Celtic Music College: Celtic Spirits, CD-review
folk-metal.nl: Celtic Spirits (CD)
Release: 15 May 2020, Label: Independent
My first real exposure to Celtica Pipes Rock was the Steamphonia album. As a fan of both Steampunk and Celtic Folk music, it seemed to me like the perfect combination. While there might be a degree of subjective bias, Steamphonia will be the point of reference here, because that album features the traditional celtic music employed in the most novel, creative, and original way when examining Celtica’s back catalogue. Now onto the album at hand.
Celtic Spirits is as good as it can possibly be while staying fairly safe. However, staying true to what one’s band is known for is by no means a bad thing. Celtic Spirits as usual features the traditional Folk tunes adapted for the four piece ensemble, the soaring cheery sound of the wailing bagpipes, and some good atmospheric effects every other song. But it would be a lie to say that this album sounds like another typical release, Celtic Spirits has kept the grandiose ambition of Steamphonia and taken the atmospherics and orchestrations just those few steps further. Firstly, the album uses chorals extensively. The choirs themselves sound like a church choir trying to imitate a host of angels, and when employed for the purposes of immersion, as on the title track, it does help the listener feel as if they’ve been guided through scenic highlands by the cries of, dare I say. celtic spirits? On the other hand, the choirs can also pull off the typical ominous latin chanting used in extensively in genres like Symphonic Metal as can be heard on Ferrum Noricum.
There are some unusually dark parts on this album, for a band like Celtica Pipes Rock, when compared to their usual upbeat wailing. There are war drums and some eerie music opening the title track, and “Old Man of Storr” is even darker, compared to the rest of the album. Additionally, while Celtica isn’t known for having the guitars feature heavily, there are some interesting efforts to have the guitar to play a key role on some songs, but in general it appears as if its either the guitars or the pipes dominating, and the other instrument holds back. Granted, there’s usually only one main focus in music, but the excellent adaptation of Beethoven’s 9th on “1770: Birth of a Giant” shows that there can be an interplay between instruments. One standout track, where the guitar plays a major role is, “Time to Rise”. This song is the closest Celtica will probably get to Heavy Metal with some heavy riffs delivered on a distorted and powerful guitar.
What sets this album apart from Celtica Pipes Rock’s back catalogue, is though Steamphonia had been a groundbreaking concept album and set a high bar for originality (with the bagpipes conjuring a steampunk soundtrack without soundboards or electronic workarounds) Celtic Spirits feels like it manages to pull off something similar. It has a captivating and enchanting atmosphere that with choirs and the usual charm of the bagpipe sound of Celtica evokes great highland landscapes and historical scenes, which is at its core what made their steampunk concept album so good. For those who enjoy immersive music, this album will be an excellent listen and there is no doubt that Celtic Spirits will be indispensable for any fans of Celtic Music.
folk-metal.nl: Live at Montelago (CD)
By: Leo, Feb. 2018, The Netherlands Rating: 8.8/10 With a work of such quality, that it sounds more like a studio recording than a live concert, Celtica brings us their first live album, recorded in 2017 at their concert at the Montelago Celtic Festival (Italy). For this occasion, the band brings us mostly songs from the album: “Steamphonia” with the help of the orchestra “Compagnia della Piuma” to add choirs and a wonderful classic instrumentation rich in sounds and nuances as a complement to its folkloric and cheerful sound, -Celtic symphonic if I may say.
Throughout on both discs, emotions are generated thanks mostly to the wonderful choirs; music, in general, that transports you to the past and makes you forget that it is a live performance, and then bringing us back with some guitar riffs that accompany without hiding other instruments, making each piece a set of captivating melodies and sounds. Maybe seeing it as a live performance, it’s a little bit more necessary to listen more constantly to the audience’s mood or some interventions by the band to encourage the audience. For that, you should wait until the end of some songs for the audience to remind you that is a live concert.
The quality of the performance is spectacular and the great sound of the bagpipes shows all the quality of the Celtica musicians and gives us a unique sound. The adaptation of “Carmina Celtica” is my favorite of the 2 disks, but all the others are very good tracks, so it becomes difficult to choose one over the others. I hope that other folk bands take similar paths to adapt their music to other genres as well as Celtica does and with the same quality to be able to continue listening to great releases like “Live at Montelago”.
http://www.folk-metal.nl/2018/02/celtica-live-montelago-2018/
celtic-rock.de: Live at Montelago (CD)
by Daniels, Jan. 31st 2018, Germany Unfortunately I got „just“ the CD-recordings of this unique August evening somewhere in Italy. A dramatic scenery, a warm summer night. 8000 people waiting for the spectacle to start. A band, that is setting the benchmark in the scene, creates a not only for me new genre: Symphonic Celtic Rock! Celtica with a classical orchestra and a choir! Fans of electrifying bagpipes get absolutely their money´s worth and can enjoy on this album astonishing arrangements. In my car the sound was absolutely brilliant, fat beats, clear sound – you think that this cannot really represent the true atmosphere of such a performance: No, goosebumps! The teaser-video gives an impression, too. Genre: folk-punk, folk-rock Songs for our radiostation: Harbour in the Sky, Whisky in the Jar, Deus Ex Machina https://celtic-rock.de/celtica-pipes-rock-live-at-montelago-2017/
crossfire-metal.de: Live at Montelago (CD)
Steve Burdelak, Feb. 3rd 2018, Germany This 6-piece formation shows it´s musical qualty on this double album, soon also available also as DVD. They believe in Celtic music with authentic Scottish bagpipes, pimped with lots of cross-overs like a bit of Gothic Rock or an extraordinary blend with symphonic hi energy elements. This moves body and spirit in enthusiasm, a cry for freedom – especially live an incredible power. A highlight of all their live concerts was without a doubt the performance at the Montelago Celtic Festival, Italy, in 2017 –featuring a classical orchestra and choir. A dynamic symbiosis without comparison that is reflected in nearly every tune. And out of the sudden a Hardrock/ Metal-attack guitar solo by Gajus Stappen…The international line up, with band members from Scotland, Bulgaria, Austria and the USA, set loose with their original composition Dantes´ Inferno and that is rewarded with an absolutely fanatic audience. They are also not scared to adapt other compositions in their style.That works perfectly for the traditional Amazing Grace and Whiskey in the Jar, further more at Jane´s Solo and Carmina Celtica, which is their version of Carmina Burana`s “Oh Fortuna” by Carl Orff, new arranged by Harald Weinkum. For anybody who is into Celtic Mediaval Powerrock there is no way to miss Celtica. . http://www.crossfire-metal.de/17822-0-CELTICA-LIVE-AT-MONTELAGO.html
Le Canard Folk: Live at Montelago (CD)
Ola Kvernberg, Feb. 2018, Belgien (Translation) Double CD of live recording of a festival in Italy last summer with classical orchestra and choir! This Celtic rockband, founded end of 2009, is phenominal, with torches on the bagpipes, burning drumsticks and an incredible power. Duncan Knight (Scotland, bagpipe, vocals), Jane Espie (Scotland, bagpipe), Aya Georgieva (Bulgaria, violin, keyboards), Gajus Stappen (Austria, electric guitar, toms, vocals; He is the founder and main composer), Harald Weinkum (Arizona, bass, toms, keyboards, vocals) and Tom Cadek (Austria, drums) set the audience on fire during the slow tunes )which are never too long…). As well Celtic as Rock at the amazing “Carmina Celtica” (gigantic choir), the band developes beautiful melodies with a crazy energy and ends with a majestic “Amazing Grace”. You won´t have time to catch a breath while listening!
FolkWorld #55 11/2014: Legends And Visions
- January 2015
Celtica is, in one sentence, melodic hard rock with a combination of electric guitars and highland pipes. We know at least since Wolfstone what a powerful blend electric guitars and pipes can be (but as we have seen from Saor Patrol, reviewed in this issue, this combination might not always be a melodic success). Despite the live photo in the album suggesting that the live experience might be a bit gimmicky, the CD proves that Celtica have pulled it off to create an attractive and quite mesmerising blend of music. On “Legends and visions” the band presents primarily their own material, added by pipe versions of “Whisky in the Jar”, a blend of U2 hits and “Don’t Stop Believin’”. The music is largely instrumental, with the pipes being the central melodic element, yet some numbers feature some chanting which tends to be more in the background of the music. Recorded as a truly global project, the pipes were recorded in Edinburgh, the drums and guitars in Vienna, Bass in Phoenix (US), and vocals partly in the UC, partly in Edinburgh. I would probably prefer to listen to one or two tunes at a time rather than a full CD – but once listening to the album I do find it difficult to stop! © Michael Moll http://www.folkworld.eu/55/e/cds4.html#celt
Celtic Music Magazine: Legends and Visions
- September 2014
When I wrote a review of Celtica Pipes Rock Oceans of Fire, they asked if I might do one of their new album, Legends and Visions which was only being sold at shows when I wrote the last review, now it’s available for sale in other venues. read moreTo recap. The band is back together, Celtica: Pipes Rock is once more a six-piece band. Their piper, Jane Espie is back. That’s one of the things that makes this band great, not only is it real rock and roll, it’s real Scottish pipes with a female piper, to boot to complement Duncan Knight’s awesome work. I’m sorry I missed seeing them perform live at the North Texas Irish Festival, but I will see them in concert one day. Just not when they’re in Tulsa in a couple of months, darn it. Legends and Visions has a similar format to their other albums. It’s set up as a “show” or story. There’s an intro before going into their tracks. One of the main things I like about this album is that it has a fun sci-fi/fantasy theme to it along with rock and roll and Celtic standards done in their signature style. What’s different is the naming conventions. In the past they’ve told you what songs they’re mashing up in their medleys. Now you get to guess – except for “Love U2!”, that one’s pretty self-explanatory – and an excellent medley of songs skillfully woven together. Their versions of “Albas Shore” and “Whiskey in The Jar” probably aren’t what you’re used to, but I rock out to them – as with all the tracks. The vocals are minimal – mostly instrumental. I keep this band on my Writing AND Road Trip playlists for those times I need LOUD but good because this band has more skill than I could ever imagine. It’s also good fun – especially if you’re having a bad day and want to hide. You can’t listen to this album and sit or stand still. “Rolling with the Goblins” has a SWING DANCE beat to half the song, how does anyone stay still for that? They did put a track on this project that I’ve been waiting for. When I was introduced to Celtica, I looked them up on YouTube and fell in love with their video for their cover of “Don’t Stop Believin’” – which they encourage the audience to sing. They did a compilation video from their tour of the song. I believe it was their encore song, and now it’s the encore of Legends and Visions and for a live track, it’s fantastic. Artist: Celtica: Pipes Rock Buy Album: CD BABY July 1, 2014 by Rhonda Eudaly Rhonda Eudaly lives in Arlington, Texas with her husband, and two dogs. She’s ventured into several industries and occupations for a wide variety of experience. She has a well-rounded publication history in both fiction and non-fiction many of which can be found on www.RhondaEudaly.com. http://celticmp3s.com/2014/review-celtica-pipes-rock-legends-and-visions/
Celtic Music Magazine: Oceans of Fire
I admit to spending much of my life buying into the “mainstream” belief that bagpipes were something to be avoided, even after doing some work at a renaissance faire. And even then, I’ve discovered I have a specific taste in bagpipes, my bagpipe music has to be part of something…bigger, and apparently, louder. read moreWhen Celtica: Pipes Rock! Oceans of Fire came up for review, I had to give it a listen. A friend introduced me to Celtica: Pipes Rock! with the Rising album. Now it was time to try this one. Celtica: Pipes Rock! is a unique blend of classic rock-and-roll and bagpipes. It’s one of those weird things that on the surface doesn’t seem like they should go together, but they do. The Oceans of Fire album is set up like a program with an introduction with the first track, “The Voyage” and ending with “Coming Home”. Along this just over one hour musical journey there are several different styles and tempos from traditional Celtic pub style sing-alongs like “What Shall We Do with a Drunken Sailor” and “Aye, Aye Captain” to the iconic bagpipe rendition of “Amazing Grace”, but there’s a lot of fun and different takes on styles. But my favorite track on the entire project is a 5-and-a-half minute medley of Hollywood Movie Themes, “Celtica Goes Hollywood”. Holy moly, this is mess with your head in a good way. It has some themes that fit with the “Celtic/pirate” overtones – Titanic, Braveheart, and Pirates of the Caribbean, which you’d expect. What gets crazy is adding Last of the Mohicans and, dude, Star Wars – Imperial theme with bagpipes? It works. I love this band and this album. It’s a lot of instrumental music, so if you can’t work with words playing there are some vocals, but primarily vocal. It’s also “road trip” music. It’s loud, it’s contagious. This would be something I’d blast in a top-down convertible (if I had one). It’s also on my Playlist for writing. It’s good “soundtrack ” and hope your fingers can keep up on the keyboard music. And now, their band is back together. Celtica: Pipes Rock is once more a six-piece band. Their piper, Jane Espie is back. That’s one of the things that makes this band great, not only is it real rock and roll, it’s real Scottish pipes with a female piper, to boot to complement Duncan Knight’s awesome work. I’m sorry I missed seeing them perform live at the North Texas Irish Festival, but I will see them in concert one day. Until then, Celtica: Pipes Rock! makes my day job commute much more bearable. Buy the album on Amazon April 30, 2014 by Rhonda Eudaly Rhonda Eudaly lives in Arlington, Texas with her husband, and two dogs. She has a well-rounded publication history in both fiction and non-fiction many of which can be found on www.RhondaEudaly.com. http://celticmp3s.com/2014/celtica-pipes-rock-oceans-of-fire/
Valhalla Metal Blog: Legends and Visions
CELTICA PIPES ROCK! ist ein Multikulti-Sextett aus Schottland, der USA und Österreich. Ihre Mischung aus progressivem Rock und Bagpipes hat sie zu einem Geheimtipp gemacht. “Legends And Visions” ist ihr mittlerweile drittes Album, welches dieses Jahr erschienen ist. Sie schaffen es, read moredie harten Rock-Sounds mit Keyboardklängen zu unterlegen und das Ganze mit den Bagpipes, die als “Sänger” fungieren, abzurunden und ein wahres Klangerlebnis zu erschaffen. Zwischendurch hört man sie Band im ein oder anderen Lied rufen, aber generell ist “Legends And Visions” ein Instrumental-Album. Teilweise covert die Band bekannte Songs, wie in “Love U2!”, wo Sie gleich ein ganzes Medley bekannter Songs der irischen Band spielen oder der Song “Don’t Stop Believin’”, welches im Original von Journey stammt. Natürlich darf eine eigene Version eines irischen Volksliedes nicht fehlen, welches mit “Whiskey In The Jar” den Weg auf den Silberling fand. Allerdings sind 2 der eigenen Songs meine absoluten Favoriten – “Starship Celtica” ist eine tolle Fusion aus Rock, Bagpipes und futuristisch klingenden Keyboards. Nummer zwei ist “The Druid’s Prophecy” welches schon am Anfang mit mystischen Glockenklängen aufwartet, um den Hörer dann wieder in druckvolle Rockklänge zu entführen. Diese 2 Songs haben für mich absolutes Hit-Potential! Insgesamt ist “Legends And Visions” ein solides Album, mit einer tollen Klangmixtur und für mich ein Kauftipp! Wertung: 5 von 6 Pommesgabeln Für Fans von: Saor Patrol, Fiddler’s Green http://valhallametalblog.wordpress.com/2014/09/01/review-celtica-pipes-rock-legens-and-visions/
67Music, Celtic Music Promotions
- May 2013
Sail away with Celtica – Pipes Rock! on their new CD Oceans of Fire! reviewed by Ann Peck McBride Right away, you are invited on a special voyage, via a poem delivered with Scots panache. If you listen to the words, the adventure will be read moredescribed to you- a cross between a pirate in search of plunder, and an explorer discovering exotic destinations. Then the first musical selection begins, and it’s a lot like the beginning of the Pirates of the Carribbean ride, when your boat suddenly speeds up and sails down a steep, narrow tunnel-it’s dark, and smokey, and loud, and you just know you are going to have a fantastic time! The seventeen cuts on the CD mostly continue the voyage you have embarked on. “What Shall We Do With A Drunken Sailor,” a rowdy rendition of an old time favorite, and later, with “Have Some Whiskey,” you’ll find yourself getting into the spirit as you metaphorically sit on deck with your grog, singing along. The theme carries through with the traditional sound of “Champion of the Seas” and titles like “Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea”, “Aye, Aye, Captain” and “White Whale” and ending, appropriately with “Coming Home.” My favorite of these is “The Last Voyage of the Great Micheal,” a driving instrumental with pipes and guitar blazing in tandem. Oh-and one departure from the “ship” that is sure to please is called “Celtica Goes To Hollywood” and is five minutes or so of the Celtica take on themes from Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, Titanic, Last of the Mohicans, Braveheart, and of course, Pirates of the Carribbean. The music is rock, and the lead instrument is bagpipe. Specifically Great Highland Bagpipe, a powerful and exciting sound combined with guitar and bass and the brilliant Lukas Rausch on drums. The members of this group come from all around the globe-from California and Arizona to Scotland and Austria. Duncan Knight of Scotland, who plays Great Highland Bagpipe, has played with the 1st Battalion Royal Scots and the Royal Scots Borderers, and has played the pipes since the age of ten. Gwendolyn Rowe from Mendocino, California, who also plays bagpipe, breeds and trains Scottish Highland ponies and owns a watertower in Scotland. The bass player, Harry Weinkum is from Phoenix, Arizona, and the remaining three members, Josy Svajda on keyboards and percussion, Gajus Stappen on guitar, and Lukas Rausch on drums, are from Austria. It’s an eclectic group, and I wish I could see their live show, which includes flame throwing and fire juggling! They just completed their USA Spring Tour, however, and are currently touring Europe. They will be back in July, however, and visiting the Highland Games in Linville, North Carolina. Slightly closer to home, but only slightly, will be June 29th, when they will be in Anchorage for the Alaska Highland Games. Gajus Stappen (Vienna, Austria), electric Guitar & Percussion Gwendolen Rowe (Mendocino, CA/USA), Great Highland Bagpipe Duncan Knight (Edinburgh, Scotland), Great Highland Bagpipe Harry Weinkum (Phoenix, AZ/USA), Bass & Percussion Lukas Rausch (Scheibbs, Austria), Drums Josy Svajda (Saalfelden, Austria), Fire, Vocals, Keyboard & Percussion Original review: http://67music.net/reviews/celtica-pipes-rock
Rising -Celtica Pipes Rock/Acess 2 Music
- November 2012
Donner grollte über den Highland Games, Blitze erhellten das Gelände und Celtica Pipes Rock stimmten “We will rock you” auf ihren Bagpipes an. Die read moreread more Klänge, die mich schon im Radio immer erfreuten, brachten die tapfere Meute, die dem Regen trotzte, zum Johlen. Und jetzt, wo ich die CD im Player habe, möchte ich am liebsten die Zeit zurück drehen und die Gummistiefel einpacken. Denn Celtica Pipes Rock machen ihrem Namen alle Ehre, diese Pipes rocken. Celtica bieten einen guten Einstieg in die Musik mit Bagpipes. Denn obwohl natürlich Bagpipes im Vordergrund stehen, kommen auch andere Instrumente nicht zu kurz, so allen voran die Gitarre und Drums. Das macht “Rising” auf jeden Fall massentauglich, was sie auch gleich bei mehreren Auftritten vor begeisterten Mengen bewiesen. Auf ihrer Debut CD finden sich die wichtigsten Rock Klassiker mit einem gut verträglichen Anteil an Dudelsack. Besonders die Medleys verdienen Erwähnung, sie sind in sich stimmig und die fließenden Übergänge machen es leicht, mit der CD durchzufeiern. Ich war positiv überrascht, “Ode to Joy zu” hören. Aber auch Pipi Langstrumpf hat es aufs Album geschafft. Damit unterscheiden sie sich deutlich von den Red Hot Chilli Pipers, die sich auf große Rock und Pop-Klassiker beschränken. Ein Schritt der sich lohnt, denn so kann selbst der größte Kulturbanause ein Liedchen zum Mitpfeifen auf dieser grandiosen CD finden. Weitere Infos zur Band inklusive Auftritten findet ihr auf https://www.celticarocks.com//dt/home By Floree – October 24, 2011, Posted in: Plattenladen http://wp.access2music.de/2011/10/celtica-pipes-rock-rising/
Le Canard Folk/ BE, Nov 2012
- October 2012
L’Autre Folk/ metal, pagan, médiéval, folk-rock, … Celtica Pipes Rock: Oceans of Fire Le titre est explicite : voicidu folk-rock puissant où la guitare électrique, la basse et la batterie encadrent fermement les cornemuses écossaises, aussi impériales soient-elles. La section rythmique oeuvre avec read moreintelligence, variant les effets et se ménageant des silences. On se laisse facilement emporter par les flots dans ce voyage bien construit, avec des successions de titres et d’ambiances qui font sens. Une part de rêve, comme il se doit, avec “Loch Lomond”, l’inévitable “Amazing Grace” et le final “Coming Home”. Et une chouette chanson de pub “Have some whisky”. Avec les 6 musiciens Duncan Knight (Highland bagpipe, whistle, chant), Gwendolen Rowen (Highland bagpipe, chant), Gajus Stappen (guitares, percussions, chant, composition), Harald Weinkum (basse, claviers, percussions, chant), Josy Svajda (chant, claviers, percussions) et Lukas Rausch (batterie), le Celtica va même jusqu’à Hollywood! Marc Bauduin, Le Canard Folk – Nov 2012 www.canardfolk.be
Celtic Rock Music/ celtic rock & punk fanzine and internet radiostation
- October 2012
Celtica Pipes Rock, so nennen sich die Damen und Herren aus Österreich, Schottland und Amerika deren Album ich euch heute ans Herz legen möchte. Als Celtic Rock beschreibt die Band selbst ihren eingeschlagenen Stil. Ich persönlich höre da noch read moreread more eine Prise Celtic Metall raus. Vergleiche möchte ich mit den schottischen Red Hot Chilli Pipers oder den ebenfalls aus Österreich stammenden Powerpipes ziehen. Bekannte und geliebte Melodien sowie eigene Kreationen verpackt in ein Bagpipe-Gewand gemischt mit harten Gitarrenriffs. Bei dieser Band auch hin und wieder mit Gesang welcher sehr gut hinein passt. Auch live scheint diese Band äußerst sehenswert zu sein, den Eindruck vermitteln jedenfalls die Livevideos die man sich auf der Webseite ansehen kann. Hier der Link dazu: www.celticarocks.com Sollten die Herrschaften mal in meiner Gegend sein, werde ich dem ganz sicher beiwohnen und bei nem schönen Bier den fantastischen Klängen lauschen. Oceans of Fire ist das nunmehr 2. Album der Band. Ich für meinen Teil werd mir jetzt auch noch das 1. Album welches den Namen Rising trägt besorgen, denn wenn ich etwas an diesen ganzen coolen Celtic-Rock, Punk oder Metallbands schätze, sind das die Bagpipes und von denen gibts hier wirklich genug. Als Anspieltipps lege ich euch “Cape Horn” und “What shall we do with the drunken sailor” ans Herz. Zwei schöne Tracks aus dem Ocean of Fire welcher eigentlich ausschließlich aus guten bis sehr guten Tracks gefüllt wurde. Fazit: Wer auf Die Red Hot Chilli Pipers oder die Powerpipes steht, kommt an dieser Band nicht vorbei. http://www.celtic-rock.de/2012/09/celtica-pipes-rock-oceans-of-fire-2012/
Folk Metal/NL
Celtica – ‘Oceans of Fire’ (2012) 14 oktober 2012 by Michel Celtica has released two album until now. Oceans of Fire was their last one and it was released in early 2012. Their music is not real folk metal, maybe the best desciption is Rock and Heavy Metal with bagpipes. read moreread more But not the kind bands like Skiltron play. And this is due to the way they play this. There are no vocals, except for a few songs like ‘Have some Whisky!’ and ‘Aye, Aye, Capt’n’. Where there’s normally an emphasis on the vocals, in Celtica the bagpipes take over this role. On Oceans of Fire there are a lot of very nice songs. Some are written by themselves, but there are also covers like ‘What shall we do with the Drunken Sailor’ and ‘Loch Lomond’. And very great there is also some humour on this album! And you don’t need any lyrics for that. Listen to ‘Celtica goes to Hollywood’ and you’ll get on an amazing trip through a number of nice movies. When I heard them the first time, I was quite convinced we dealt with an American band here. But it appears the band is half Austrian and has only two American members. The music is nicely composed, but a little bit smooth, on the other hand all is done with great skill by these fine musicians. But there’s also something which bothers me. Every time I put this album on I’ll miss the vocals after a few songs. The tracks with vocals aren’t the nicest songs on the album, so they don’t make up for this. Is this a bad thing? Some will say Yes, but I doubt that. Who’s listening to a complete album these days. Most of the day I’m listening to my musicplayer playing random songs from a playlist. And when I do this I like every Celtica songs my player brings to me. So I wouldn’t want to miss this album, I like it a lot. It’s a very unique approach and they will do a great job at all kind of festivals with this music. http://www.folk-metal.nl/2012/10/celtica-oceans-of-fire-2012/
Huscarl.at (Simone Huber) May 16th 2012
- May 2012
Huscarl.at (Simone Huber) 16.05.2012 Aye, Aye, Captain! – Celtica lässt die Leinen los! read moreread more Rechtzeitig vor dem Konzert zur CD-Release am Donnerstag, den 31.05.2012, erreichte Huscarl eine der ersten Exemplare des neuen Albums “Oceans of Fire” von Celtica Pipes Rock. Eine prompte Rezension, noch vor dem Konzert, ist in diesem Fall das Ergebnis erwartungsvoller Spannung und unbändiger Neugierde unserer Redakteurin. Ungeduldig wurde die CD aus dem gut gepolsterten Kuvert genommen, nur um festzustellen: Es ist noch nicht fertig ausgepackt! Also erstmal den kleinen Zipfel suchen, mit dem das brandneue Album “Oceans of Fire” auch aus der Zellophanhülle befreit und endlich genauer in Augenschein genommen werden kann. Cover & Booklet Schon beim Anblick des CD-Covers schaltet das Kopfkino der Rezensentin auf Play: Von starken Windböen gepeitschte Segel, ein hoher Zweimaster mit Schottenkaro-Flagge tanzt auf den gischtschäumenden Wellen des leuchtenden Flammenmeeres, der Donner ist ohrenbetäubend. Die Crew der Celtica bewahrt mühevoll die Ruhe. Sie wissen – ein Fehlgriff und ihr nasses Grab wartet schon auf sie. Da fährt ein leuchtender Blitz aus dem sturmverhangenen, bedrohlich dunklen Himmel herab – das Meer brennt… Einfach herrlich! Können Booklet und CD die – durch das äußerst wirkungsvoll in Szene gesetzte, fantasiebeflügelnde Cover – hochgeschraubten Erwartungen erfüllen? Vielleicht sogar übertreffen? Oder kommt der eiskalte Griff der Realität, um den Zuhörer enttäuscht wieder auf den Boden der Tatsachen zurückzuholen? Die Setlist auf der Rückseite des Covers verrät mehr: Mit insgesamt 17 Songs, einer Gesamtlaufzeit von knapp über einer Stunde und ein paar Gastmusikern wartet die sechsköpfige Pipe-Rock-Band aus drei verschiedenen Nationen ihren Fans und denen, die es noch werden wollen, ihr neues Album “Oceans of Fire” auf. Bis auf sechs Nummern wurden alle Songs von Mitglied und Produzent Gajus Stappen selbst geschrieben. Das Album Virtuoses Spiel auf den Sackpfeifen versus fetzigen Gitarrenriffs, das ganze gepaart mit heißen Schlagzeugrhythmen, die dem Zuhörer scheinbar direkt über das Ohr in den gesamten Körper eindringen und dazu zwingen, sich im Takt zu bewegen und einfach gut drauf zu sein. Von epischen Melodien über Gute-Laune-Lieder und fetzige Rocksongs bietet Celtica mit ihrem zweiten Album alles, was das Herz begehrt. Eines der vielen Highlits auf der CD ist das Madley “Celtica goes to Hollywood”: Titanic, Herr der Ringe, der letzte Mohikaner, Braveheart, Krieg der Sterne und Fluch der Karibik lassen grüßen! “Amazing Grace” geht direkt unter die Haut. Und auch die Stimmen kommen auf dem powervollen Album nicht zu kurz und laden zum Mitsingen ein. Persönlicher Fazit der Rezensentin Ein absolutes “Muss” für Freunde des Dudelsacks, die ebensogern Folk als auch Rock hören! Ich persönlich glaube, dass auch Leute, die nicht auf dieser Art Musikwelle surfen, garantiert auf ihre Kosten kommen werden und nicht anders können, als mitzuspringen und mitzusingen! Das komplette Album strotzt nur so vor guter Laune und purer Stimmung! Um abschließend noch von der Rückseite des Albums zu zitieren: “Across oceans of fire and deep waters so blue – behind the horizon all dreams will come true…”