Search - Dervish :: Playing With Fire

In Ireland, both north and south, there's a generation who has grown up powerfully aware of other music, such as punk or The Pogues, techno and jungle--more and more they're interested in playing the old music, and they're investing in it with muscle it never had. Bands like Nomos, Solas, and now add Dervish to the list. Given their whirling of a tune, it's an apt moniker. Fiery musicianship balanced with Cathy Jordan's delicate vocals give something that holds onto yesterday while stepping into tomorrow. And, in "I Buried My Wife and Danced on Top of Her," they've exhumed (no pun intended; well, maybe) one of the great song titles--although, if it appeals, gentlemen, wait until she's dead first. The fact that bands like this exist, playing not with reverence but with fire in their bellies, shows that this tradition (and many others around the globe) is still evolving, and can be as relevant as anything else. --Chris Nickson