Clannad 10/3/2013

Brian Kennedy was the support act. I had never heard of him although he has had a long career and I must have seen him at some point when he was in Van Morrison's band. He seemed a lttle nervous and the sound was a bit harsh at first but he sang a lament about four tracks in and that worked and the last acapello track was also good and showed that he is an accomplished singer. Clannad came on as a seven piece with the five original members augmented by a drummer (Jed Lynch) and a keyboards player (Ian Parker). From the start the major impression was of the vocal soundscape created by Clannad, Moya Brennan's classic Irish folk voice mostly in the lead and the four male voices mostly harmonising and backing her. But it was a lot more than that as they were all good instrumentalists as were the two additional members of the touring band. I particularly liked Jed Lynch's driving but sensitive drumming, Ciaran Brennan's bass (and keyboards)and Moya's Irish harp playing. In fact one of the highlights for me was a harp tune from the 18th Century which morphed into a slip jig and much of the set was either traditional or at least traditional in feel. Clannad do have a fusion vibe about them though on top of this deeply gaelic feel. That is why they get picked for film and TV music I guess. On that front the song 'I will find you' from 'Last of the Mohicans' was a powerful, atmospheric piece (as indeed it is in the film). Other highlights for me were a song about some ancient constructions in Ireland and pretty much anything written or arranged by Ciaran including an arrangement of an old song featuring seaweed. I also enjoyed the more poppy 'Closer to your heart' and also 'In a Lifetime' with Brian Kennedy reprising the Bono vocal. In fact I enjoyed the whole gig immensely. This was a band drawing on a rich musical tradition, doing it with professionalism and feeling and adding something modern to it as well.