Soundings

This mostly Donegal-based group has been together since 2002, but this is the first I’ve heard of them. I doubt it’ll be the last. Unusually for a traditional – or indeed any – band, all six members are strong singers as well as instrumentalists. They’ve selected a nice mix of classics like ‘Lord Franklin’ and ‘Erin Grá mo Chroí’ alongside lesser-known songs in both Irish and English, plus an original number with lyrics by Martin Gallen about two friends who find themselves fighting on opposing sides in the Spanish Civil War. Soundings is a mightily impressive début.