I've been waiting for this album since 1990, which is when I first heard "Bloody Lane" on Crashdog's first album, a song (written by Glenn Kaiser) that paired Crashdog's '80s punk with Scottish bagpipes. The combo of those two earthy musics struck a chord that I've been dying to have plucked again ever since.
Now, almost a full decade later...Ballydowse. More than just punk-with-bagpipes, Brian Grover and Andrew Mandell of Crashdog have pulled out a big bag of Irish, East European Jewish folk, and Aboriginal sounds and strewn them across their foundation of Oi!-influenced street-punk, to make for one heckuva unique rock album. The loose and scrappy guitars, more rock but still resonating with Crashdog's boot-stomping attitude, mix beautifully with a mish-mash of Celtic, Klezmer, and Australian Aborigine instruments that include mandolin, bodhran, moohran, percussion, violin, didgeridoo, bullroarer, and whirligig. And the vocals! Everything from solos to two and three-part group singing to passionate gang shouts, with the wavering-with-emotion sandpapery singing by Andrew and clear pseudo-Celtic tones from his wife Robin being most characteristic of Ballydowse's sound.
Eight members make up the band (and supposedly one killer live show), but guests like Tony Krogh (pipes; The Crossing), Bryan Gray (bass & guitar; Left Out, The Blamed, etc.), and Brian Moss ("Uptown Tibetan throat singing") make the total eleven. Needless to say with such a large band, making money is not one of Ballydowse's motivations. Their music is made to convict and awaken.
Everything about The Land, the Bread, and the People--from the packaging to the artwork and the songwriting--gives glory to God by virtue of its surpassing excellence. Surprisingly (since Steve Albini recorded), only the production falls a bit short. There's a dirtiness that suits the music but keeps your nose in the lyrics booklet half the time because of hard-to-hear vocals. That's actually a blessing, though, because the lyrics are meaty poetry that beg for contemplation. For example, "Bleak":
Looking out through the grey haze I see the other side
The wondrous silhouettes must mean
some fair light is there behind
so no matter the length or dark of the night
till dawn I can hold
then I will dance through the rays and breathe in the hope
and open up my soul
I can't get enough of rich word tapestries like these! The gang vocals on songs like "Walkin' On" are doubly invigorating and powerful as they shout out what sounds like words of rebuke for lukewarm Christians:
We're walking on and we won't wait
for you to suss what we're gonna do.
Debating inaction but it's too late,
hands to the plow and we ain't turning back.
Left you standing at the crossroads,
you're the solution but you are stuck on hold.
The world we change is the world we touch,
Never do nothing if you talk too much.
The Jesus People USA community life of self-denial and love that the members of Ballydowse have chosen to live shines brightly through their songs and music. My heart and soul swells every time I listen to the album. It's the song of the clan which is my own, a band of pilgrims following the light through dark lands, holding each other up and lifting the fallen by the roadside as they pass, voices chanting together the songs of the journey's joy and struggle.
4.5 tocks
Other coverage for this album
HM Magazine #76Reviewed by Doug Van PeltFlash back to the Cornerstone festival (any of the last three years will do): You're freshly toasted after four hours of intense skanking, moshing, surfing, pogo-ing, and screaming your face off to some killer hardcore sets at the Underground Stage. You head over to the food vendors to quench your diehard thirst with a lemon shakeup. Besides, that tongue piercing you got the week before itches so…Decapolis 1999Reviewed by ConradThis album gets plusses just because I don't hear this type of music too much. It's like Irish folk rock or Celtic Rock. It's got the mandolins and violins, etc. Imagine Irish pub songs and folk songs made into rock. Many of the songs are pretty upbeat and fun. There's enough diversity on the album to make it an interesting listen. One main concern I had was with the production. If it were…Decapolis 1999Reviewed by Tom BastianI didn't really like this CD too much. None of the songs really stood out to me, even after a few listens. I guess stylistically they kind of reminded me of the Dropkick Murphys at times, with less punk, and more celtic rock. They have both a male and female singer. The male does most of the lead vocals, yet I liked the female's vocals more. She just had a really sweet voice, although it didn't…Decapolis 1999Reviewed by TimI like these guys. They are fun, and they don't complain... which is something you don't hear very much anymore. It sounds like Irish music. That's all I can say. I've never heard this type of music before...so I don't really know how to grade it. I enjoyed listening to it, but it got a little old after a whole album....but most bands get that way. BThe Phantom Tollbooth 1999Reviewed by Steven S. BaldwinWhoa Nellie! Did you hear the rumor that JPUSA moved the Blarney Stone to Chicago? Probably not true, but it's curious that this small, devoted community of faithful American Christians are so fascinated with the music of the Green Isle that they now sport two bands with a distinctively Irish sound. The Crossing was the first, and far and away the more traditional of the two. The latest is…The Phantom Tollbooth 1999Reviewed by Shari LloydOne of the most original albums to hit the CCM market since Burlap to Cashmere. This is an amazing clash of Celtic meeting punk. With a wide range of Celtic and Australian Aborigine instruments that include mandolin, bodhran, moohran, percussion, violin, didgeridoo, bullroarer, and whirligig this group not only manages to carry this off on the album but are even better live. The only drawback to…Bandoppler 1998Reviewed by Sucré MusiqueTake a punk band, throw in some world music influences, and what do you get? Ballydowse, seems to have the answer in their very intense and eccentric musical blend. Fiddles, Uillean pipes, didgeridoos, and traditional instrumentation fuses with aggressive electric guitar, bass, and percussion sure to move your body and soul. Vocals are heard from nearly everyone in this ten piece band, but Robina…Similar sounding releases
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