August men of Irish trad

Lunasa have been with us now for nigh on ten years during which they’ve electrified fans the world over with five studio albums and sterling live performances whose essence was captured on the live Kinnity Sessions.

The latest album Se sees them do what they do best, craft pristine recordings of delicate airs, driven by a rhythmic pulse that propels the music forward without ever throwing it off balance.
And they are arguably the highest profile trad act who operate with no vocalist, not even the odd studio guest. So is this some deep-seated aversion or ideological objection to singers, or are they just waiting for the right one to show up? Neither, says bassist and producer of Sé Trevor Hutchinson, whose CV also includes stints with Sharon Shannon and The Waterboys.
“If you have a vocalist it tends to shift the emphasis off the playing," he reckons. Having a vocalist would turn us into a different kind of band and we think that not having one gives us a different edge from other bands and that doesn’t do us any harm either in musical terms or in commercial terms.”
Hutchinson will get little argument on the issue from Lunasa’s flautist Kevin Crawford, but asked to name a vocalist he likes he has little hesitation in coming up with Karan Casey.
“I really like what she did with Solas," he proffers. "That was one example where the balance between vocalist and band seemed to work without one dominating the other.”
Lunasa seem to take elaborate care with their material, and have become known for the distinctive rhythmic drive that underpins much of what they do on Se. Given that Hutchinson has played with rock combos, are Lunasa ever tempted to go for a more rocked up sound, maybe adding drums? Hutchinson’s answer is an emphatic “no”.
“I don’t think it’s ever worked, that whole Celtic rock thing. Even with Horslips it became rock music using traditional airs as a basis, and the rock part of it was totally dominant. Our emphasis is always on the melody and even the rhythm has to serve the melody. But if you add drums you have to change everything else and it tends to take over."
I point out that the medley ‘Midnight In Aviles’ on Se has some European melodies. Does this presage a sorty into world music for the band in the way that, say, Kila have? Uilleann piper Cillian Vallely suggests not.
“You have to be very careful about all that. If you go about it the wrong way you can end up doing things just for the sake of it. Melody is a huge part of what we do, so we take it on a tune-by-tune basis. Either the tune works or it doesn’t. Where it comes from is irrelevant really.”
Asked to address the view that the current state of trad is less than healthy and that bands are finding it harder to get gigs, especially in the USA, Crawford refutes the argument.
“For a start, I don’t think there was ever a time when it was easy, and certainly not in Ireland, for trad bands to get good gigs and to make a living. But we’re finding it okay. We’ve been all over the world this year, including Hawaii, but you have to work at it. None of us in this band is making a fortune, but we love doing what we’re doing. I’ve heard some great new young musicians too, and as far as I can see the trad scene is as healthy as it ever was.”