Old Ireland meets new Ireland!
"As you call into the forest, so it sounds out of it" is a good old proverb. Proverbs are always good for reflecting on our world. Let's try this in relation to the music of the young Irish neo-folk band BILLOW WOOD.
The Irish tradition can be compared to a forest that has grown over centuries. It has deep roots and rests within itself. Thanks to young bands like BILLOW WOOD, however, it is not standing still, but growing in all directions. This keeps it fresh, lively and interesting for the audience. BILLOW WOOD not only love tradition, but also innovation. They write the majority of their songs themselves, but they interpret them on traditional instruments such as harp, fiddle, tin whistle, bodhrán, accordion and guitar. This means that new musical ideas still have a connection to the sound familiar from Irish folk. But the content of the songs is also oriented towards today's Ireland and what is currently on the minds of young Irish people. A purely traditional Irish folk band will unfortunately never have a hit thanks to our encrusted media landscape, but singer/songwriters of the caliber of BILLOW WOOD can make it.
Brid, Ciara, Mark O'Donnell and Harry Lawler all come from the north-west county of Mayo. They are not only virtuoso musicians, but also harmonize wonderfully with their vocals. Rarely have we heard such beautiful and smooth polyphony. The individual voices have such great charisma and timbre that each of them could also be the frontman or frontwoman of a top band. What they have in common is that they enjoy what they do and have a mischievous streak in their necks. BILLOW WOOD performances are a very exuberant and funny affair. Not only do they have an outstanding stage presence, they can also shake the good old jigs and reels out of their sleeves and get the fans clapping along.
BILLOW WOOD" clearly sounds like "BILLOW WOOD".These songs, arrangements and voices are unique. They have a partly pop, partly indie undertone. Due to the traditional instruments, they are best described as "Neo Folk from the West of Ireland". Their breakthrough in Germany and Austria came in March 2019, when they were invited to the Irish Heartbeat tour to play with established colleagues. In the end, they were the big discovery. Their debut album "the life we wanted" was even broadcast several times by formatted stations such as SWR 1 and Deutschland Radio also rolled out the red carpet for the neo-folkers. The second album is expected at the end of 2019.
Mark O'Donnell
Emily Donoghue
Harry Lawlor
Aodan Cronin
Andrew Dempsey