ODDS’N’SODS. A CELTIC-PUNK ROUND UP AUGUST 2022

Remember the heat-wave couple of weeks ago? Well it’s raining here now! Welcome to a typical English summer. Never mind though here’s another Odds’n’Sods to keep you occupied for a bit. A whole load of Celtic-Punk entertainment from all the scene’s bands big and small, established or just starting out.

Sadly we start with news of the death of three figures that London Celtic Punks can say were close to us. First our great friend and comrade Scott very sadly passed away last month. To say this was a shock is a massive understatement and all of us here will miss the stand up guy that Scott was. Sometimes you meet folk who are universally loved by everyone they meet. So much that when they share some of their time with you you feel it is a real privilege. An all round good guy was Scott and he will be sadly missed and fondly remembered by all who crossed his path. Our thoughts and prayers to his family and his many friends.

Irish singer Cathal Coughlan, frontman with acclaimed indie bands Fatima Mansions and Microdisney, recently died aged only 61. His family announced the news, saying he “slipped away peacefully in hospital after a long illness”. Born in Cork, Coughlan formed Microdisney in 1980, relocating to London in 1983. Playing smooth jangling indie-pop they were much admired though chart success eluded them. Splitting up in 1988 he formed Fatima Mansions, whose output included everything from intense punk-adjacent rock to Europop and romantic balladry, with Coughlan celebrated for his intense delivery. Their masterpiece was their second album, Viva Dead Ponies, on which you never know if you’re going to get something as hauntingly melodic as ‘The Door-to-Door Inspector’ or something metallic and industrial-influenced like ‘Look What I Stole for Us, Darling’. Here is a link for a free download of this classic album and our thoughts are with Cathal’s family and friends.

Finally Mark Astronaut of the 80’s /90’s /00’s /10’s/ 20’s band THE ASTRONAUTS. Born out of the English Anarcho-Punk scene it was Mark’s lyrics that lifted the band into another world and while the music often flirted between Folk, Punk and Prog-Rock it was his words that made the band. A typically shy English eccentric who seemed to be born into the wrong era sometimes. I had the good fortune to meet him and put on his band numerous times even to the point when he once told me that I was the only promoter who would book him. Beautiful story telling lyrics sung with passion and belief.

The great Yorkshire Celtic-Punks SHANGHAI TREASON played live at Silverstone Woodlands on the weekend of the British Grand Prix last month. Here’s them performing ‘Drowning Heart’.

Our favourite Czech Republican Celtic-Punk band FOGGY DUDE have a new single out ‘Ode To Flying Spaghetti Monster’ accompanied by a fantastic video. Black Metal style beginning continued with a sea shanty and followed by a true Celtic-Punk kick ass symphony, even non-Italians should be delighted.

FORFOCSEIC is the Celtic Punk solo side project of Boston-based singer/songwriter Thom Dunn and he is releasing some absolutely stunning Celtic-Punk with just him and himself playing all the instruments. Check out his latest offering two versions of the great Shane MacGowan penned track ‘Streams Of Whiskey’. We will be reviewing his album Ní Neart Go Cur Le Chéile in the next couple of weeks after we have had a proper listen!

THE KILMAINE SAINTS released a new video of their cover of the House Of Pain classic ‘Jump Around’ recorded live at last months Celtic Fling festival.

I love a bit of Psychobilly me and here’s German band THE DIGGERZ doing a wicked cover of sea-shanty and Celtic-Punk staple ‘Drunken Sailor’.

THE MULLINS are proud to present the first single from their upcoming eponymous album! It’s coming out September 17th and you can pre-order to help the band out.

Indonesian Celtic-Punk is the best and we were taken aback at the great new single from WOLF FROM HOME from Pantura. Guys if you see this send us more information on the band.

The prolific Irish singer-songwriter KEVIN O’DRISCOLL has another album out recently Rebel Blood, Fenian Heart. You can check it out on Spotify.

Last month was news of a new Mahones album and tour and today we can tell you of the release of Time To Burn by the Punk supergroup ULTRABOMB. Made up of Greg Norton of Hüsker Dü. Jamie Oliver of the U.K.Subs and Finny McConnell of The Mahones. These guys are going to be a force worth reckoning. Their recent UK tour was cancelled and no news on it’s re-arrangement yet.

THE WORKING CLASS SYMPHONY are one of the best Celtic-Punk bands in the world? You don’t know them well that’s probably because they are from Indonesia and you haven’t given them a fair chance. We love and guarantee you will too. Check them out on You Tube and Facebook and look forward to catching them live at the end of the year. They are heading over sometime between December – January and need the help of the Celtic-Punk community. If you can help with the tour in any way then drop them a line and let them know.

REINA ROJA – Hooligan Folk (review on its way!)

THE DEAD IRISH – Lost In The City EP

RAISE MY KILT – Raise My Glass

ULTRABOMB – Time To Burn

NICK HART – Nick Hart Sings Ten English Folk Songs

Remember we cannot review it if we don’t hear it first!

REINA ROJA from Madrid have a new album out this month. Having already heard it I can tell you now it is bloomin’ brilliant and I’m looking forward to reviewing it. Hopefully they’ll have some decent live videos out by then but here’s a vid that’s a couple of years old and shows them off.

In the 9 years we’ve been doing this plenty of bands have passed us by. We can’t see everything after all so this column is to remind us of bands that never made these pages at the time but deserve another mention. These hopefully come with a free download like today so you can help yourself to some free music. Formed in 2005 LAD CUIG were a Catalonian Celtic-Punk band that changed styles around 2013 and released their second album album Poemes de Destrucció in 2016 and it’s available as a ‘name your price’ download. Lád Cúig are still going strong and released the album From Within at the end of last year.

SINFUL MAGGIE have a new album, Psychos And Sycophants, out soon and the album launch will be 1st October down sarf where they live. Dublin Metal style acoustic Folkies THE SCRATCH are touring in December and playing Camden Underworld on December 15th. Expect to see a few of us at that one. NEW MODEL ARMY play 3 Christmas dates ending at the Roundhouse on the 10th. FLOGGING MOLLY tour in August with support from good folk FEROCIOUS DOG (see above for dates) and DROPKICK MURPHYS play the London Arena in January. You’re welcome to post in any gig or tour info and looking forward to including some news from The Working Class Symphony soon!

If you like what we do then you can support us by checking out our online store. The Harp’n’Bones design is back in all sizes and on black or white shirts. Also we have new polo shirts, in all sizes, and some nifty woolly hats as well as the Green’n’White ‘Skully Cap’ ringer shirts. Click the link below for the full range of all our other tatt. Shirts, badges, stickers, flags, CD’s and fridge magnets all the discerning Celtic-Punk fan could ever need! Help keep Punk Celtic! https://the30492shop.fwscart.com/

Facebook is shit. Proper shit. That the world’s most ‘popular’ social media site has only 2/5 in the play app store says it all! It’s stranglehold on all forms of expression is not good and it’s great to see people leaving in droves. Don’t despair though if you are one of them as you can keep up with London Celtic Punks posts via our wee group on the phone app Telegram. Similar in style (but better and easier to use) to What’s App but completely free from outside interference. Join us on Telegram, don’t miss a single post and even receive the odd exclusive and special offer! https://t.me/londoncelticpunks/

Even though we hate it Facebook does supply the (very) occasional ray of sunshine so a shout out to some good friends of ours over on Facebook. The Dropkick Murphys- Fan Page and the Celtic Punk, Folk And Rock Fans are two of the best music forums on FB let alone Celtic-Punk. Ran By Fans For Fans just like you and me. Like and join in the fun!

A reminder too that we need your news so anything you would like to share with the rest of the Celtic-Punk scene send it onto us.

If you are new to the London Celtic Punks blog it is easy to subscribe / follow and never miss a post. Bands, promoters, record labels, venues send in any news to londoncelticpunks@hotmail.co.uk or via the Contact Us page.

ALBUM REVIEW: KEVIN O’DRISCOLL – ‘Operation Underdog’ (2021)

A solo album from Irish Folk ballad singer Kevin O’Driscoll that steps away from his usual material. A ‘Rock’ album that dips it’s toes into several other genres but always with ‘Folk’ at its heart. 

A solo album with a big difference in that Kevin O’Driscoll actually plays every instrument on this album and seeing as how the album veers from trad Folk right up to Punk then trust me that’s a lot of instruments to be playing. Kevin is a native of Tyrone in the north of Ireland and when not recording Kevin usually puts food on the table by touring the length and breadth of Ireland (with occasional visits to Scotland) as a Irish ballad singer performing Irish Folk songs and the ‘rebs’. He’s been doing this now for well over a decade and he was one of a handful of Irish singer/songwriters that took good advantage of the Covid lockdown to carry on performing if only virtually on Facebook. It was on one of these live streams that I first came across him and looking deeper I found some material that I thought warranted further investigation on behalf of the London Celtic Punks!

Operation Underdog kicks off with ‘Enemy’ and one of the best songs on the album. Chugging guitar and Kevin spits out the bitter and angry lyrics about friends falling out and the lengths we go to after. This is followed by ‘Favourite Drug’ and some of these songs have been around on social media for a while but this is the first time they have been compiled with new stuff into one album.

The topic of this song is unsurprisingly drugs. While Ireland does have a serious drug problem it is of course only the working class that die from overdoses. The song ties us in nicely to compare Kevin favourably with my own favourite Irish singer-songwriter Damien Dempsey. If you could imagine Damo singing for a rock band you’d not be a million miles away. Operation Underdog is undoubtedly a Rock album though ‘From Dublin To El Paso’, the most Irish song here, I’m sure is a firm fan favourite when Kev is doing the ballad sessions too. A song about the days when the Irish left Ireland for work and the places they went and what it is that defines us.

” There are two kinds of Irish. Those that are and those that wish they were”

From the earlier comparisons to Damo on ‘One Man Show’ Kev never sounds better. A great slow song about a friend who passed away. For all the differing styles here the album flows remarkably well thanks in no small part to Kevin’s fabulous vocals. Here on ‘For You I Die’  he takes a Mod-ish number that could also pass for some much bigger bands and the type of song they can only dream of writing these days. Catchy as it all is here and spilling over with emotion.

A great song and one of the best here. ‘Letting Go’ sees Kevin O’Driscoll the ballad singer coming out with a tender song that changes tempo half way through from ballad to something with more oompf and finally settles in a song that drifts along making you tap your toes and nod your chin. He follows this up with another album standout ‘Alcoholiday’ and some great guitar work in a catchy story of a man whose let the drink get the better of him and sees his life slipping away unless his does something about it.

Kevin turns up the rock again for ‘Fighting God’ and puts his voice to good use,. I could almost describe it as ‘grungey’! The mod-ish/ Monkeys/ Chiefs sound of ‘How Does It End?’, the ‘Gravity’ and ‘Watch Over Me’. The album ends with ‘Back From The Dead’ and a ballad about that other curse of the modern Irish – suicide. A long song about the horrors that such a act brings. If this album had one epic then this it.

So what to say? I’m sure to fans of Kevin’s ballad singing it will come as a bit of a surprise especially the more Punky bits! Kevin has a great voice and can certainly hit the notes whether he’s belting out one of them Punky songs or a ballad. Like I mentioned earlier some of these songs have been around a handful of years but it’s great to hear them in one place among like minded newer material. All the songs were recorded in various Dublin recording stations and it’s one hell of a thing to be able to produce a album of such quality when you’ve played every instrument. Cap off t’Kevin.

Buy Operation Underdog  Contact Kevin via Facebook

Contact Kevin O’Driscoll  Facebook  Soundcloud  Spotify