Nábac Gigs and News

2009-03-15T15:49:00.003Z

Hey all! Just back from a wee tour in Denmark with Ceol Concerts. Some great Irish music fans in Baltoppen- great to see a venue really supporting Irish folk and having such a fantastic following! Yes we did miss our flights over and it was a balls on my behalf but hopefully over time and penance I'll get over it and will joke about it in ten years time- until then lets not try bring it up

Big thanks to Eugene and Vego of Downtown Copenhagen for looking after us. Also thanks to Soren and Michael for company and tunes on the Wednesday session in Downtown Copenhagen.

We hope to make it back over next year again with hopefully a new album!

Until then toosen tak!
N

Upcoming Gigs - Derry and Dublin!

2008-10-10T13:04:00.000Z

Hope you might be able to catch us at two upcoming gigs this October. We'll be playing in the lovely Sandinos Music Venue (www.sandinos.com) on Water St, Derry on Sunday October 19^th- going to meet Ciarans homecrew and perhaps make a trip to Donegal for a session somewhere on the Saturday- any suggestions?? We'll also be playing at The Cherry Tree, Walkinstown, Dublin on Friday October 24^th. This concert is made possible by support from The Arts Council through its Deis scheme. Save €3 by joining musiclee & reserving on line at www.musiclee.com.

2008-08-26T10:54:00.001Z

Hello to all,
Just wanted to say thanks to everyone who came to the gig in club Arus na Gael last Thurday..we had a great night and hope you did too!
We'll keep you posted about forthcoming gigs... Go raibh maigh agat aris!
Liz xx

2008-08-18T13:11:00.002Z

Nábac are to be filmed by RTE this Friday playing a session at the Fleadh Cheoil na hEireann. The fleadh runs this year in Tullamore, Co Offaly from the 17^th to the 24^th of August. We’ll be playing somewhere in Tullamore amongst the madness at around 9pm…just lookout for the film crew!
Clip will be played on RTE's Fleadh program in the new year. Will let you know when to set the videos!

2008-08-18T13:10:00.002Z

Hello to all!
Just to let you know that Nabac will be playing in Galway on the 21st of August in Arus na Gael, Dominic Street. Doors around 9ish, Admission fee to be confirmed.
Gaeilge agus Failte.. Hope to see a few there!
Slan,
Liz

2008-07-17T16:32:00.002Z

Hello all!

Well, we're safely returned from the Alps, sunburned, freckled and weary. Back home now, where we're enjoying the festivities in Galway --the arts festival is in full swing, so it's an opportune time for spontaneous day-long sessions!

Big thanks to all the people who came to the gigs in Austria over the last few weeks; we were really happy to have such wonderful audiences and we hope to be back again very shortly!
And thanks to everyone who made Ciaran's birthday so special...actually, has anyone seen Ciaran? We seem to have misplaced him on the trip home. If anyone sees him wandering around the continent, please post him home.

Ok so, back to work! Keep an eye out for upcoming Irish gigs in October.

Slan, Liz xx

2008-07-09T12:02:00.001Z

Nabac are currently touring with Weltenklang Promotions in Austria! For gig listings go to Gigs and News from homepage.

All the gigs have been great and we're enjoying the fine Summer weather here. We've gone swimming four times and counting! Swimming in lakes is a fresh change to dips in Salthill, Galway Bay. Good schnitzel and heavenily mountain views as we drive to Finkenstein!

We're back in Ireland on Sunday. We then go about planning for our Irish tour in October and will be playing in Galway in August.

More posts to come re Austria with hopefully some photos soon!

Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless handheld

2008-04-13T22:09:00.003Z

Hey all,

Good News - Siar Anoir got reviewed in this issue of Hot Press Magazine-

Nábac - Siar Anoir (Independant Release)...........4/5 Stars
Siar Anoir ("West of East") is the debut album from one of the most promising young Irish bands I've come across in recent times. Consisting of Noriana Kennedy (vocals and tinwhistle), Paddy Kennedy (bodhrán, percussion, flute, kalimba) , James Ryan (mandola, guitar, banjo), Liz Coleman (fiddle) and Ciarán O'Donghaile (flute, whistles, uileann pipes), Nábac emerged two years ago from a vibrant Galway trad scene and has already toured intensively and internationally - hence the cosmopolitian nature of their material which ranges from Danish and Swedish tunes to the Hungarian Roma song "Cigany Himnusz" and "Ang Tangi Kong Pagibig", an evocative romantic ballad learned from Noriana and Paddys Filipino mother.
Sarah McQuaid Hot Press Magazine (April 23rd 2008)

2008-03-18T22:05:00.003Z

Hey All,

Just back from Germany after a great 3 week tour with Irish Spring. Many thanks to all the promoters, Kristina, Rainer and of course the great company of Edel Fox and Ronan Flaherty, Eithne Ni Chathain and Nuala Kennedy, Luke Daniels, Mario Caribe and Troy McGilvery!

See below for video summary of the show we performed in 18 venues all over Germany.

Irish Spring Video

Return to Nabac Homepage

2008-03-18T21:47:00.001Z

Danish-Irish Society Review of Siar Anoir

Galway based Nábac have recently released their debut cd Siar Anoir. I have had the good fortune of hearing the band live on several occasions and have been waiting for this cd. I must say I’m not at all disappointed – in fact this is a great cd.
From the first track, which consists of two Scandinavian tunes to the last track, which consists of proper Irish reels, it’s a pure pleasure to listen to.
The very first tune is Femspring, a tune made famous (in my universe, at least) by the Danish/Irish trad./folk/jazz band ULC. I would have sworn Nabác had their version from them, but according to the sleeve notes, it must have made at least one detour through the hands and strings of Paul Kelly. Still it’s a great tune and a brave way of starting off an Irish cd.

Nábac is no doubt an “Irish” band, but they range wider than just pure Irish traditional music. On the cd we also find music from the Philippines, Cape Breton, America and a couple of own compositions, which all sound wonderful in the skilled hands and instruments of the five young musicians.
Normally it takes a lot from a singer for me to praise her/him, so here’s kudos to Noriana Kennedy, whose singing really does something for me, whether she sings in English, Filipino or Hungarian (sic!).
I’m so much of a purist that I think the only percussive instrument in Irish music should be the bodhrán, but admittedly Paddy Kennedy’s use of the cajon actually suits their music. Other instruments include flute, whistles, uilleann pipes, fiddle, banjo, guitar, mandola etc.
It is hard to believe that these musicians are not all playing full-time and I can see a problem in the future, when the band gets as “big” as it deserves, and some band members will have to choose between playing full-time and pursuing their scientific careers. Meanwhile I’ll just lean back and enjoy the brilliant music of Nabác. (Mich)
RRCD 001

2008-01-02T17:34:00.000Z

Dublin CD Launch - December 12th, The Village, Wexford St,

2007-12-04T18:28:00.000Z

Galway First Article on Nábac Galway CD launch - By Kernan Andrews
Dec 3 2007

No Problem for Nábac as they launch debut album in The Crane

Four Dubliners and a Derryman - through accident, design, and other strange adventures - found themselves in Galway city, and decided it would be a good idea to make the city the HQ for their band.

The Galway based trad and folk band Nábac will launch their debut album Siar Anoir with a gig in The Crane Bar, Sea Road, on Thursday December 13 at 9pm.
The band are Liz Coleman (fiddle, mandolin, and mandola), Ciaran O’Dongaile (uileann pipes, flute, and whistles), James Ryan (mandola, guitar, and banjo), Noriana Kennedy (vocals, whistles, guitar), and Paddy Kennedy (bodhrán, cajon, flute, and percussion). So why base themselves in Galway?

“Galway is the best place for trad music,” Noriana explains as I sit with her and Liz for the interview on a Wednesday evening, “ and there’s also a great community of musicians here and plenty of sessions.”
Galway - or rather a couple of elderly Galwegians - helped the band come up with their name.

“Paddy was always fond of the phrase,” explains Liz, “and when he and James went sailing one summer and there were these two old men from Connemara they met who kept saying ‘Ná bac, ná bac!’. Although Ciaran says it means “Don’t mind it” for the band it means ‘No problem’ and that sums up our attitude. We’re positive and we’ll have a go.”

For the past two years, both in Galway and abroad, Nábac have been gigging heavily and building up a reputation as a good live act with a (much needed) young, fresh, and vibrant take on Irish traditional music. It’s culminated in their debut Siar Anoir, which was produced by the band and Seamie O’Dowd.
So for those still unfamiliar with Nábac, what can they expect from the album and next week’s Crane gig?

“I don’t know what the purists would call it but we feel it’s a modern approach to Irish trad,” says Noriana. “It’s Irish music to start with and then we blend it with folk music from other parts of the world.”

“We’ve got influences from many different places,” says Liz. “We listened to trad growing up but we also play American and Scandinavian folk and gypsy music. Noriana and Paddy’s mother is from the Philippines so that influence is there too on the Filipino song ‘Ang Tangi Kong Pagibig’. We’re also into soul and reggae.”

In a time when trad music seems to be stuck in a rut, Siar Anoir is a welcome release. It avoids the sickly-slick overproduction of some and the musically rigid purist hell that affects other releases. With Nábac, they just play, enjoy themselves while playing it, and transmit that enjoyment of Irish trad to the listener. They’ve certainly been achieving that abroad.

“It’s amazing the enthusiasm for Irish music that we’ve seen in Italy and Sweden,” says Noriana. “It’s unbelievable and it always surprises us.”
Regular tours on the Continent have also produced their fair share of bizarre moments for Nábac.

“We had just played a show in Spain and we were about to do a festival in Italy.” says Noriana. We arrived in Italy and Ciaran opens his pipe case and finds part of it was missing. ‘Where did you last see it?’ we were asking him. ‘It was in a park,” he said. In a park. What park? The park might have been back in Spain!
“‘What are you going to do?’ we asked so we asked the owner of the hotel we were staying in to give us a bit of the garden hose. So Ciaran sticks the top of the hose onto his pipes and there he is on stage with this big yellow plastic thing sticking out of the top of his pipes. It made a few squeaks at first but he moved it around and turned out fine.”

Nábac have a good sense of humour and certainly don’t take themselves too seriously. The band profiles on www.nabacmuisc.com are proof of that. Noriana’s entry reads: “After lengthy board meetings, Nábac Inc management decided it would be in our commercial interest to have the band fronted by a good-looking female.”
“That’s bulls**t! My brother wrote that!” says Noriana, laughing with acute embarrassment. “What he wrote originally just slagged me off so I asked him if he could just write something nice. ‘I can’t do it,’ he said. ‘It doesn’t come naturally’.”

So now that the album is coming out, what are Nábac’s immediate plans?
“We’ve more tours coming up and next year is looking busy,” says Liz. “We are going to Denmark before Christmas and then Germany for three weeks.”
“That will be our first experience of ‘slogging touring’ in a van and no doubt we’ll be back in Italy,” says Noriana. “Liz’s PhD will have to go on hold as will my career as an environmental scientist. I think we’ll have to take a sabbatical.”

For tickets contact The Crane on 091 - 587419 or go to www.thecranebar.com

2007-04-27T17:27:00.000Z

Rathcairn Co Meath

Hey All,
All going good here with us! Liz is just about to start her physics finals in college so good with that Liz. We've keeping a low profile lately as we're recording an album at the moment. Hopefully all going well we'll have something to show you by mid summer! Its going great. Seamie O'Dowd is producing it so expect plenty of heavenily touches from himself also.

We were in Denmark last November and I took a load of great photos and put a stunning photobucket slide show together but it wont work!!! GRR!!! I'll get back to it. Thanks a million to everyone over there who made the tour such a great one. We're heading back for more in August. To the left is a picture taken of the Sean nós dance off at a gig in Rathcairn, Co Meath! We had a brilliant night! We hope to make it back soon please Gearoid! We'll be arranging a number of Irish gigs for June. I will keep you posted! Anyone who hasnt, send an email with nabac as the subject to info@nabacmusic.com and I'll add you to the mail listing for upcoming gigs.

Talk soon!
Noriana

Return to Nabac website homepage

2007-01-03T18:08:00.000Z

The Boom Boom Room Christmas Gig
December 22nd
Thanks to everyone who made it to fill the house of the Boom Boom Room on December 23rd. Special thanks to Gill, Nina and Jimmy who did the door! Not forgetting Roberto and Lynette for their brief but much appreciated contributions to the performance! Apologies to poor directions and to anyone who ended up Parnell Mooneys by accident singing Red Red Wine on the karaoke machine...we were next door all the time. Hope you had a good one... We had a great gig and it was all recorded so we may upload a few tracks from the gig onto our myspace site. In the meantime Happy New Year to you all! We'll might be a bit quiet for the month as we're hoping to get a good bit of recording done at this time of the year! We intend on doing a gig in the Cobblestone in February. Will let you know of the details.

To return to Nábac homepage click www.nabacmusic.com

2006-11-16T18:11:00.000Z

The Crane Bar Listeners Club

The Small Crane, Galway
Wed Nov 22nd- Doors 9pm -Entry €10 or €8 for members
Atlast we return to play at the lovely newly painted Crane Bar, Galway. Its one of our favourite venues- its only 20 minutes from our house and within the walls of one of our favourite pubs. The audiences are always well behaved and being mostly our friends, always gives us a good clap! The shush police are out to get ya to. Congrats to Mick on the new website http://www.thecranebar.com/. We hope you can make it down for this one!

2006-11-16T17:51:00.000Z

Irish Festival in Denmark

Our first trip to Copenhagen as Nábac took place on November 5th to perform as part of the Danish Irish Music Festival. Denmark has a cosy traditional Irish community and the venue, in the old 3 storey house in the heart of Copenhagen. Nábac performed in the festival along with a fantastic lineup including Ashplant, Tim Heidy, At First Light and Four Men and a Dog. The rest of the night was a blur with white wine, loads of music, chorizo baps and trying to herd in a taxi off the road to take us to our hotel!

Eugene Graham (Ceol Concerts) was looking after us for the tour. You should try his vegetable soup but careful, Nábac were windy for the night after just one bowl.

Eugenes Vegetable Soup Recipe,

perfect to feed many hungry mouths cheaply:

Basically what he said was....

Sweat out chopped vegetables on a hot pan in shallow water - broccoli, cauliflower, onion, carrots
Pour in your stock
Boil vegetables until soft

Pour in cream
Pour in some white wine
Add salt and ground black pepper
BLEND and simmer and serve up hot