a bit about
the lads

Tomás:

Rum Sodomy, and The Lash. The Pogues got me back into Irish music when I was rebelling against it.

O’ Brother, Where Art Thou? Soundtrack. It was the only CD in my parents car when we were younger that wasn't Irish music, and this was before the M1 Motorway, so every trip to my granda's in Armagh was over 2 hours. A lot of listening to that really sparked an interest in Americana for me.

Look Over The Wall See The Sky - John Francis Flynn. I like this because he is my friend and it’s an exceptional album

Aongus:

Our Love - Caribou

Fibs - Anna Meredith

Comb Your Hair and Cut It- Catherine McEvoy, Micheal O’Raghaillagh, Caoimhin O’Raghallaigh

Pádraig Óg:

Seize the Day- Damien Dempsey

Gusty’s Frolics- Seán Keane

Skinty Fia go Deo- Fontaine’s D.C.

Tomás:

Spancil Hill. It was the first time we reimagined a song and it worked out. We had tried it with other songs and they sounded OK, or now with the gift of hindsight, quite awful. But this one worked and gained traction and I'm proud of what we did with it.

Aongus:

Talk to Joe. The lyrics are hilarious. They really capture the laziness of the show’s creators - the caller’s impassioned gripes used as material to make money for them and RTE.

Pádraig Óg:

A Health to the Company. In comparison to the rest of the tracks on this album, this song completely alters the mood. After the madness and lunacy of the first 6 tracks, the listener is brought back to reality with this lovely duet between Tomás and special guest Méabh Mulligan.

Tomás: The Scratch calling me up on stage at the Point was an absolute trip

Aongus: Playing the 3 stage at Electric Picnic. Place was going mad - it was a bit surreal.

Pádraig Óg: The whole band performing as special guests for The Scratch’s encore set at their two sold out gigs in Vicar Street. The atmosphere in the room was off the charts.

Tomás: Sneaking into the Red Hot Chilli Peppers in the Phoenix Park when I was 14 is a stand-out anti-establishment moment for young me.

Aongus: Telling my Dad I thought I had heard every piece of music when I was 3. He didn’t even look up from the paper.

Pádraig Óg: My earliest musical memory is being dragged to my older brother’s tin whistle class as a toddler being made to sit in the room for the duration of the class. In hindsight, this tin whistle class definitely doubled as a baby sitting service for me. I have vague memories of tunes being played over and over while I sat in the corner playing with toys.