The brilliant Celtic band known as Poitin recently took time out from their schedule to answer 5 questions we asked. We hope you enjoy the interview, and be sure to visit Poitin-
www.myspace.com/poitinkapela
www.twitter.com/poitincz
1. When folks think of great Celtic music, it’s fair to say that the Czech Republic is not the first place that comes to mind. Is there a thriving Celtic scene in the Czech Republic?
Fair question! A small, land-locked country in the middle of Europe doesn’t seem to be the most likely place to come across rip-roaring Celtic music, but you live and learn…There’s actually a very strong Celtic music scene here. It must be something to do with the similar roots, or similar energy to Czech folk music. After all, the Czechs are great drinkers- there’s a very strong pub culture. You can walk into almost any Czech pub with a guitar and any other instruments and find a corner to start playing in, no problem. In England, if you did the same, you’d be sent packing pretty sharpish unless it was some kind of organized ‘folk club’. The last I heard, not more than 2 musicians could play together in England unless the pub had a special licence-that means our regular Thursday night sessions would be illegal there! In the Czech Republic there’s more freedom for live music and more acceptance of it. And it’s not just the music. There are some really great dance troupes specializing in Irish and Scottish dancing, such as Rinceori or Coisceim, Celtic music festivals, and we have a fantastic annual Highland Games organized by renowned ‘Scotophile’ Vaclav Rout. And if you’re looking for Celtic inspired music, there’s everything from Celtic inspired goth metal to punk, jazz and traditional. It’s a microcosm of the Celtic music scene.
2. How did Poitin come together? And were all the members of the band previously influenced by Celtic music?
That’s a long story-but to cut it short…fiddler Otik, who was playing guitar in a jazz band at the time, heard something by Mike Oldfield and the Chieftains and was blown away by some of the traditional tunes he heard, so he had to get some kind of band together to play it. He knew a guy who played fiddle, and someone who played the whistle, and things started snowballing. Before he knew it, he had a bloomin’ orchestra! At one point we had fiddle, harp, accordion, guitar, bodhran, 2 singers, 2 whistlers, mandolin…streuth, a tight fit on any stage! They were all Czech, by the way, except the singers who were French and English. The French singer was Neige who sang Breton and French songs and Jeremy, who’s still with us. The present members, Otik (fiddle), Jeremy (vocals, bodhran),Kuba (guitar), Honza (banjo, bouzouki), Sasha (whistles) had all heard and been influenced by Celtic music before joining the band-I think Altan, the Chieftains, Jethro Tull and Steeleye Span could all be mentioned as having a seminal effect.
3. Poitin has quite a discography to be proud of. How can fans get your music? And I hear there’s a ‘best of ‘ collection coming?
A discography to be proud of’- hmm, thanks, sounds nice! It’s true we’ve been really lucky to be included on a couple of compilation albums here in the Czech Republic and on Marc Gunn’s ‘Victims of Irish Music’ and ‘The Best of the Irish and Celtic Music Podcast’ in the USA. But only three of our own new albums in 10 years is a bit measly, don’t you think? I guess it’s because we love our music, but as a hobby. We’re not professional musicians so we’re not ‘forced’ by a contract to put out a new album every 18 months. It takes time (and money) to put out a cd, and both are in limited supply when you’ve got kids, family and a day job! It’s amazing the differences between the albums due to the changing line ups. The first album, ‘Poitín’ is really ‘rootsy’ and has a raw energy. The second, ‘De la Basse Bretagne’, is our ‘Breton’ album featuring Neige before she returned to France and has a powerful melancholy streak, and the third album, ‘Hot Days’ is our ‘sax album’ with the amazing talents of Helena Markova. Fans can get hold of our music either at concerts – I know, that cuts out most of the world outside the Czech Republic!-or on the music site Soundclick, where individual tracks or albums can be downloaded. Or you could even write to us and we’ll sort out something personally. We’re still sorting out re-releasing the first three albums, which have all but sold out, but it’s true, there IS a ‘best of cd’ coming very, very soon which will be available through CD Baby. It’s called ‘Jiggery Pokery’ and it’s a selection of (Jeremy’s) favourites from our albums plus some brand new remixes from ‘Hot Days’ by DSPI http://www.myspace.com/dspiremix . Jeremy kept it secret from the rest of the band ‘cos he knew it would take even longer than it has already to see the light of day, what with in-fighting about what to include or not, cover design and so on.
4. are there plans to tour?
Well, we’re continuously touring (usually at weekends!), but mostly in the Czech Republic. We’ve been to France, Germany, Italy and Poland, and wouldn’t say ‘no’ to America. We seem to have built up quite a following in the US and a tour is starting to look more and more feasible. If there are any music festivals out there in the USA who’d like to bring us over…You never know….
5. What are your thoughts on the Celtic Music community? Who do you listen to? What sites/companies do you reccomend?
Not sure what you mean about the ‘Celtic Music community’. Other musicians? Celtophiles? The Czech Republic seems to have more than it’s fair share of very talented musicians who have a strong affinity for Celtic music. Some say it because the Celts had their roots here, and it’s true there are Celtic archaeological sites that have been excavated here. People coming together, united by a common interest in music, dance and fun seems to be an important underlying thread to the Czech Celtic music community. As far as the internet is concerned, I’ve come across some great Czech language websites dealing with Celtic lore, such as Celtic Forest http://www.celticforest.ic.cz and Bratrstvo Keltu http://www.beltine.cz/ but they ain’t so great for English language speakers. As a resource for tunes, I’d recommend The Session www.thesession.org and for songs The Contemplator www.thecontemplator.com I listen a lot to Accuradio’s Celtic station www.accuradio.com – especially the Traditional Celtic subchannel- sometimes get some great ideas for songs from there. And of course we must mention Marc Gunn’s never ending support for us too with his Irish and Celtic Music Podcast www.celticmusicpodcast.com Oh yes, we know you’re not looking for a plug for 67 Music, but it’s a great show and we love it.
