duggup

Solas are another Celtic-music quintet that are helping keep the “tradition” alive. They fired up around 1994 and released their debut CD about two years later.Like all bands, over the years members have left and been replaced, helping to extend and refine their music

Today Solas is anchored by founders Seamus Egan, who plays flute, tenor banjo, mandolin, whistle, guitar and bodhran, and fiddler Winifred Horan. Mick McAuley from Kilkenny plays accordion and concertina; Eamon McElholm from Tyrone plays guitar and keyboards. Deirdre Scanlan is the band’s latest vocal discovery, gorgeously filling the role carved out by founding vocalist Karan Casey.

Since its birth in 1996, Solas has been loudly proclaimed as the most popular, influential, and exciting Celtic band to ever emerge from the United States. Even before the release of its first Shanachie CD, the Boston Herald trumpeted the quartet as “the first truly great Irish band to arise from America and the Irish Echo ranked Solas among the “most exciting bands anywhere in the world.”

It took me a long time to get my head around these guys, their music (sometimes I can be a bit slow) but I recently discovered that I had downloaded a live set of by Solas, The band performed a concert from WXPN and World Cafe Live in Philadelphia April 2007. NPR Music: WXPN -Solas in Concert and it’s a ripper. Their MySpace site only has one piece called “Pastures Of Plenty” but fortunately it’s a live recording from Celtic Connections.

Worth a listen.

Solas’ websites are at www.solasmusic.com/ or www.myspace.com/solasmyspacemusic

thatch is fascinated by guitars, music, guitars, production, silly noises, guitars and used to be a musician. Did I mention the thing about the guitars?
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