The Elders

Hometown: Kansas City, USA
Musical Style: Celtic Rock
Releases:
2000 CD - The Elders
2002 CD - Pass it on Down
2003 DVD - Hoolie Poppin'
2004 CD - American Wake
The Elders joined together in 1999 to play music that has its roots in Irish jigs and reels and have since become one of the fastest rising Celtic acts in the country.

The band appears frequently in its home town area and tours nationally and internationally during festival season with promotional appearances at radio and television. This year's stops will include Albuquerque, Atlanta, Bridgeport, Boston, Chicago, New Jersey, New York many towns and cities in Colorado, Nebraska, Ohio, Illinois, Texas and Missouri. The Elders toured Ireland for the second time in September 2003, playing universities, pubs and ballrooms. Stops included Dublin, Galway, Kerry, Cork, Shannon, Wexford, Arklow, and Avoca.During the course of 2004, the band will have played in front of over 400,000 and have had airplay at over 100 stations at 3 formats, including commercial and non-commercial AAA and Americana.

A new cd entitled American Wake was released in the US on April 6, 2004. It is distributed nationally through Burnside Distribution and is available at Tower and Borders locations. The music is a blending of traditional and contemporary instrumentation with Celtic rhythms, melodies and a storytelling lyrical style - delivered by Irish born lead singer, Ian Byrne.

The Elders speak of generations of immigrants and address their heritage through their songs and stories. As with their first two releases, American Wake is filled with original songs about Irish history - distant, recent - real and imagined.
The title song on the new cd refers to the mass exodus caused by the Irish potato famine in the 1840s - Families would gather at the docks for one last chance to say good-bye and pray for their loved ones departing for America, a gathering known as an "American Wake". Another song entitled Moore Street Girls, recalls memories of the boisterous street venders on a well-known market street in Dublin.

Saint Kevin is about the man who helped establish Christianity in Ireland in the fifth century. In the song, St. Kevin comes to life and steps into a pub for a pint and a chat with the locals. To hear samples; http://www.eldersmusic.com/sounds.html
The Elders have an ever-expanding fan base - people of all ages, from all walks of life, many who follow the band from gig to gig, sometimes driving for hundreds of miles to see their energetic performances.

Last year the band played to a sold out (2000 seat) Uptown Theatre in Kansas City on St. Patrick's weekend. They also set a record for merchandise sales at the Ford Amphitheatre in Vail, Colorado.

In February The Elders appeared on The Woodsongs Radio Hour which is heard by over 600,000 listeners worldwide on over 400 stations. PASTE Magazine featured the group on its February sampler CD - PASTE reviewer; Brian Baker gave American Wake a 3 & 1/2 star review. -see review below- The band was voted "Best World Music Act" by THE PITCH Magazine (Kansas City).

The Elders are in discussions with film companies in Australia and Ireland for placement of music in several movie projects. In addition a new CD will be available this fall, featuring live versions of songs from all three CDs, as well as some new material. ESPN was in the studio with the band last winter, shooting live footage for national use in ESPN Outdoor features; the group's recordings will also be used as background music for additional programming.