Ireland’s The Eskies bring their high-energy brand of folk noir/gypsy jazz/sea shanty and swaggering stage spectacle to Australia in 2018.
The band has been rousing ballrooms and booze houses far and wide, sullying soirees and lowering inhibitions of get-togethers and social occasions wherever they have ventured. Skipping through the dark side of anything that makes you want to dance, The Eskies are purveyors of music that meanders from sea soaked waltz to Italian tarantella, from brassy funeral march-esque lament to weep along Klezmar knees up, and from chain gang holler to ragtime finger snap. An Eskies show is steeped in melodrama and usually not a small amount of tongue in cheek.
The band has undertaken extensive tours of Ireland, the UK, Spain, Italy and The Netherlands as well as squeezing in their first-ever appearance at the hallowed Glastonbury Festival in 2016 and have featured on BBC Radio 4’s Loose Ends with Clive Anderson.
The Eskies’ first Australian sojourn includes The Port Fairy Folk Festival, along with Melbourne, Sydney and regional dates and their new album And Don’t Spare The Horses featuring single ‘All Good Men’ and ‘I’m Not Sorry’ is available through all online stores now.
Wednesday 28 February – The Heritage Hotel, Bulli, NSW
Thursday 1 March – Leadbelly, Newtown, NSW
Friday 2 March – The Spotted Mallard, Brunswick VIC
Saturday 3 March – The Old Castlemaine Gaol, Castlemaine, VIC
Sunday 4 March – The Mordialloc Food, Wine and Music Festival, VIC
Thursday 8th March – The Skylark Room, Upwey, VIC
Saturday 10th – Monday 12th – The Port Fairy Folk Festival, Port Fairy, VIC