There are two types of Scottish folk music. The sad, mystical kind with chilling melodies and the jolly kind, with songs so upbeat they bring a smile to everyone’s face and just makes you want to dance and sing along.
Thursday’s Celtic Connection gig at Saint Luke’s with Siobhan Miller and Gnoss fitted the latter category to a T. The queue in front of the former church was a couple of hundred metres long and abuzz with anticipation. People were happily chatting away whilst waiting to escape the cold and get into the sold-out venue.
Gnoss, an all-male folk quartet, kicked off the night at around 7:30pm. The band is composed off Aidan Moodie (guitar/vocals), Graham Rorie (fiddle/mandolin/electric tenor guitar), Connor Sinclair (flute/whistles/vocals) and Craig Baxter (bodhran/percussion). Naturally, the crowd was a bit hesitant to dance at first but a after a couple of songs and some banter between the band members in between songs, people started to feel the music’s energy. Moodie broke the last of the ice by joking that while not every person owns a CD-player to play Gnoss CDs, they also sell beanies at the merch stall so if you have “a CD-player or a head” you should grab some merch. The boys played a mix of instrumental and vocal songs, with my personal favourite being ‘Good Crieff’ which is featured on their album ‘The Light Of The Moon’. The song was among the last ones of their set and had the whole crowd dancing and cheering.
By the time Siobhan Miller and her band went on stage everyone was well and truly warmed up. The Scottish folk singer and song writer, most well-known for her version of Andy M. Stewart’s ‘The Rambling Rover’, is a Celtic Connections regular. Millers’ passion for folk music has been fuelled from a very young age at festivals she attended with her parents. That love shines through in every little aspect of her performance and the lyrics serve as love-poems to Scotland, a true celebration of Scottish music. Expectations were high for the four-time winner of the Scots Trad Music Awards’ Singer of the Year, and I was not disappointed.
Miller started her set with just her and guitarist Innes White on stage, singing ‘Love Hannah’, a quieter song that allowed for her beautiful voice to really stand out. The next song welcomed the rest of the band on stage. Siobhan Miller sang an array of songs, some original pieces as well as traditional Scottish folk songs, many of which feature on her 2022 released solo-album ‘Bloom’. She animated the crowd, teaching little snippets of songs, allowing everyone to join in.
At the end of her set Gnoss reappeared on the stage to play ‘The Rambling Rover’ with band. The first few chords of this highly-anticipated tune sent the crowd into a frenzy. After the final song, both bands left the stage, but Miller reappeared soon again with Innes White, Rachel Lightbody (vocals), as well as Charlie Stewart (fiddle), after the crowd loudly demanded an encore, to sing ‘Wild Mountain Thyme’. The other members of the Siobhan Miller band that night were John Lowrie (piano), Euan Burton (bass/double bass) and Louis Abbott (drums/percussion).
Glasgow was named a UNESCO City of Music in 2008 and this gig proved once again why. The music was impeccable, and the audience matched the on-stage energy. I very much enjoyed myself and can only recommend to anyone who has not had the chance to see either of the acts live, to grab a ticket to Siobhan Miller’s concert in Edinburgh on April 2nd, where Gnoss will play support.