Cyber Celt is the genre-defying debut album from innovative Irish trio CHASING ABBEY, set for release on 18 September and available to pre-order now on limited edition coloured vinyl, standard vinyl and CD from www.chasingabbey.ie The accompanying CYBER CELT WORLD TOUR begins on 17 September in Dublin and takes in extensive dates across the UK, Europe and the US – many of which are sold out already – before the tour ends in Perth, Australia on 14 December.
From Tullamore in the heart of Ireland, the trio of multi-instrumentalists, producers and vocalists Ronan Bell, Jonathan Byrne and Ted Conway fuse traditional Celtic instrumentation with modern electronic production and are influenced by peers such as Kneecap, Lankum and The Mary Wallopers, artists who use the beautiful language of Gaeilge to deliver their lyrics with maximum weight.
“Kneecap reignited the flame, in a way,” says Ted Conway. “We feel it’s our responsibility to use that to progress our culture and tradition in the same way we’ve been doing it through our music, and it’s often easier for us to express that in our native language.”
Cyber Celt is a coming together of the past, present and future, in which Chasing Abbey reflect on the lessons they can glean from their ancestors – their respect for nature and tradition – while also learning from their mistakes. They infuse their music with a strong political bent, melding themes of pride, defiance, heritage and tradition with messages against corruption, greed and colonialism.
“We have a moral code that we live by – you have to, in these times,” adds Conway. “It’s pretty crazy out there and you’ve got a lot of racism, a lot of hatred, bigotry, sexism, the whole fucking shebang. It feels rampant at the moment. So everybody has a duty to try and stand against it, because we can’t just let it go on. This is the purpose of music, of being an artist.”
Latest single Greedy Pigs stems from this philosophy, influenced by Conway’s time working as a butcher with his uncles and grandfather. It’s a song about people who are wholly consumed by greed, blind to any consequence of suffering of others.
“I noticed there was always one pig that bullied the rest and ate all the food. His greed could not be satisfied. He would eat and eat and eat, and he became massive,” he recalls.“But the thing about that was, he was fast tracking himself to the slaughterhouse. I see a lot of parallels in today’s world – greed for the sake of it, greed that cannot be satisfied or quenched and the song draws on those observations.”
Íorónta, meanwhile, is a song about the oppression of the Irish people and the oppression that still takes place around the world today. The Irish word for ‘ironic’, it points out how those who fight back against colonialism or genocide are routinely labelled ‘terrorists’, and highlights the deep-rooted trauma of peoples who have had their rights, language, culture and history snatched away from them.
“We understand how these systems work and how the oppressors manipulate the narrative to make it seem like those they are oppressing are the criminals,” says Conway. “So there’s a solidarity between the Irish and others, like the people of Palestine, who are going through that today.”
Cyber Celt may be their debut album, but Chasing Abbey already have a worldwide fanbase, built from a decade of single and EP releases – earning awards and multiple-platinum records while reaching over one million followers online – and their incredible live show, which is as much a spiritual awakening as it is a concert performance. The trio mix soaring energy with a message of unity and social justice that drives home the feeling that this is more than just a show.
Greedy Pigs WATCH
Seachain WATCH
Full dates as follows. Tickets: https://www.chasingabbey.ie/pages/tour-dates
SEPTEMBER
Thu 17 DUBLIN Vicar Street (LOW TICKETS)
Fri 18 BELFAST Limelight (SOLD OUT)
Fri 25 TUCSON, AZ Club Congress
Sat 26 PHOENIX, AR Valley Bar (SOLD OUT)
Sun 27 SAN DIEGO, CA Casbah (SOLD OUT)
Tue 29 SANTA ANA, CA Constellation Room
Wed 30 SAN FRANCISCO, CA Independent
OCTOBER
Fri 02 SALT LAKE CITY, UT Urban Lounge
Sat 03 DENVER, CO Marquis Theater (SOLD OUT)
Sun 04 KANSAS CITY, MO Warehouse on Broadway
Tue 06 ST PAUL, MN Turf Club (LOW TICKETS)
Thu 08 CHICAGO, IL Bottom Lounge
Fri 09 MILWAUKEE, WI Falcon Ball
Sat 10 DETROIT, MI Lager House (SOLD OUT)
Sun 11 CLEVELAND, OH Grog Shop
Tue 13 COLUMBUS, OH A&R Bar
Wed 14 PITTSBURGH, PA Thunderbird Café & Music Hall
Fri 16 WASHINGTON, DC Union Stage
Sat 17 BROOKLYN, NY Warsaw
Sun 18 PHILADELPHIA, PA Underground Arts
Tue 20 DURHAM, NC Motorco Music Hall
Thu 22 NASHVILLE, TN Basement East
Sat 24 ATLANTA, GA Terminal West
Sun 25 ORLANDO, FL Social
Tue 27 HOUSTON, TX White Oak Music Hall
Wed 28 AUSTIN, TX Antone’s
Thu 29 DALLAS, TX House of Blues
NOVEMBER
Tue 03 NOTTINGHAM Rescue Rooms
Wed 04 LONDON Scala
Fri 06 HAARLEM, NL Patronaat
Sat 07 PARIS, FR Les Etoiles
Sun 08 BRIGHTON Patterns
Tue 10 MANCHESTER Deaf Institute (LOW TICKETS)
Wed 11 LEEDS Brudenell Social Club (VENUE UPGRADE)
Thu 12 BIRMINGHAM O2 Academy 2
Fri 13 OXFORD O2 Academy 2
Sun 15 GLASGOW SWG3 Warehouse (LOW TICKETS)
Tue 17 LIVERPOOL O2 Academy 2
Wed 18 CARDIFF Clwb Ifor Bach
Fri 20 BERLIN, DE Pratchwerk
Sat 21 MILAN, IT Q Club
DECEMBER
Thu 10 MELBOURNE, AU Espy
Fri 11 BRISBANE, AU Crowbar
Sat 12 SYDNEY, AU PADDO RSL
Mon 14 PERTH, AU Amplifier Bar
