An exciting quintet of young Scottish Gaelic speakers are set to take the music scene by storm as they release their first album on February 25th.
Dlù (pronounced dloo, as in blue) are determined to champion their home language and their new album Moch shows off the best of Gaelic language and culture and celebrates the generations who are determined to keep it going.
Released by Arch Music and followed by a launch gig at Glasgow’s Oran Mor, the following night, the album is a joy to listen to.
The four founding members – Moilidh NicGriogair, Zach Ronan, Aidan Spiers and Andrew Grossart – first met at Sgoil Ghàidhlig Ghlaschu, Glasgow’s, and the country’s first all-Gaelic school. They were joined by Aiden’s college mate, Jack Dorrian on bass and to help them on their debut album, guest vocalist Joseph McCluskey.
And what you have got, is a thoughtful and powerful collection of songs, which will have you whirling round the room and having a right good jig!
The band are among a large community of Glasgow Gaels (Gaelic speakers) who have grown up with the language and culture in a city which first embraced the traditional tongue when families from the Highlands and Islands moved south in the 1970s.
Dlù, which means closeness, is an apt name for the band, whose musical talents have brought them together and resulted in the bold and all inclusive performance.
Their musical weave is shown by the inter-disciplinary nature of their songs, with the band boasting a drummer who learned tunes on the box from his piper father, to a fiddler who loves to sing.
This allows for a rhythmic drive to the melody and intricate and delicate handling of a rhythm in perfect understanding of the movement of the tune.
In the past, being a Gaelic speaker was rare, but the new breed of Gaels, are confident and proud to promote their language and culture and this album is testament to that love for their roots.
To watch an atmospheric new video for the second single Bràighe Loch Iall, you can check it out on YouTube below, and the album is available to buy via www.arcmusic.co.uk
Author Bio:
Rebecca Hay is an experienced travel writer and member of The British Guild of Travel Writers. Follow her adventures with her family on Twitter and Instagram @emojiadventurer and on Facebook via EmojiAdventurers2.
Photographs courtesy of Dlù
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