Entertainment
Ambitious Delorentos make Seapoint debut
Groove Tube with Jimi McDonnell
Kieran McGuinness and Rónán Yourell from Delorentos are in ebullient spirits as they sit down with the Groove Tube, hot on the heels of an interview with Galway Bay FM.
Delorentos’ fourth album Night Becomes Light was released last October and their stellar singles Show Me Love and Forget The Numbers have been getting loads of airplay. This has led to an increase in their already loyal fanbase, which is good news as the quartet will play Seapoint on Saturday, April 25.
“If an album is a life cycle, you’re getting into teenage years now,” says co-lead singer Kieran McGuinness about where the group is at present. “You know a bit about the music world, but you’re still full of naivety, but excited to go and do new stuff.”
This gig in Galway and one Cork’s Savoy mark their biggest shows outside of Dublin to date.
“We’ve expanded the sound from the stage,” says Kieran. “Underneath Níal [Conlon’s] bass he’s replicated this keyboard sound. So he’s got this 1970s deep noise under what he’s playing. And we’ve replicated guitar parts with piano parts that play alongside them.”
But if the band are not actually playing these instruments live, is that not kind of cheating?
“No, not at all,” says Kieran. “It doesn’t exist if we don’t play. It’s using effects and technology, we’re learning new stuff. And we want to play around with the venues we’re playing.”
A better sounding Delorentos? That’s going to make for a hell of a live show. This is an ambitious band who deserve the success they’re having, and won’t shy away from more.
“We’ve always wanted to play to as many people as we can; it’s not something that we were ever afraid of or we didn’t want,” says Rónán. “We’ve had time to focus on these gigs, and produce something that’s challenging for ourselves and hopefully great craic for the audience.”
Delorentos are determined to aim high while staying true to their up-tempo melodic sound and not writing anodyne music for the masses.
“We’ll take as many [fans] as you like, as long as we don’t have to sacrifice our depth and hopefully the things that make us good,” says Kieran.
“We wouldn’t be doing this just to make soundtracks for people’s afternoon barbecues,” says Rónán. “It’s got to expressive of what’s going on around us. That’s why I do it.”
All four members of Delorentos are songwriters – even the drummer! Joking aside, the band’s sticks-man Ross McCormick did write Valleys Where The Rivers Run, one of the albums most stirring moments.
“For a song to go on an album, the four of us have to like it and connect with it,” says Kieran. “There’s one song that didn’t go on that I thought was amazing. It wasn’t one of mine, but the four of us didn’t agree on it.”
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
Folk duo Niall Teague and Pádraic Joyce are launching their new album What Will We Be, a blend of folk, Americana and acoustic music, this Friday, May 19, at 8pm in An Taibhdhearc.
The success of their well-received 2020 release Taobh le Taobh, as well as recent successes at the Pan Celtic and Oireachtas Song Contests, spurred the duo on to record this new album which represents many years of collaboration and musical development.
It features Niall and Pádraic on vocals, harmonies, and acoustic guitars, Maidhc Ó hÉanaigh on double bass and Neil Fitzgibbon on fiddle. The catchy title track, What Will We Be, features contributions from percussionist Jim Higgins (The Stunning, Christy Moore, Paul Brady) and haunting, driving melodies on vocals, guitar, and fiddle.
Themes of love and hope are woven through Come Away with Me which features interplay between piano and fiddle as well as rich vocal harmonies.
People, places, and broken dreams are celebrated and lamented on Martin and Tom, Guitar Gold, Memories of You and Achill Island. The influence of David Henry Thoreau’s novel Walden features on the tracks Simple and Wise and Walden, with the beauty of nature, escape and simple pleasures at their core.
The album moves from minimalistic folk ballads such as Galway Ghost to swirling, string-laden arrangements on the song Neptune, both of which are influenced by maritime tales from Galway. Much of the work on this album was supported by the Arts Council, including work with musical arranger Eoin Corcoran and the string ensemble Treo.
The album will be launched this Friday, May 19, at 8pm in an Taibhdhearc. Tickets €22, plus booking fee at Eventbrite.ie.
Dunmore is the place to be this weekend for lovers of traditional music, as the Galway County Fleadh will take place there from this Friday, May 19, to Sunday, May 23.
It is 10 years since Dunmore last hosted a fleadh and the local Comhaltas branch, which has re-formed since Covid, is looking forward to facilitating this gathering of music, song, dance and craic.
The official Opening Concert will take place in Dunmore Town Hall this Friday at 8pm with the acclaimed Mulcahy family from Limerick. Mick, Louise and Michelle are well known throughout the country, thanks to their live performances, television appearances and numerous CDs. They were the winners of the TG4 Gradam Ceoil Grúpa Ceoil Award for 2023. Tickets for their concert can be purchased on the door and a great night of music is promised.
Two days of competitions will kick off this Saturday at the town’s Community School, with more than 1,500 competitors taking part. Participants will be hoping to qualify for the Connacht Fleadh 2023, which will be held in Ballina, County Mayo, from June 23 to July 2.
Competitions for those aged Under 10, Under 12 and Under 15 will be held in a large variety of instruments on Saturday, as well as in singing and Comhrá Gaeilge. Sunday’s competitions will be for the Under 18 and Over 18 ages groups, as well as in dancing.
On both days a large entry is expected for Grúpaí Cheoil and Céilí Band competitions across all age groups.
Seventeen Comhaltas branches from across Galway will have participants in this weekend’s competitions, which will result in a large number of visitors to the Dunmore area.
Members of the public are welcome to attend the competitions, which offer a great opportunity to hear and see the talent on display. There will be sessions in local pubs over the weekend as well and everybody is welcome to attend these.
For more information on the County Fleadh, go to www.galwaycomhaltas.ie.
Music for Galway’s concert with renowned Swiss pianist Cédric Pescia which had been due to take place on April 27 but which had to be deferred, will now take place next Tuesday, May 23, at 8pm, in the Emily Anderson Concert Hall at the University of Galway.
This concert of German classics with Bach at its core, will brings the Bach element of Music for Galway’s 41st season to an end.
This world-class pianist who won the famous Gina Bachauer International Artists Piano Competition, has a repertoire that spans many eras from baroque to contemporary and he is widely known for his elaborate programmes. Cédric Pescia describes music as ‘language and movement at the same time’.
Audiences will have a chance to experience his soft, clear touch as he performs a programme for solo piano that will include classics such as Schumann’s popular Waldszenen (Forest Scenes), a suite of nine short pieces, and the penultimate of Beethoven’s piano sonatas, No. 31. These pieces will be interspersed with French Suites by Bach.
■ Ticket for Cédric Pescia’s concert are available at www.musicforgalway.ie, or by phone 091 705962 and on the door on the night. They cost €20/€18. The price for fulltime students of all ages is €6 while MfG Friends can avail of the friends’ rate of €16.
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