Seven Nations
“And Now it’s Come to This”
(Razor & Tie)
Top o’ tha mornin’ to ya, Shamus McDougald O’Finnigan here wit’ a new compact disc from Seven Nations; five o’ tha finest lads ta use tha bagpipes an’ ‘lectric guitars this side of Floggin’ Molly. O’, sure ‘nuf there be loads of bands usin’ traditional instruments to augment their substandard fare. This one, sure ‘nuf, inn’t one ‘o them. The music here is finer than a clear day on Lough Neagh an’ Kirk McLeod’s (a fine Scottish name) vocals are ever’ bit as pretty as young Shannon McSheenan from tha li’l village outside Edinburgh. An’ it’s no’ just myself that’s been impressed with Seven Nations great body o’ work, either. No, the Yanks across the pond hired them to play at both tha start o’ tha New York marathon and the Winter Olympics Torch Arrival Ceremony, sure ‘nuf. I gather it must be a wee bit rough to combine folk, rock, an’ the traditional instruments like fiddles an’ such, but I’d never know it from listenin’ to this release. The angry whine o’ the ‘pipes never sounded so urgent as it does when meshed with tha driving guitars on “Up to Me”, a rollickin’ good tune that would have had William Wallace and Longshanks cuttin’ a rug together for sure. Good times, laddie.
