This article is from page 16 of the 2013-02-26 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 16 JPG
CRUSHEEN storyteller Eddie Lenihan will begin a new and unusual chapter in his career next month when he appears in one of the most underground Irish albums to be released in 2013.
Mr Lenihan, who captured the nation’s hearts with his 12-part RTÉ series ‘Ten Minute Tales’ in the 1980s, is to feature on a new album by London-based dark-ambient outfit ‘From The Bogs of Aughiska’.
The album, which is due for release on March 18, includes a nine-anda-half-minute-long track featuring samples of the Crusheen native over the dark and ominous instrumental of ‘From The Bogs of Aughiska’.
The track, which is entitled ‘An Seanchaí’, is the second song on the album and has already started to create a stir within the UK underground and dark-ambient communities.
‘From The Bogs of Aughiska’ is the brainchild of musician and record producer Conor Droney, also known as the Human Jigsaw.
Originally from Lisdoonvarna, where he was half of speedcore duo Drugzilla, he has been working in the record industry in London for nearly a decade.
“I remember Eddie performing in the Spa Wells in Lisdoonvarna when I was growing up and, when it comes to an Irish storyteller, there really isn’t anyone better,” he said.
“I found a piece of him telling a story on Youtube which was perfect for a piece of music I had written. So I wrote him a letter, expecting to hear nothing back, but I get this lovely letter back from him saying I was wel- come to use the piece and the whole thing just grew from there.
“His voice is great, it really brings the story he is telling to life. I mean, this track is over nine minutes long and once you get to the end of it, you just want to go back to the beginning and play it again and again.
“The reception has been great already – we’ve already had a few reviews back and they have all been very positive.”
Dark ambient music is a type of industrial music that features foreboding or discordant sound with usually no lyrics. The songs are typically around 10 minutes long and can often feature sampled speech.
Despite the alternative nature of the project, Eddie was happy to give it his blessing.
“I am always looking for new and different things and it is not a bad thing to try something that you’ve never tried before. Like next month, I’ve been invited to speak in Russia at the University of Moscow. If I can get a visa sorted, that will be an amazing experience – and something that I never thought would happen. So I think it’s better to try out something than not to try it at all,” he said.