Hello! This is my first (and hopefully my last) attempt at making an "Irish punk" song. It’s a spirited arrangement of a traditional Irish reel called The Sligo Maid.
To tell you the truth, I was completely freaking out when I got this genre assignment, because Irish punk is pretty much as far away as you can possibly get from the kind of music I normally make. (I actually watched the livestream with a few friends from the BMS community, and when my genre assignment was revealed, everyone burst into laughter 😭).
However, through sheer luck, one of my best friends (Chansey) happens to be an active working violinist who specialises in Irish and Scottish traditional music! I ended up relying on her guidance a great deal at every step, from researching the genre’s conventions to working out the details of the arrangement, and I owe her a huge debt of gratitude. After listening to a bunch of different Irish punk bands, I realised that the genre was more diverse than I thought! Ultimately, we decided to follow in the footsteps of bands like the Mary Wallopers and the Dubliners by making an upbeat, “punkified” version of a traditional Irish folk song. It was Chansey who introduced me to “The Sligo Maid”, and I’m really pleased to be able to feature her violin playing in the song!
I also feel very lucky to have my very talented friend Big Zak (who is active in the local punk scene) play electric guitar and drums in the second half of the song, to really help cement the punk atmosphere. Ultimately, the song was a real community effort, but I’m pleased with how it came out. I’m surprised how good the real violin, guitar, and drums sound playing alongside my MIDI tin whistle, accordion, bass, and banjo!
Finally, thank you to Malev for the gorgeous and playful BGI!
I hope you enjoy playing it.
Hello! This is my first (and hopefully my last) attempt at making an "Irish punk" song. It’s a spirited arrangement of a traditional Irish reel called The Sligo Maid. To tell you the truth, I was completely freaking out when I got this genre assignment, because Irish punk is pretty much as far away as you can possibly get from the kind of music I normally make. (I actually watched the livestream with a few friends from the BMS community, and when my genre assignment was revealed, everyone burst into laughter 😭). However, through sheer luck, one of my best friends (Chansey) happens to be an active working violinist who specialises in Irish and Scottish traditional music! I ended up relying on her guidance a great deal at every step, from researching the genre’s conventions to working out the details of the arrangement, and I owe her a huge debt of gratitude. After listening to a bunch of different Irish punk bands, I realised that the genre was more diverse than I thought! Ultimately, we decided to follow in the footsteps of bands like the Mary Wallopers and the Dubliners by making an upbeat, “punkified” version of a traditional Irish folk song. It was Chansey who introduced me to “The Sligo Maid”, and I’m really pleased to be able to feature her violin playing in the song! I also feel very lucky to have my very talented friend Big Zak (who is active in the local punk scene) play electric guitar and drums in the second half of the song, to really help cement the punk atmosphere. Ultimately, the song was a real community effort, but I’m pleased with how it came out. I’m surprised how good the real violin, guitar, and drums sound playing alongside my MIDI tin whistle, accordion, bass, and banjo! Finally, thank you to Malev for the gorgeous and playful BGI! I hope you enjoy playing it.