SOUTHAMPTON: Brook

SUN 24TH NOV, 2013 7:30pm

The Bad Shepherds play punk songs on folk instruments. Not as a gag, but because they really like the noise. They think the songs are better than people remember. They love folk instruments. It works.

They do songs by The Sex Pistols, The Clash, The Stranglers, The Jam, Sham 69, The Undertones, The Ramones, The Buzzcocks, The Specials, Talking Heads, Squeeze and others, even Kraftwerk!

Alright, they're not all punk, but they come from roughly the same era. They've mostly given the songs a kind of Celtic feel, and they've stuck in the odd reel and jig here and there. But occasionally they just thrash! They've always thought the excitement of a reel taking off is the nearest thing to the excitement of watching punk live in the 70's.

World-renowned Troy Donockley plays the ethereal uillean pipes and the bouzouki with Andy Dinan on the fiddle, the three of them now form the core of the band with occasional guest musicians. Adrian plays the Mandolin.

The Bad Shepherds have released two albums, ‘Yan Tyan Tethera Methera! in April 2009 and “By Hook or By Crook” in 2010. They toured extensively in 2011 before taking a sabbatical in 2012 whilst Troy the pipe player went on a world tour with Finish goth metal band Nightwish and Adrian tour his side project The Idiot Bastard Band. The band are back for festivals and touring in 2013.

Press Quotes
“...not just the hit of this Festival [Big Session, Leicester] but probably every other Festival this summer.” - Colin Irwin, Rock n Reel

“... worth every prick of sunburn and insect bite of the weekend.” - Emma Hartley The Daily Telegraph

“ We loved it and by the looks of it so did the other 19,997 people watching.” - James Marshall, BBC

“They don’t disappoint, singing punk songs, but with a fluid folk musicality, we get a bunch of well known tunes, a little amicable banter from Edmondson, and some wonderful musical performances. I particularly like that in some perverse way the original ethics of punk have returned to its roots - Joe Strummer would heartily approve.” - Bradley Smith, Record Collector

For 'By Hook Or By Crook' 2010:
“If you haven't heard The Bad Shepherds, I suggest you remedy that oversight
immediately. What they do has been done before: bands have often folked-up pop sings for a fun encore but Adrian Edmondson and his band take it seriously and offer a superb re-interpretation of the music of the 70s and 80s.” - Dai Jeffries R2 ****

For 'Yan, Tyan, Tethera, Methera!' 2009:
Any preconceptions I might have held regarding the ‘seriousness’ of this project helmed by Adrian Edmondson, comedian, actor and now frontman of The Bad Shepherds were quickly dispelled upon hearing the respectful yet authoritative, inventive and witty approach to much of the material on their debut disc, Yan, Tyan, Tethera, Methera! (Cumbrian dialect for ‘One, Two, Three, Four’, fact fans: Ed). - Steve Caseman Rock ‘n’ Reel ****

YOUTUBE LINKS

London Calling
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yoztyNasXzE

No More Heroes
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uq-HNn36GJ0

Whole Wide World

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PvUlEvZ1AkY