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Diary Dates

Funknation presents The New Mastersounds – Friday 28 October
The Donkey

Funknation presents the one and only The New Mastersounds have been delighting audiences with their infectious brand of funky soul-jazz since they formed in Leeds in 1999. For the first five years of the band’s career they were regulars at the Jazz Café in London, before they began to turn heads on the funk scene in the US, where guitarist/producer/bandleader Eddie Roberts now lives. For over a decade they have been a staple act of the late-night scene during New Orleans’ annual Jazz Fest.

The Mary Wallopers – Friday 4 November
The Soundhouse

Brothers Charles and Andrew Hendy and their friend Sean McKenna formed The Mary Wallopers in Dundalk as a three-piece ballad group traveling the length and breadth of Ireland singing and collecting songs. Their early live performances exuded a raw energy and their first five track EP – 2019’s A Mouthful of The Mary Wallopers – perfectly captured their sound and ethos, one filled with warmth, intimacy, chaos and enough sparks ready to light any fire. The band recently expanded to a seven piece for live performances.

TV Priest – Tuesday 8 November
Firebug

TV Priest are a band from the outskirts of London who have been firm friends since their youth, first making music together as teenagers. They have been described as ‘….awash in a spectral sound somewhere between post-punk, prog and kraut-rock, the band cite the likes of PiL, Stereolab, Ought and The Fall among their formative influences’.

Six Little Fingers – Friday 11 November
Duffy’s Bar

Although not a tribute act in the truest sense, 6LF perform with the same power and passion that has ensured songs such as Alternative Ulster, Suspect Device, At The Edge and Tin Soldiers (amongst others) have stood the test of time over the past forty-plus years.

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PREVIEW: The Mary Wallopers

Described as The Clancy Brothers meets John Lydon, The Mary Wallopers are heading to The Soundhouse on Friday 4 November, fresh from releasing Cod Liver Oil + The Orange Juice from their forthcoming debut album.

Brothers Charles and Andrew Hendy and their friend Sean McKenna formed The Mary Wallopers as a three-piece ballad group traveling the length and breadth of Ireland singing & collecting songs. Their early live performances exuded a raw energy and their first five track EP – 2019’s A Mouthful of The Mary Wallopers – perfectly captured their sound and ethos, one filled with warmth, intimacy, chaos and enough sparks ready to light any fire. Following their early success, the band recently expanded to a seven piece for live performances.

Cod Liver Oil + The Orange Juice is a Scottish song made popular by Hamish Imlach in the ’60s. It was written by Ron Clark and Carl MacDougal as a parody of the song Virgin Mary Had A Little Baby, which was big in folk scenes at the time. It was originally recorded for the 2019 EP (A Mouthful of Mary Wallopers) but it never received a proper release so a new version was recorded for their debut album. A definite fan favourite, this ode to drunken revelry and its associated romantic pursuits showcases the Wallopers talent for picking a great song and making it their own.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F14dIAkXtvs&t=1s

Cod Liver Oil + The Orange Juice is the second track taken from The Mary Wallopers forthcoming self-titled debut album, due for release digitally and on CD on 28 October via BC Records. The album is the culmination of several years of the Wallopers touring all corners of Ireland, collecting tradition songs before dusting them down and reimagining them in their Dundalk rehearsal space. The result is a record that perfectly channels an island’s musical history whilst never once sounding overawed by the task in hand.

Catch The Mary Wallopers live at The Soundhouse on Friday 4 November. Tickets are on sale HERE.

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WEEKLY PLAYLIST

This week we’re having a listen to some of the acts you can see live in Leicester over the coming weeks.

Have a listen and get in touch to tell us which tracks you’re loving.