Scannal - 'Sciodar'

SCANNAL
Sciodar
7 Tracks, 40 Minutes, www.scannal.com

Scannal, a Kerry based duo of Peter Staunton (box) and Bréanainn ó Beaglaoich (guitar), takes us for a night out in Dingle on this seven track recording. Now seven tracks might not seem a lot, but when you consider that the album begins with Lóda Bailics, a number that runs for over 12 minutes, you’ll understand this is music rooted in the dance traditions of the South West.

You have to play for turn after turn of polkas, slides and reel sets in the Kingdom. Stamina is a prerequisite for a night beyond the Connor pass. That opening track has whoops, hollers, words off, and the sound of cows mooing to the box and guitar combo. The music here is what has become the traditional driving style of Sliabh Luachra. The guitar channels the spirit of Steve Cooney, with triplet runs, picked arpeggios, the dynamics are as alive as a new born cat, you can hear as the box and guitar move in and out from the microphones, and this is vital music, bouncing along, waving to the crowds who are spinning below it. Originally recorded in 2014, it is presented in a distinctly homemade package, printed on white paper, complete with comic book illustrations of life in Dingle (not that strange as the town holds an animation fest each year).

Track one over; do you need a rest yet? Well you are not getting one, ever! The tune called Easy Now, is as lively as a spit on a trivet. At one point one of the lads shouts out “Rock and Roll”, not that tame, Rock has never been as much fun or more subversive. The track Shark Attack, it’s a day at the seaside gulls whirring overhead and a voice over that tells we are about to hear the jig, Out on the Ocean, more sea gulls and lapping waves shifting gravel, there’s ozone in the tide of tunes here.

The album closes with Ah Seriously, introduced by a faux RTÉ continuity announcer, it is a bit of a mess, a room full of dancers chattering over the din of the musicians complete with obligatory bleeps to avoid a parental advisory. I suspect we are not meant to take this album seriously at all, but there’s no doubt Scannal are serious players. Next February as I drive down to the Gathering in Killarney, as soon I pass through Macroom, this album is going on the car CD player. If you like your Sliabh Luachra authentic this is the unfiltered rough cut to beat all rough cuts.

Seán Laffey