I mentioned in my previous article I was going to cover Irish satirical trad band Ispíní Na Héireann in more depth, and here we are. Last Thursday (15th) I saw them in London, while they were opening for fellow Irish band The Scratch. Because both bands were phenomenal, I will split this article into segments. One thing I will say before we dive in, is both of these bands are great live. When you listen to them on Spotify (or whatever your chosen media player), times the intensity by five or so. While both still enjoyable at home, they are a different beast in person.
Underworld in Camden is a great venue; dark, big and in the heart of Camden High Street, so easy to continue your night after the show. The drinks were unsurprisingly very expensive. The Guinness was expensive and also undrinkable, but somehow still better than the lager.
However I am not here to review the bar at the Underworld so let’s move on. It was bitingly cold outside, the snow still hanging around like a guest who’s stayed too long at your house after a party. The queue for the cloakroom was longer than the queue for Noah’s ark, and we weren’t allowed to line up two by two. Me and my jumper, gloves, other jumper and heavy leather jacket decided we would be fine keeping the layers on. What a mistake that was, I realised later.
Ispíní Na Héireann
Ispíní Na Héireann means ‘Sausages of Ireland’; the lead vocalist is the bear of a man Tomás Mulligan, whose raspy, Tom Waits-meets Ronnie Drew voice brings a rock star element to the group. The band has all the instruments you’d expect in a trad band: guitar, banjo, Bodhrán (a type of drum), and the fiddle. The fiddle player changes between a few people. In the Underworld gig Tomás’ sister Síomha was on the strings, and she captivated London as she has already done to all of Ireland. When she isn’t around her sister Méabh takes over, who is also great. Some families just take all the talent. Ispíní’s ability to be so much more intense live is particularly true of tracks like ‘Hard Working Men’, which sails into your ears in a balladic, happy clappy kind of way if you are listening at home. Live, Bodhrán player Kinko Ceallaigh smashes a beat down like we are all marching into battle, and Tomás Mulligan belts out the lyrics so you feel your heart pumping in your chest. Just before leaving us they said they’d be with us for the next gig, and they believed The Scratch were ‘the best live band on any island in the part of Western Europe…including the Isle of Man.’ I have to say I did not fully understand what was about to happen.
The Scratch
The Scratch came out of previous group Red Enemy, and The Scratch have continued in a similar vein, with the key difference that they are acoustic rather than electric. Somehow they have taken their heavy metal influences with them to the trad game despite the lack of electricity. They haven’t forgotten how to have fun doing it either – check out their music video for their rendition of Cúnla for clarification.
I stood at the front row, Ispíní now standing alongside us as promised, ready for The Scratch. Someone asked if I’d seen them before. I said I hadn’t. He winked at me, said I’d want to get rid of that, motioning to the watery Guinness I’d just spent twenty minutes and about twenty pounds fighting for. Before I could ask what he meant, The Scratch kicked into gear with ‘Pull Your Jocks Up’. Jordan O’Leary’s voice, which sings out quite melodic over my headphones instead rang out like an earthquake. The pint hit the ceiling before I knew where I was, and the next two hours was a blur of mosh pitting and head banging.
Just playing the fine line between trad, heavy metal, and rock, the band managed to keep everyone happy – from the topless moshers to the couples at the back holding hands. To say they are the best live band in Ireland seems to me like an understatement. They are playing in January in Dublin and will be back over in the UK in the next year, and I recommend anyone and everyone who wants to remember how good live music can be to head over to see them. Afters and rebel songs Both bands’ ability to interact with the audience was outstanding. They also clearly get on very well with each other, and their relationship works well as touring partners. Ispíní had the craic back and forth with the crowd throughout, making us feel included. At one point someone lost their hat and the band stopped until the search was complete and the lad had his cap back. Then the carnage continued. At one point The Scratch took a member of the audience up to sing a song then threw him off for a crowd surf. The Scratch were opening cans of beer and spraying them over the crowd to cool us down, mid gig. Ispíní stormed the stage for The Scratch’s encore, topless (not Síomha), psyching up an already ecstatic crowd. The night ended with my group and several others we met at the gig heading back to someone’s house to drown ourselves in alcohol and rebel tunes, still buzzing from the explosive concert. Although Ispíní and the Scratch felt like very different concerts they paired well together, the mix of heavy music, banter, lyricism and traditional Irish music is a whirlwind of a night out, and a fantastic demonstration that live music when done properly, cannot be beaten. Ispíní are yet to be signed, but a band that good at performing live can only be headed for good things.
Photo: Underworld, London
