Angus Richardson and his band Brother added a unique, world-music sound to their Celtic base. Photos by Brian Carney.
Saturday’s misty weather — not the sun-drenched end-of-summer variety — provided the perfect backdrop for this year’s , held in Estes Park over the weekend. Now in its 33rd year, the party always attracts Scottish clans worldwide, and even more people who simply enjoy being in proximity to the Highlands atmosphere.
That atmosphere featured scads of pipes, drums and kilts, impossible curls on women and girls performing impossible footwork, “knights” jousting in and out of armor, and men throwing 16-foot-tall cabers (basically tree trunks) and 20-pound hammers. All of this was awash in the many flavors of whiskey, beer and traditional Highlands cuisine (including an interesting item called a “Haggis-Pup,” sort of a haggis-infused sausage. I have to admit, I didn’t have the courage to try it).
Weaving ubiquitously through all of it was the music. From so many pipers practicing simultaneously (a cacophony that everyone should experience), to the competing full bands on the field, to the large and small musician’s tents hosting performances with endless combinations of Celtic folk and rock, the music was as omnipresent as the cold gray that enveloped the entire festival. All of the tents seemed to breathe occupants, filling as the rains increased, and shrinking — albeit only lightly — whenever the sun attempted to break through.
A few Celtic rock groups stood out from their surroundings, Hadrian’s Wall, Angus Mohr and Brother, and all three gathered Saturday night for the “Celtic Rock Concert” in the Reusch Auditorium at the YMCA. While all three bands share strong Celtic roots, each has developed their own personality and added their own brand of rock to the mix.
Hadrian’s Wall, the most traditional of the three, mixed a strong blend of blues and pop-rock with Celtic folk, and gave their audiences reason to dance. This weekend the four-piece welcomed Neil Anderson, one of North America’s most creative pipers, to the group. The collaboration resulted in an edgy, stronger music than Hadrian’s Wall has produced on record.
Angus Mohr, a Denver-based four piece, featured a more hard-rock sound focused around traditional Celtic rhythms and pipes. They seemed to channel as much Iron Maiden and Led Zeppelin as Scottish-Irish chants, and the audiences loved it.
The most original music came from Brother, a trio that featured a combination of didgeridoo and bagpipes interlaced with both aboriginal and Celtic rhythms, thick rock guitar and vocals. With Angus Richardson on vocals, pipes and guitar, Dave Allen on percussion and Drew Reid on didgeridoo and keys, Brother added a unique, world-music sound to their Celtic base.
The result was a rock sound that fell somewhere between New Model Army and Midnight Oil, with a strong, tribal thread that brought it all together. Their show was highlighted often as Richardson swung his guitar back behind his back, and took up the pipes mid-measure. Then, just as quickly, he swung the guitar back around front, again and again, never missing a beat.
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Billy Thieme is a Denver-based writer, an old-school punk and a huge follower of Denver’s vibrant local music scene. Follow Billy’s explorations at , and his giglist at .
is a Denver photographer and a regular contributor to Reverb.
More photos:
Brother
Hadrian’s Wall
Angus Mohr
