Gaelic Storm

Gaelic Storm released their fifth album "How Are We Getting Home?" in August 2004 (Lost Again Records/MRI/Ryko) which debuted at #3 on the Billboard World Music Charts and #10 on the Billboard Heatseekers Chart. Containing 15 fresh new tracks of the unique Gaelic Storm flavor that has made them an international fan favorite, the album includes co-writes with multiple Grammy-winning songwriters and showcases some of the strongest material the band has released to date. Recorded with producer Mark Miller (who has also worked with Garth Brooks, Emmylou Harris, Daniel O'Donnell, Mary Black, Sean Keane, Dolores Keane) at legendary Jack's Tracks studio in Nashville, TN, " How Are We Getting Home?" also features an appearance by famed folk-songstress Nanci Griffith.

Touring aggressively and showcasing their unique high energy Celtic music, playing over 125 dates a year, Gaelic Storm routinely breaks attendance and merchandise sales records, pushing their popularity beyond the World Music genre and into the mainstream music consciousness. Gaelic Storm performed on The Rock Boat 2004 along with mainstream rock bands such as Cowboy Mouth, Tonic, Sister Hazel and Gavin Degraw. Gaelic Storm out sold all other bands in CD sales and has already been invited back for The Rock Boat 2005. Gaelic Storm has been featured on ESPN’s Cold Pizza. The band broke the attendance record previously held by Alan Jackson at the Albuquerque, NM Bio-Park. They continue to headline some of the largest Celtic and Folk festivals in the world including Festival Interceltique in Lorient, Brittany, the Pittsburgh Irish Festival, Dublin Irish Festival and Celtic Fest Chicago.

With 3 popular albums under their belt, Gaelic Storm released their 4th record, SPECIAL RESERVE, on August 19, 2003 (Higher Octave Records/Virgin-EMI) and quickly reached #2 on the Billboard World Music Charts, continuing their un-broken streak of chart-topping success that started with their first release in 1998. Since their self-titled first album (#5 on Billboard's World Music Chart) and their appearance in the film Titanic, Gaelic Storm continues to thunder onto stages around the world. Showcasing their unique brand of high energy Celtic music, the band has become a crowd favorite, touring relentlessly while breaking attendance and merchandise records worldwide.

IIn 1997, Gaelic Storm was catapulted out of their formative pub haunts by an appearance in the blockbuster film Titanic. Cast as the "party band" in the steerage scene, they landed the part while still drinking pints and playing weekly at O'Brien's, a pub in their adopted home-town of Santa Monica, CA. After the film’s release, the band was met by huge crowds on their first tour. However, they still pride themselves on remaining as accessible as ever and sharing “a pint” with fans whenever possible.

A mini-documentary about Gaelic Storm airs regularly on Cinemax, and the band has appeared numerous times on national and international TV. Perhaps the best indication of Gaelic Storm's newfound international success came when Michael Flatley (of Lord of the Dance fame) met Gaelic Storm vocalist and songwriter Patrick Murphy in Murphy's hometown, Cork City, Ireland. "I told him he did a superb job of advancing Irish culture throughout the world, like the Chieftains have for years," Murphy says, "and he said, 'In fairness to you, you've probably introduced Irish music to five minutes of fame with that little film clip.'"

On St. Patrick's Day, 1996, co-founders Patrick Murphy of Cork City, Ireland (vocals, piano, accordion, spoons, harmonica) and New Yorker Steve Wehmeyer (bodhran, vocals, digeridoo) officially joined forces with Steve Twigger of Coventry, England (guitar, mandolin, bouzouki, vocals), at O'Brien's pub in Santa Monica, California. Their first performance was such a hit that the crowd refused to let them off the stage for the next act. Adding additional players, the band has fine-tuned their line-up to this day. Currently, Gaelic Storm also includes: Ryan Lacey on drums and world percussion (graduated twice from the Los Angeles Music Academy, once for hands and once for sticks), Ellery Klein on fiddle (who holds a MA degree in Traditional Irish Music from the University of Limerick) and Pete Purvis of Merrickville, Ontario on Highland Pipes (a Grade 1 piper who toured with award winning pipe bands including the Braemar Pipe Band and played at 2000 Syndey Olympics).

http://www.gaelicstorm.com