news
10th March 2011
Hi folks! Damian here, it’s all go here in Big Banana Studios (i.e Soggy’s house) where we’re having an exciting time working on Beoga album number 4. There’s a good healthy din and some very surprising noises coming out of the surrounding rooms, bathroom included (see pic).
All being well our new music will be on the shelves before ye all go to Bundoran for your summer holidays. We’ll be doing a few launch gigs round Ireland, here’s a link to the tour dates www.beogamusic.com/tourdates. Sure why not organize someone to mind the children and we’ll have the craic!
Back in January we kicked off the year with a gig at Temple Bar Trad-fest in Dublin. The Button Factory or as Eamon’s father called it ‘The Button Hole’ was the venue and it was rammed tight as a Cavan accountant. Ciorras were a hard act to follow but with a lively audience we settled in and had a brilliant time. Thanks to all who came along and made some noise, ye are mighty.
The 2 weeks leading up to the concert were... let’s say ‘eventful’ with several radio interviews and an appearance on RTE 1’s The View..... and of course we might have to mention our “naked” photo-shoot on the streets of Temple Bar. The resulting shots blasted all the newspapers the next day from the Daily Star to the Independent and everything in between, much to the horror of Niamh’s Daddy! Thanks to Kieran Hanrahan and Temple Bar Traders for having us at the festival.
We’ve just arrived home from a week of sell out concerts in Switzerland and Germany. Danke schon alles and a special thanks to our sound lady, Chloe Nagle who is both a wonderfully talented engineer and a bad influence - our favorite combination.
Next stop is Luxembourg where we’ll be joining our friends Liadan and the Red Hot Chilli Pipers for a night at Zeltic in Dudelange. From there, it’s off to London’s Trafalgar Square on 13th March for the outdoor St. Patrick’s Day celebrations. There we are privileged to share the bill with the a host of artists including Damien Dempsey and Liam O’Maonlai. It should be a good one! More English gigs in Norwich on 14th, Scanlon’s Irish Club, Birmingham on the 16th and London’s, Hammersmith Irish Centre on 17th before we fly the Beoga bus all the way to Split for our first ever Croatian gig. After that we’re off to France for a couple of shows to end a very busy St. Patrick’s week.
So that’s all the biz for now but we’ll keep you posted. Must dash, I’m on sandwich duty, a job of the upmost importance here at Big Banana.
Catch ya soon! Dee
6th January 2011
Happy New Year folks. For those with the Irish telly, look out for Beoga performing live on RTE1’s Arts Programme ‘The View’ on 25th January.
21st December 2010
Hey all, It’s Sean Og here resting up at home, with all the end of year craic...
We’re delighted to have just heard that Beoga have been nominated for “The German Record Critics Award”. Yay!
But firstly back to October and a packed house in Dolan’s Limerick was the scene for Ireland’s first ever trad fancy dress concert, aka Beoga’s Halloween Hooley. And what a night it was... everyone came along in fantastic costumes and the place was pumping! Ye’s are all mad! As you can see below, Beoga were kitted out with Hollywood movie themed outfits. Eamon also briefly appeared in a dancing 
dress and treated us to his version of Irish dancing - there’s no denying he has the curls for the job, but sadly that’s where his dance talents end! Our highlight of the night was when we were joined by Brona Graham for a uncanny impersonation of Cathal Hayden. We now realise that Brona has been spending way too much time in Haydens bar recently!
Best costume of the night (as voted by the audience) was our good pal Kieran Munnelly of the Munnelly band, with a very convincing William Wallace. Sincere thanks to Mick Dolan and all at Dolan’s in Limerick for helping to pull the whole thing off. Here’s a few snapshots of the hooley captured by our good friend, DJ Baz O’Kane.
We’d a great night also in Cork for the Folk Festival, followed immediately by our first performance in Finland at the Irish Festival of Oulu. It’s the northern-most Irish Festival in the world and really is worth checking out. We took 3 flights to get there and Damian got the heebeejeebees from all the flying. But he was easily pacified with some beer. Special thanks to Brent Cassidy and all the committee, who helped me find a replacement guitar when mine didn’t arrive in Finland!
We then had a special performance in Disneyland at the opening ceremony of the European Irish Dancing Festival (ECIDF), where we were joined onstage by Mickey Mouse and the wife. Mickey seemed a little quiet, we think he might have felt intimidated by another very impressive set of ears onstage (Yes, our Damian has a great pair of lugs!) Backstage Eamon picked up a few tips from Riverdance star Brendan De Gallai, so look out for some better moves at next years Halloween hooley!
November saw us back travelling the familiar autobahns in Germany, from top to bottom and down into Switzerland. As usual, we appreciated the friendly audiences, great venues, good food and the odd weiss beer! And as is becoming a custom, we called in to our ˜home from home’, to our good friends Gudrun Walther and Juergen Treyz from the band Cara. A mighty evening’s craic was had... followed by terrible hangovers next day! Chloe Nagle kindly agreed to be our sound engineer for the German tour, here’s some great photos she snapped along the way
After three weeks in Germany we flew home through England, and stopped off for concerts in Selby and then down to Ilford, Essex, where we were joined onstage for a few sets by a great friend of ours, and a fantastic box player, Liam O’Sullivan. Mighty stuff. Then it was back home in time to finish the year off at home in Belfast to a full house in An Droichead.
So that’s it for Beoga’s 8th year. We’ve had a good one and I hope you have too. Thanks to all our hard working Agents, to Compass Records and everyone who has come to see us. We are looking forward to 2011 and starting work on the fourth Beoga album in January, so hopefully we’ll be launching it somewhere near you in a few short months!
Merry Christmas from us all and see you in 2011!
Soggy
23rd September 2010
Halloween Hooley
Beoga are back in Limerick on 28th October for their eagerly awaited first Halloween fancy dress concert! Known for their innovation, fresh creative energy and sense of fun and adventure, Beoga are all set to host the party of the year, trad style. Prizes for best costumes on the night. €18/€15 if in fancy dress. Late bar and Dj after the gig! Advance tickets at www.dolanspub.com
2nd September 2010
What a Summer!
Hi all, Niamh here to fill you in on all the thrills and spills that has been Beoga’s summer. It’s been a blast!
July saw us pop over to our neighbours on the Isle of Mann for the Inter Celtic Festival, followed by a great week in Italy. We played in beautiful towns around the country with plenty of sun, great food and fine wine. We also managed to squeeze in a few hours at the beach, which produced some exceptional examples of us Irish trying to get a sun tan and failing miserably (yes, I mean me – tomato is not a good colour on me.). Back on home turf, Scariff Harbour Festval was a great day out for us, too, with an gig in the town centre. My Irish dancing attempts weren’t overly impressive at the outdoor ceili, but the real Clare experts danced into the wee hours to the great Tulla Ceili Band. Mighty craic!
No sooner had we the clothes washed and we were off again to Holland, Belgium and Germany for a great few days of what our Europeans friends do so well- outdoor festivals. Folkwoods, Ham and the Festwoche in Kempton were all fantastic, in particular the latter where we were joined by some wonderful dancers from Germany and home.
We had a few days to recover and then we hit the All Ireland Fleadh for a weekend of madness. We weren’t disappointed! Congratulations to Matin O Donoghue and all the fleadh committee for setting up a great festival in Cavan town. It’s hard to believe it’s been 5 years since we’ve all been lucky enough to be at home for a fleadh, but it was worth the wait and we were delighted to be invited to play. Our Special Youth’ concert on Friday was great fun. Livetrad.com streamed some of it live on the internet. Above is one of the sets from the gig - more to follow this week on Livetrad.com. The night time concert at the Cavan Crystal was one of the craziest gigs we’ve ever done. Great to see the Irish still know how to party, you guys are mental mad! Thanks to everyone who came along and supported us, I can’t WAIT for next year!
We’ve all been thinking about our next album over the summer, too, and are working away with some new tunes and songs. So hopefully we will have a brand new record on the shelves next year. Keep an eye out for updates.
So as the summer draws to a close, it’s time to take a wee break and get ready for the next blast. I’m back in Lovely Limerick for a few weeks of down time. Up North, Soggy’s brand spanking new recording studio is up and running. Our good friends The Raparees, have trusted Liam with the production of their new album, and are the first band to have a run out in Soggys ‘Lovely Big Banana Studios’. I hear it’s all going great! Damian is on the golf course working on the tan and Eamon is in hiding so as to properly prepare for his annual holiday to the Electric Picnic (Picnic goers, beware of this curly nordy, he’s ready for ye!). Hopefully he’ll return in one piece, as we’ll need to be in the full of our health for the fast approaching Autumn. We’re off to Italy again at the end of the month, followed by some gigs around Ireland, including Cork Folk Festival and a Beoga’s Fancy Dress Hallowe’en Hooley in Dolan’s, Limerick on October 28th - we can’t wait for that one! We’re also hitting Finland for the Irish festival of Oulu Irish, as well as a three week stint in Germany in November. Check out our gig page for details on where we’ll be.
Hopefully see you all somewhere along the road.
Take it easy folks, until next time...
Niamhy
24th July 2010 2010 ALL IRELAND FLEADH - PRESS RELEASE
Beoga to bring the “X Factor” to Fleadh 2010 in Cavan!
Nyah Fringe shows, Friday 20th August, Town Hall Theatre 4.00pm and Cavan Crystal Hotel 11pm
With Fleadh 2010 in Cavan already promising an unprecedented, action-packed feast of hi-octane shows and innovative events, the news that Beoga — the pop stars of trad music — are coming to town has to be the icing on the cake, for younger audiences especially.
That’s right, the kids just love Beoga, the trad band with the “X Factor”, and that’s why not one, but two Nyah Festival fringe shows by the band are being put on during the All-Ireland Fleadh, including an early evening special youth performance.
Friday 20th August is the date to keep free for anyone wanting to catch the electrifying five-piece in action, beginning with a special Youth Performance from 4pm–5.30pm in the Town Hall Theatre, Cavan Town, a venue that will be hosting Fleadh Club gigs all weekend. What better way to warm the fine old building up than with a trademark red-hot performance from the band the whole trad world is talking about these days? This early show for younger fans is one that’s bound to inspire more than a few musicians of the future!
Beoga will be in action again later on Friday with a nighttime 11pm–1am show at the Cavan Crystal Hotel, Dublin Road, Cavan, and don’t be surprised if some of the pundits opt to go for broke and take in both shows! These guys never fail to inject the adrenalin and lift the spirits — Beoga are a must-see for the young and the young at heart as well! Support on the night from Fleadh Hon President Seamus Fay, Cavan lilter and Kavan & Savannah Donohoe harp/flute.
Brimming over with talent, the band in full flight often features the duelling accordions of Damian McKee and multi-instrumentalist Seán Óg Graham, backed up with by a driving rhythm section made upof keyboards genius Liam Bradley and four times all-Ireland bodhrán champ Eamon Murray. Topped off with a touch of style and panache from singer and fiddle player Niamh Dunne, the Beoga experience is always one to remember.
Tickets are priced at €15 for both of these Nyah fringe shows, and can be had at the venue doors — but book early at Multisound Cavan (049-4361312), to be sure to be sure!
1st July 2010
Hey folks, hope you’re all enjoying some good weather there. It’s Liam here with the news...
In late June the Beogas returned home from possibly our most enjoyable tour so far... 6 fantastic weeks in Thailand, Ne
w Zealand and Australia. We met some great new friends along the way, bumped into a few old ones, played memorable concerts to full houses, including Port Arlington’s National Celtic Festival and Nelson’s Ceol Aneas and we were privileged to see some of the finest scenery on earth.
Wairoa College in New Zealand hosted a traditional Maori ceremony for the band, with the College Rugby team performing their Haka for us. Hair-raising stuff! (for those lucky enough to have hair). In return we played a few tunes for them, but in the end there was only one thing we could offer of comparable intensity and involving similar facial contortions... Eamon’s bodhran solo!
It was a diverse couple of months weather-wise, with sunshine, storms and snow at times, but from 
swimming in hot springs, bungee jumping and skydiving at NZ’s Lake Taupo to Oz’s Surfer’s Paradise we had a ball. At our shows there were a few surprises, at the Wellington gig one audience member came up and performed 30 handclap push-ups onstage (drunk people will do anything for a Beoga t-shirt sometimes!), in Hastings a kindergarten class sang Molly Malone for us, and In Melbourne we were delighted to join Damien Howard and the Ploughboys. Throughout the tour we were also entertained by world class Irish dancers. We had a few radio and TV stops as well. Here’s a link to Beoga’s appearance on Good Morning New Zealand.
Huge thanks to everyone who came along and especially to our good friend Gerry Paul from Grada, who put the whole tour together. Thanks also to Cultur Eireann for their much valued support. Hopefully we’ll make it back down under in 2012 - we can’t wait!
After two very short days back home it was off again, to Folk im Schlosshof. This is Germany’s largest folk festival and we had a great audience and atmosphere for the show. After us it was a privilege to watch The Dubliners take to the stage - an hour and a half of nostalgia from living legends!
Next up, on 4th July, is our second trip of the year to Dublin’s Temple Bar, for a special Independence Day afternoon Hooley. Then on the 18th July comes our first Isle of Man trip, to the Inter Celtic festival in Peel. We finish off July with a week of gigs in Italy. In August look out for us in Germany, Holland and Belgium, but also Scariff, Co Clare and not forgetting the big one... the All Ireland Fleadh on 20th August! We have two concerts that day in the Farnham Arms Hotel, one at 4pm (children allowed) and the second at 9.30pm.
So that’s all the craic for now. We are starting to plan Beoga’s fourth album, with a release hopefully in 2011. More about that soon, but if you have any suggestions for us, feel free to drop us an e-mail at info@beogamusic.com.
Cheers, and maybe we’ll see you over the summer!
Liam
10th May 2010
Hey Folks,
How the flip are ye? Eamon here, the most eloquent of news page writers. So it's been all go here in 'Camp Beoga'. We had a blast last weekend at the 'Feile Oriel' in Monaghan. Last year we closed the festival with a midnight concert and we were back in the same slot again this year. It was a mental night, with people dancing on tables, children being flung about the place, general bedlam and one of the best nights in a long time. A big thank you to all the headers that came along an packed the place out.
We're off to Luxembourg tomorrow for a show at the Luxembourg military tattoo, which should be good. Also on the bill are the Red Hot Chilli Pipers and the popular Luxembourg band Dreamcatcher, who we will be playing a few numbers with. Provided this volcano in Iceland behaves itself... it's been coughing and spluttering and ruining peoples travel plans for too long now. So Icelandic volcano, “LESS OF IT, OR I’M TELLING ME DA” and you don't want that.
On Thursday Beoga makes our biggest journey to date. We're off to New Zealand and Australia (via Bangkok, just for a look around you see). It's our first trip to that side of the globe so we can't wait. Check out our 'tour dates' and tell all your friends down under to come along, so we can all do crocodile dundee and Rolf Harris impressions, it'll be a real hoot... Sheila
So keep an eye on the website and facebook for our updates from down under. See ye all over the summer months. I'm off to pack.
10th March 2010
Hi folks from sunny Barre in Vermont, where our USA tour is in full swing. Check out this TV ad for Beoga in Washington’s National Geographic on 15th March. http://www.weta.org/tv/local/aroundtown and Eamon’s early morning radio interview with WEEU for our Reading show next week.
4th March 2010
Hey folks,
Big bad Magoo (Damian) pushing ink once more. I would just like to start off this update by thanking all the people involved in the organising and the partaking of my recent surprise 40th Birthday bash. It was truly an unbelievable weekend with the most amazing people I have the privilege to call friends.
It all started on 20th February (and a month before my real birthday) and I was under the impression I was flying to 
England for two more Beoga gigs. Why would I think otherwise, when I saw ‘fake’ flight details, website entries and contracts for the said concerts... in fact three months of deception! Anyway, as I arrived at Soggy’s house to collect him, I was ambushed by two characters, one dressed as Homer Simpson and other was like something out of a horror movie”. Before running off into the distance, they handed me an envelope of instructions leading me up the road to a red bus with another cleverly disguised driver who delivered me to a room full of friends and family from near and far... the outcome was 2 days of partying, games, beer, tunes, a ‘How well do you know Damian McKee quiz’, more beer and a visit to my favourite restaurant (KFC!) in the middle for good measure… EPIC.
So, enough about me. Beoga have started 2010 on a great note with shows at the Temple Bar Trad Fest in Dublin and Feile an Earraigh in Belfast, where we joined the wonderful Lau onstage. We also played to great audiences in Oswestry, Fareham, Newcastle, Warrington, London, York and back home in Strabane. As I write we are kicking off our 2 week eastern USA tour in New Jersey, with a double bill concert along with our great friends Cara.
On St Patricks Day itself we fly home for the huge celebrations in Omagh Town Square. Fingers crossed for some warmer weather that day!
In other news, we are delighted and honoured that the Irish Echo (America’s most widely read Irish American paper) have ranked ‘The Incident’ album no. 4 in the top albums of 2009. We’re looking forward to playing some exciting venues and new destinations later this year, but more news about that soon. That’s all from me for now. Hopefully we’ll see some of you good folk in the next while on our travels.
Take care,
Magoo
27th January 2010
Beoga play the Temple Bar tradfest this Thursday 28th January. Listen to Beoga live on the RTE Radio 1 Arena programme, 26th January 2010
http://www.rte.ie/radio/liveplayer2_av.html?1_real,http://dynamic.rte.ie/av/live/radio/radio1.smil,real,200
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
news
Email: info@beogamusic.com