REVIEWS

Irish Music Magazine August 2008

With over a thousand releases planned on his label, this Galway fiddler is going to be even busier in future. Fergal Scahill's debut solo CD follows a few forays into recording with Paul Moran, The Brock McGuire band, and others. The menu here is mainly reels and jigs. Frankie Gavin's Mystery Reel is much in vogue just now, and Fergal gets dark and dangerous on Patsy Tuohey's. He turns in a fabulous lilting performance of Maid at the Spinning Wheel before the first of three hornpipe sets starts with The Banks, a challenging piece on which Fergal stamps his authority. The Dusty Bridge includes a few idiosyncratic versions of well-known tunes: Jenny's Welcome to Charlie, President Garfield's and The Humours of Ballyconnell to name three. The title jig is Fergal's own, the only one on this recording, sitting nicely with Ryan's Favourite and The Boys of the Town.

Fergal Scahill's playing is strong and rhythmic. The Hag at the Churn is attacked with gusto, and the horsehair is almost alight on The Boys of the Lough. There's more testosterone than tone at times, but that's fine by me: a good fiddler needs a bit of the devil in him. Mairtin O'Connor tunes The Celebration Reel and The Long Lane accentuate the playful bedlam of Fergal's music, reminiscent of Reeltime or Nomos at their best. Two big numbers finish the album, The Spike Island Lasses paired with one of Paddy Fahey's well-known reels, and finally the enchanting air Port na bPucai given a stunning six-minute treatment. There's a bit of rhythm guitar, a bit of sean-nos stepping, some fine piano accompaniment from Ryan Molloy, and the rest of The Dusty Bridge is Fergal's fiddle. Impressive and powerful: see www.fergalscahill.com for samples, pictures, and lots more.

Alex Monaghan

The Ticket

Irish Times

Friday June 27th 2008

It’s a brave musician who’ll tackle the great Blasket Island slow air, Port Na bPúcaí which is more usually associated with the playing of accordionist Tony MacMahon and a host of Corca Dhuibhne box players. Fergal Scahill blithely casts his fiddle into a melee that freewheels through a cacophony of diverse tunes, swinging from the self-confessedly florid hornpipes, Callanan’s Retreat and The Long Lane, to his original tune, The Dusty Bridge. Scahill’s at his best when in full jousting mode with pianist Ryan Molloy (a critical contributor to brother Enda Scahill and Paul Brock’s Humdinger recording), no so much ebbing and flowing as rollicking their way through an eclectic repertoire. Although at times a tad over embellished, this debut ably whets the appetite for a taste of Scahill’s fiddle in a live setting.

Siobhan Long