a family reunion in Dublin, Ireland
a Brassland-curated weekend at the National Concert Hall of Ireland on April 12 + 13
Recently I’ve created an Artist Primer section of this mixtape delivery service. It offers introductory playlists for over two dozen of my favorite musicians and is available only to paid subscribers. Get an annual subscription for $25.
# of Tracks: about 20 recordings
Length: 90 minutes
Themes: the mood is spiritual grit, transcendent tradition, and warm bonds of friendship ~ a trans-Atlantic, Irish-American lilt (with French characteristics) ~ created in honor of a series of concerts happening this weekend at Dublin’s National Concert Hall of Ireland ~ post-minimalist instrumental vibes punctuated by gentle folk & eclectic alt/avant elements
Links: Spotify | Apple Music | YouTube
The label I co-founded, Brassland, has been going for almost a quarter century. This weekend, April 12th and 13th, I helped put together a kind of family reunion in Dublin—at the National Concert Hall of Ireland, no less. (If you know someone that lives nearby, details and a discount code for 2-for-1 tickets are in the footnotes.1)
For the majority of you living elsewhere, I’ve made a playlist representing the musicians who will be gathering. About half of the selections are instrumental; the rest feature singer-songwriters working in an eclectic indie/alternative/folk mode. Somehow, it all flows together, because this music shares a beauty and precision often drawn from the same well: folk tradition, minimalist composition, and deeply intuitive improvisation.
Most of these artists are Irish or American, but a number of them have deep ties to France. Globalism might be on the decline, especially here in the United States, with our current administration’s absurd “America First” politics. I love how our community is having none of that.
A bunch of these folks have played a role in my life and work for the better part of 25 years. It hasn’t always been easy. But it’s always been there—a background thrum behind an art project that’s somehow felt like both family and business, vocation and calling.
Music is stereotyped as a young person’s game, and I suspect the next quarter century will see the threads of our little community start to fray. I often think back to something one of Brassland’s first artists, cellist Erik Friedlander, said in the early 2000s, when an interviewer asked him about exactly that:
Little communities of like-minded musicians have a 'scene' but then these little scenes morph as musicians from other scenes join in, other players leave on tour, people move out of town or new amazing players show up, close friendships lose momentum and breakup, older players reach out to younger musicians for fresh ideas or to have their own ideas fulfilled by players who won't question their authority. It's a mad, sane, exuberant, inspiring and troubling community of very talented people.
That description really hit home. What beauty has come out of our scrappy little haven. I wouldn’t trade it for anything.
Go raibh maith agaibh as éisteacht; merci d'avoir écouté; and thanks for listening.
Find the playlist on… Spotify | Apple Music | YouTube
Thanks to Gary Sheehan, Mary Hickson, and Bryce Dessner for their work conceiving these concerts—and to their colleagues at the National Concert Hall of Ireland and Sounds From A Safe Harbour for executing on our vision.
recent AHB’s Goodies highlights
Garth Hudson: goodbye to The Band & a memorial to the last member to go
David Grubbs: a conversation with the Gastr del Sol member, CUNY professor & stalwart of post-genre instrumental music
The playlist includes songs such as…
^ Sam Amidon: “Friends and Neighbors” [Ornette Coleman cover]
^ LANZ feat. Mina Tindle: “Speaker Heads”
^ Bryce Dessner: “Haven” (feat. David Chalmin andKatia & Marielle Labeque)
^ Oisin Leech: “Colour Of The Rain”
Extra Credit:
• My face on the cover of the Irish Times Arts & Ideas section that one time: I’m not sure if this counts as a confession or a humblebrag but the last time Brassland did an event at the National Concert Hall, a decade ago, that happened.
I’m not exactly egoless, but I do not have the “look at me! look at me!” energy of a performing artist so it felt like…a lot. The article that accompanied My Big Face is still worth a read if you want a sense of what makes Brassland tick; even better are a pair of podcasts which the NCH commissioned for our 2014 engagement at the Hall.
• Oisin Leech’s Cold Sea: When I was in Ireland for our previous NCH event, I also traveled to Dingle on the country’s west coast, accompanying Buke and Gase for a taping of the incredibly well-curated Other Voices live music TV program. There I caught a bit of the Lost Brothers, a duo known as Ireland’s foremost practitioners of Americana. Clearly they were accomplished—but it certainly didn’t prepare me for Cold Sea, the solo debut of Lost Brothers member Oisin Leech. Clocking in at 27 minutes, it’s an album of modest length but profound emotion—evoking hazy weather, waves lapping the shore, and an undercurrent of swirling J.M.W. Turner skies.2 He captures the feeling of life on the water, how its mysteries seem deeper than anything we humans dream of back on the mainland. Anyway, I connected with Oisin personally in 2023, while he was searching for a label partner for his record. Brassland didn’t take the plunge (pun intended), but I’m so happy he’ll be joining us for our Sunday event, alongside Sam Amidon, Kate Stables, and Ye Vagabonds. You check out Cold Sea for free on YouTube but it’s even better better if you throw a few dollars at the Bandcamp edition.
RIYL: Van Morrison’s Astral Weeks, the work of Alexi Murdoch, or any music about oceanic consciousness, or the actual ocean.
People Who Died: Amadou Bagayoko • Brian James • George Foreman • Michael Hurley • Val Kilmer
I’m not a big movie star guy. But Val Kilmer is an actor who’s wile and inscrutability always made him seem more like a musician. He even spoke of the funny run-ins he had with the likes of Bob Dylan and Lou Reed to prove it.
Use promo code "CM241" (no quotes) at checkout for 2-for-1 tickets to either of these Main Stage shows.
Saturday, April 12: a special Mina Tindle performance feat. Bryce Dessner, Kate Stables (This Is The Kit), Benjamin LANZ, Olivier Marguerit & Quatuor Zaide | opening set by Thomas Bartlett & Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh from The Gloaming | special guest Conor O’Brien (Villagers)
Sunday, April 13: Sam Amidon | This Is The Kit's Kate Stables | Oisin Leech | Ye Vagabonds | more special guests to be announced
Some paintings by Joseph Mallord William Turner in case you don’t know what I’m talking about:
