Last week our friend SWC named Gogol Bordello on his latest competition. That is enough to give them again a place at this little place in the net. Formed by Eugene Hütz in 1999 in NYC as a punk-rock band and inspired by Romani and Ukrainian music mixed with punk and dub and adding traditional instruments like accordion and violin to their sound. I saw them live almost 40 years ago in a small venue around my place and was excited of their presence. Eastern gypsy sound meet punk and it was a pleasure to see them. They had so much power in their sound and could compared to Les Negretes Vertes or Nyah Fearties. It is music I didn't listen to for a long time but still fascinated of these elementary sound.
Following yesterday's post I remembered another band that impressed me much in the early 80's. Nyah Fearties were a Scottish music band from East Ayrshire who created a unique brand of anarchic folk music in the early 80's. Wikipedia tells:
Combining the rich traditional music and storytelling culture of its native Ayrshire, with a jarring punk ethos, madcap humour and improvised acoustic instrumentation (though usually amplified), the band made a significant contribution to the British folk-punkscene of the 1980s and 1990s.
It often tested live audiences with a feedback-laced aural assault, more akin to experimental rock groups like Velvet Underground or The Jesus and Mary Chain, than an acoustic folk act. In addition, Nyah Fearties were known for utilising all manner of improvised and imaginative musical paraphernalia.
They were not another folk-punk band like The Pogues or The Men They Couldn't Hang. Their music was more raw and grounded than the other ones I named. A perfect mixture of classic folk ingredients added with heavy influences of northern industrial sound. I once saw them live in a very small venue close to my place and it was one of those concerts you went to expecting nothing and you get recompensed with an unforgettable gig.
As far as I know Nyah Fearties means not afraid of anything - if I am wrong please correct me.
Like Adam I cleaned up my hard drive and found a file that I've forgotten over years. I still remember this record but I couldn't find in my collection any more. Maybe I borrowed it to my brother years ago and didn't got it back again. Anyway, this post is about a band most of my friends could agree with years ago. Nyah Fearties were one more band from Scotland that were great long time ago but had like many others no commercial success. They were not another folk-punk band like The Pogues or The Men They Couldn't Hang. Their music was more raw and grounded than the ones I named. It was a perfect mixture of classic folk ingredients added with heavy influences of northern industrial sound. I once saw them once live in a small club close to my place. It was one of these concerts you went to and expected nothing and you get recompensed with an unforgettable gig. Davy and Stephen Wiseman have played as if it was to her the last time. Seldom saw two guys on the stage playing with this enthusiasm. If you are a little bit of low-fi folk-punk give them a listen.
