HOWARD YOUTH (Australia)- ‘Love In The Time Of Fear’ Review

13. BUNCH OF BASTARDS (Netherlands)- ‘My Drinkin’ Ain’t Done’ Review

14. SIGELPA (Catalonia)- ‘Rabant Original’ Review

15. TENHOLES (Indonesia)- ‘Loyalty’ Review

16. THE O’REILLYS AND THE PADDYHATS (Germany)- ‘Seven Hearts One Soul’ Review

17. 13KRAUSS (Spain)- TheEnd Is Nigh’ Review

18. DRINK HUNTERS (Catalonia)- ‘Shameless’ Review

19. PIRATES OF THE PUBS (Czech Republic)- ‘Drunken Forever’ Review

20. THE MUCKERS (USA)- ‘The Muckers’ Review

: Whiskey Outlaws (2016)

21. LQR (Netherlands)- ’10 Pinter’ Review

22. THE Пауки/THE PAUKI (Russia)- ‘La Isla Del Muerto’ Review

23. Всё CRAZY (Belarus)- ‘По Морям’ Review

24. RUSTY NAIL (USA)- ‘Bitter Ale, Bitter Heart’ Review

25. THE LANGER’S BALL (USA)- ‘Whiskey Outlaws’ Review

A special mention here to the ever prolific and always a pleasurable experience The Mahones who released a greatest hits entitled The Very Best: 25 Years Of Irish Punk which couldn’t be included in the Top 25 but if it did would have given The Rumjacks a run for their money!

TOP TEN CELTIC PUNK EP’S

1. MICK O’TOOLE (England)- ‘A Working Class Battalion’ Review

2. THE RAMSHACKLE ARMY (Australia)- ‘Whitewashed Graves’ Review

3. DRUNKEN FAIRY TALES (Russia) – ‘Пьяные Сказки’ Review

With The Rumjacks returning a year later to sweep the Album Of The Year it’s no surprise then that Wiltshire lads Mick O’Toole follow up last year’s win in the EP Of The Year awards to do the same thing. A great year for them that has seen them play less and less within the celtic-punk scene and really start to make waves outside of it. A foreign tour and more support slots to various punk rock legends than most bands play in a lifetime and all in the space of twelve months. The Ramshackle Army EP got lost in the post leaving us to do a rush-job review and given time I’m sure they may have given the O’Toole’s a run for their money. Drunken Fairy Tales impressed everyone and Matilda’s vinyl only release deserve a mention as well Mick O’Toole grabbing the 5th spot too.

4. MATILDA’S SCOUNDRELS (England)- ‘Crowleys Curse’ Review

5. MICK O’TOOLE (England)- ‘False Flag Collapse’ Review

6. BAY STREET BASTARDS (Canada)- ‘Small Batch’ Review

7. LEXINGTON FIELD (USA)- ‘Redwood’ Review

8. HANDSOME YOUNG STRANGERS (Australia)- ‘Battle Of Broken Hill’ Review

9. MATILDA’S SCOUNDRELS (England)- ‘The Organworks Recordings Session’ Review

10. BALSALL HEATHENS (England)- ‘Life’s Too Short’ Review

TOP TEN FOLK/TRADITIONAL RELEASES

: https://wp.me/p3Huvn-1CG

1. ANTO MORRA (London)-’16’ Review

2. THE LOGUES (Ireland)- ‘Comin’ Of Age’ Review

3. MICKEY RICKSHAW (Boston)- ‘Wild Atlantic’ Review

Possibly the hardest Best Of List of them all to do is this one as so many releases cross over the genres between rock and punk and folk and trad but our good friend Anto Morra, the ‘London Irish folk-punker’, just edging it from The Logues with his superb tribute to the 1916 Easter Rising. Mickey Rickshaw swept to third with their specially recorded acoustic EP that came out for their European tour and ShamRocks put out an album of high quality and original Irish folk with imagination galore. A special mention for Blackwater Banshee whose EP came out later in the year and shows enormous promise and one or two original songs would have seen a much higher position I am sure.

4. ShamRocks (Ukraine)- ‘Captain’s Log’ Review

5. LARKIN (USA)- ‘A Toast To St. Jude’ Review

6. FOLK THE SYSTEM (England)- Unrest In The Wolds’ Review

7. SHAMBOLICS (Australia)- ‘Riot On Race Day’ Review

8. CLEAR THE BATTLE FIELD (USA)- ‘Set Me Free’ Review

9. SOLAS (USA)- ‘All These Years’ Review

10. BLACKWATER BANSHEE (Bristol)- ‘Blackwater Banshee’ Review

TOP CELTIC PUNK WEB-SITE

Now this has over the years become the Celtic Folk Punk And More Top Celtic Punk Web-Site award so often has that esteemed site walked away with the top spot but there’s a new kid on the block and this year we are happy to award top spot to our good mates over at Mersey Celt Punks. They only kicked off the site a few months ago but super regular postings on all manner of celtic-punkness has seen them triumphant. You can join their fun over at Twitter and Facebook and we heartily recommend you do. A special mention here also for Viva La XV another new kid on the block which looks amazing but sadly as none of us can read Spanish we can’t tell if it’s as good as it looks! We’re sure it is and you can check it out for yourselves at the Blog or over on Facebook.

Right now the details. The Best Of lists were cajoled and bullied out of the four admins on the London Celtic Punks Facebook page. The various scraps of crumpled paper were received and then tallied up over several pints of Guinness in Mannions in north London while watching the football on the telly.

We are now in our fourth year of doing these Best Of lists so if you would like to have a look at the previous years best in celtic-punk then click the link below the relevant year.

: https://londoncelticpunks.wordpress.com/2014/01/03/best-of-2013-polls-results-in/

: https://londoncelticpunks.wordpress.com/2015/01/05/london-celtic-punks-presents-our-best-of-2014-2/

: https://londoncelticpunks.wordpress.com/2016/01/06/london-celtic-punks-presents-our-best-of-2015/

all the major players in celtic-punk do Best Of lists so click below to check out what they thought

CELTIC FOLK PUNK AND MORE

PADDYROCK

MacSLONS IRISH RADIO

CELTIC-ROCK.DE

remember any views or comments we would love to hear them…

Only one more thing to mention about 2016 and that is to remember here Erik Petersen the lead singer of the influential folk-punk band Mischief Brew who sadly passed away earlier this year. I still find it hard to believe that he has gone but he will always be commemorated.

“So tattoo our arms and raise our glasses, call out your name at New Year’s Eve, maybe next time we kneel at a casket, we can say at least the story’s complete”

Read our obituary for Erik here and raise a glass the next time you get the chance to.

Rest In Peace comrade.

Sláinte, The London Celtic Punks Crew- January, 2017

ALBUM REVIEW: DRINK HUNTERS- ‘Shameless’ (2016)

Album Review, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain October 3, 2016 Leave a comment

Catalan Bhoys showing the rest of us how to do Celtic-punk again!

Welcome to the third long player from one of the top celtic-punk bands in Europe, Catalan celtic-punkers Drink Hunters (their is no ‘The’). Formed in Barcelona in 2008 they have previously self-released two outstanding albums on a shoestring budget and set about raising money for this one by crowdfunding among their fans who responded magnificently and raised the necessary readies in no time at all. The band got together in Barcelona in 2008 when Pau (drums and vocals) and Aaron (bass and lead vocals) wanted to get a band on the road and decided to follow the path of celtic-punk. They talked about the idea with Raja (guitar and vocals) and a band began to take shape. Only thing now missing was to fill their energetic punk rock with some Irish folk touches. And for that they contacted with Nando (fiddle) and Rosa (accordion) and in early 2013 they signed Isra (Irish tin whistles and banjo) and Drink Hunters were armed and ready to go.

When we reviewed their last album (here) we described them as

“…which sounds pretty much like NOFX doing celtic-punk! The ‘celtic-NOFX’ label fits in quite well with The Drink Hunters and the majority of the songs fly by in around 2 minutes”

and to be perfectly honest that still fits them pretty damn well. Members have come and gone from the band but Drink Hunters philosophy of combining solid punk rock tunes with Irish traditional folk and themes has made them a sure fire hit across Europe and among those in the know in celtic-punk circles.

Shameless was released in July and is eleven tracks long that rolls in just a minute short of thirty minutes. Of those eleven songs all are written by the band themselves and as usual top marks for that. As much as I do love to hear version after version of ‘I’ll Tell Me Ma’ its far more enjoyable to hear what the band themselves have made and nurtured. Shameless begins with the short and very very snappy ‘1234’ and for a second you could imagine it as Bad Religion till the celtic instruments kick in and Drink Hunters are back with a right bang. All the lyrics are sung in English or should I say Californian! While we would prefer bands to sing in their native tongue its understandable why bands don’t always and Pau from the band is at least honest when he said, when we reviewed their last album,

“yeah, I feel that the English language can open more doors, particularly in this genre which is not very popular in Spain yet”

Next up is ‘Trashy Music’ and again from the start the music kicks in and the Bhoys put the boot into shitty sell out bands which is something you could never accuse them of being. Completely independent and totally DIY in ethos.

The album continues with ‘Do More Listening’ and ‘I Need To Forget’ which ramp up the speed and keep the fiddle player busy keeping up. A fantastic combination of old and new traditions Drink Hunters are that odd thing in celtic-punk. A band that follows no-one, sounds like no-one else and ploughs their own trough in coming up with something truly unique within celtic-punk.

(two songs from the album that were released in advance done all acoustic like!)

Album title track ‘Shameless’ is one of the shortest songs on the album and shows the band at their most fluid as they take the piss out of themselves somewhat.

“And they can say
we have no class
we have bad manners
and we want to be like them

But we’re sure
we’re so prooooud!”

‘Picnic Blanket’ has some real good Irish fiddle parts while the music steamrolls along. A real foot stomper this one and a real album standout. ‘My Car’ treads the same path as before with a silly song about being in love with your car.

“Your car is a crap
My tapes make me so elegant”

They showed they can play their instruments too by recently releasing an acoustic version of ‘My Car’ as well and it rocks mightily!

Next up is ’34’ and fiddle and tin whistle over pounding drums until friend of the band El Nota pops up to do a short rap in the middle. We are storming to the end and their is no let up in the speed of Shameless and ‘What Am I Waiting For?’ is no different. Fast paced and heading out in a bang with ‘Someone Else’ and finally the album comes to an end with my favourite song on the album. Encapsulating everything I love about the celtic punk scene it is called simply ‘Celtic Punks’. In Spain’s fractured land where one day we would hope to see freedom for the Catalans, Basques and Galicians the song offers a hand of friendship. As with Scotland its not necessary to hate your neighbours. One day you will all be on an equal footing so let solidarity be the key to your freedom.

“We are Celtic Punks!

You will never understand why we’ve chosen this path
our way of seeing things neither our music.

This is not a fad, It’s a way of life
feeling it inside our hearts
We’ve not given up yet.
No matter whether you are male or female
We are few people but we are united!

Celtic Punks gara gu (Basque)
Nos somos Celtic Punks (Galician)
Nosotras somos Celtic Punks (Spanish)
Nosaltres som Celtic Punks! (Catalan)”

An absolutely storming way to finish and worth the price of the album on its own. The most obvious thing for me that stands out about Drink Hunters is that if they were North American they would be, and pardon my French here, totally fucking massive. They certainly deserve it and as one of the hardest working bands around international stardom shouldn’t be too long with catching up with them.

(have a listen to the whole of Shameless by pressing Play on the Bandcamp player below)

Discography

2010- I Love Whiskey I Love Beer, 2011- With My Crew, 2014- Lurking Behind The Woods

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* their are a host of other great bands in the region with Sigelpa also from Barcelona leading the way but one of the best ways to keep up with whats happening in Spain, Catalonia, Galicia, the Basque country and the celtic-punk scene in general is to follow the ever brilliant Celtic Folk Punk And More web-site. Begin here by checking their review of Shameless.

ALBUM REVIEW: SIGELPA- ‘Rabant Original’ (2016)

Album Review, Barcelona, Catalonia, Galicia, Spain July 24, 2016 Leave a comment

Folk core + Punk Rock + Ireland + Celtic + Catalonia = SIGELPA

Now we have been around now for so long that we are beginning to do reviews from bands we have already reviewed before but only one band is rounding the corner for their third review and that is the wonderful Sigelpa from Catalonia. The group hail from Terrassa in the Barcelona region of Catalonia and their mix of punk, hardcore and good old fashioned Irish folk music, as I have said before, is right up my street. Everything about the band is pretty amazing right down to their extremely clever name. Its an acronym of the initials of the seven deadly sins in Catalonian. Superbia/ Pride, Ira/ Wrath, Gula/ Gluttony, Enveja/ Envy, Luxuria/ Lust, Peresa/ Sloth and Avaricia/ Greed making up the letters in their name.

: April, 2014

: October, 2014

: March, 2015

: April, 2015

Their new album, Rabant Original, was officially released on July 7th just gone and got a limited free release for a week which is when I downloaded it. Now I can’t tell you much about any of the song lyrics sadly as they are all, bar two (one in English and one in Galician), in Catalan so will just stick to the basics here. Sigelpa rattle through their fourteen songs in no time at all with the whole album coming in at only twenty seven minutes and with the majority of their songs around the one and a half / two minute mark it’s a gloriously fast and wicked ride through celtic-punk owned territory! Rabant Original begins with a short intro ‘(pou)’ before ‘Aquí Ens Tens’ and the sound of electric guitar, accordion and fiddle fills the air and we are well away. Dual male and female vocals that is neither shouty nor crooned but fits the music perfectly. The accordion is to the fore in ‘Bronca’ and its really nice to hear female vocals at the front of a band for once rather than just singing the chorus and ‘Puta Ciutat’ show it off perfectly. The video for ‘A Saia Da Carolina’ will be just up your street if you can speak Galician but if not welcome to our world! A top version of this traditional Celtic folk song from Galicia.

The album signature tune ‘Rabant Original’ is pure pop punk with added accordion and fast drumming keeping the tempo right up high. Another highlight is ‘Dinamita’ which is a fast and furious racket with more lovely accordion and reminds me of the Brazilian celtic-punk band Lugh. Only 72 seconds long and over just as it gets going it’s accompanied by a video which shows Sigelpa in all their glory.

The band’s sound is never better than on ‘Us Tornarem A Votar’ with a great slab of celtic punk rock sure to get any bar room up on its feet and dancing away. Their simply is no let up and no time for anything slow here and ‘Culvolució’ carries it all on while ‘Mojigatrix’ is even faster! The only song sung in English is up next with the fecking amazing ‘Excursion Around The Bay’. Made most famous by one of celtic music’s big hitters Great Big Sea from Canada in 2000 on their Road Rage album. Written by Johnny Burke (1851–1930) who was a famous Newfoundland balladeer of his time. Not content to just copy the song Sigelpa inject it full of punk rock spirits and though it may start off quite familiar it ends a million miles away from the original. ‘L’Infern Està Pujant’ and ‘Exorcisme Vaginal’ take us up to the end and more of the same is all we are asking for now. Well played and expertly recorded and produced as well I have to say so well done to JM Castelló and Matias Scheinkman at Canela Hank Studio in Barcelona. The final track is ‘Sexual GGesus’ a fast and relatively long song for them at just under two minutes. Excellent country fiddle giving it a bluegrass sound in a song about punk rock wierdo GG Allin who died of a heroin overdose back in 1993.

Sigelpa left to right: Albert (violin), Robert (guitar), Bruna (vocals), Guille (drums), Pol (vocals and guitar), Alba (accordion), Xavi ( bass)

And their you have it. All over in well under a half hour and as good a celtic-punk album has been released this year. Fourteen songs of which only two are cover versions. Sigelpa are a brilliant band and one of my favourites in the current celtic-punk scene. Everything they do has a great deal of thought put into it. Both their debut album and ‘Ens Van Diagnosticar Un Transtorn’ were outstanding. Great politics, great musicians, great songs and a great spirit too. Trust me it’s no gamble here get this album and enjoy one of the very best bands in the celtic punk scene today, and certainly one of the most inventive, in ANY scene right now.

(you can listen to the entire album below by pressing play on the Bandcamp player. Its available on CD for only 7 Euros and that is as cheap as chips!)

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for our review of the first album TerraMotta from Sigelpa look here
for our review of last years EP Ens Van Diagnosticar Un Transtorn from Sigelpa look here

LONDON CELTIC PUNKS PRESENTS OUR BEST OF 2015!

Album Review, Australia, Barcelona, Best Of's, Boston, Canada, Catalonia, England, EP Review, Folk-Punk, France, Galicia, Germany, Holland, Hungary, Indonesia, Ireland, Isle Of Man, Italy, London, Netherlands, New York, Norway, Piedmont, Punk, Quebec, Russia, Scandinavia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Traditional, Ukraine January 6, 2016 Comments: 6

One of the best things about doing this here blog-zine is the end of year ‘Best Of’s’. This is our chance to reward, for what it’s worth, and recommend those releases that tickled our collective fancies over the last twelve months. Where as in 2013 the Best Of’s were dominated by local bands and releases and in 2014 it was international bands that stole the show this years is more of a mix of the two. No shocks at the top I’m afraid. It was always going to be a slug out between the big hitters of celtic-punk with The Rumjacks just shading it from the The Mahones by the slightest of margins. One of the team commented that the only difference was that ‘The Hunger And The Fight Part 1’ was slightly better than Part 2. In third place came 1916 out of New York who only just sneaked in with the December release of ‘Last Call For Heroes’. The album came out so late we didn’t even get a chance to mention it let alone review it nevertheless it blew us all away with their brilliant combination of rockabilly and celtic-punk. Another one to file in the ‘shamrockabilly’ category. Overall no major surprises and all four admins lists pretty much tallied up with each other but it’s especially great to see some non-English speaking bands in there as well as some bands that were new to us in the last twelve months. I was particularly happy to see Skontra and The Cundeez make the grade representing celtic-punk as played in the celtic nations. As ever we have reviewed some, though not all of these albums, so click (here) after the title and you will be re-directed to our review. If your album is not here do not be downhearted. These twenty album’s are the tip of the iceberg of what was released last year in what was an outstanding year for celtic-punk. Feel free to comment, slag off or dissect our lists. We don’t pretend to be the final word as that my friends is for you…

TOP 20 CELTIC PUNK ALBUMS

1. THE RUMJACKS- ‘Sober And Godless’ (here)

2. THE MAHONES- ‘The Hunger And The Fight Part 2’

3. 1916- ‘Last Call For The Heroes’ (here)

4. FEROCIOUS DOG- ‘From Without’

5. THE GREENLAND WHALEFISHERS- ‘The Thirsty Mile’ (here)

6. MR.IRISH BASTARD- ‘The World, The Flesh & The Devil’ (here)

7. THE DEAD MAGGIES- ‘Well Hanged’ (here)

8. THE GO SET- ‘Rolling Sound’ (here)

9. MICKEY RICKSHAW- ‘No Heaven For Heroes’ (here)

10. HAPPY Ol’ McWEASEL- ‘Heard Ya Say’ (here)

11. JASPER COAL- ‘Just The One…’ (here)

12. THE CUNDEEZ- Sehturday Night Weaver (here)

13. THE FATTY FARMERS- ‘Escape From The Dirty Pigs’ (here)

14. THE SHILLELAGHS- ‘Bury Me At Sea’ (here)

15. JOLLY JACKERS- ‘Sobriety’ (here)

16. MALASANERS- Spanish Eyes’ (here)

17. SKONTRA- ‘Foguera’ (here)

18. THE WAXIES’ ‘Down With The Ship’ (here)

19. KITCHEN IMPLOSION- ‘Selfish’

20. THE TOSSPINTS- The Privateer (here)