Captivating Shamrock airs
by Mahes Perera
Captivating Shamrock airs kept
the audience rooted to their seats or standing in the aisle when the Aer
Lingus Musical Society presented their programme on St. Patrick’s Day
(March 17) at the lounge of Cinnamon Lakeside Colombo.
 Watching the senior musicians perform and the young dancers go
through their routines with lightning speed you were mesmerized by the
folk culture of Ireland which was served out in large doses to an
appreciative audience who applauded with enthusiasm.
The orchestra/singers featured two harps, two guitars, banjos, piano
accordion, the uilleann pipe and the harmonica.
The songs were shared amongst the musicians who gave the folk tunes
an authentic air with the timbre of their voices. Don Kinsella the
leader of the outfit and a singer too, commented that ‘this time around
our repertoire leant on current songs that are heard in Ireland which
basically reflected the folk idiom of the country and modern ballads.
We are 16 in the package and our dancers, three girls and two boys
are from school but they are very professional in their art”.
The dancers displayed a mix of tap, the Irish jig and modern ballet
with lightning speed and were proud of their choreography which they
claim bears the identity IRISH. Mention must be made of the soprano
singer Mary Conroy whose enthusiastic delivery was quite fascinating.
If you went for the performance hoping to hear familiar songs, like
‘Irish Eyes Are Smiling’ “Kilarney” or ‘Cockles and Mussels’ it wasn’t
so. Some of the songs that were sung ‘Clare to here,’ ‘Irish Molly’,
‘Song For Ireland’ ‘The Spanish Lady’, ‘Black Velvet Band’, ‘Marble
Halls’ and more, though somewhat unfamiliar were typical of Ireland.
Adding colour to the whole, were the young dancers with their
intricate dance steps that proved their prowess in their art that left
the audience asking for more. It was an enjoyable evening and we hope
music lovers and dance afficionados will have further opportunities to
enjoy performances such as these.
Underground scene
 The Underground scene has been happening lately and
here we asked Chathuranga of Funeral in Heaven for the latest banter.
RISE AND ASSAULT is a metal gig that will happen today, which will be
marking one of the FINEST extreme metal shows which are set to be on
this year in Sri Lanka. This date will mark the re-launching of Fallen
Grace’s debut EP, Rise and Assault. Joining the celebration will be
FUNERAL IN HEAVEN, PARANOID EARTHLING and 5MINUTES APART. The gig is set
to happen at Clancy’s today at 4pm onwards.
*** ARISE - The Sri Lankan Metal Documentary is also set to be
released on DVD through Hela Distributions next month! This documentary
which is the first of its kind to be aired in Sri Lanka will feature
FALLEN GRACE, FUNERAL IN HEAVEN, CANNABIS and MERLOCK, where their
average lives as Metalheads and opinions are exposed! Trailers can be
viewed on Youtube.com and the official site, www.arisethemetaldoc.com.
This documentary is being put together by two ardent fans in the scene
namely, DRG and Naveen Marasinghe.
 *** FUNERAL IN HEAVEN finalized everything with our record label,
Legion of Death Records yesterday. We have finally submitted the master
tapes and artwork and finally all of it is on its way to the pressing
plant, and if things go smoothly, the EP is set to be released in ONE
months’ time! A world-wide release date and a separate release date for
Sri Lanka will be soon announced.
Meanwhile, Funeral also started recording sessions for the debut
album which will be released early next year as we’re yet to finalize
our sessions for 7 new songs!
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