The term multi-instrumentalist seems to have been invented for the Dublin band The Guggenheim Grotto.When they take the stage, they bring a whole host of instruments with them. In the studio they use their playing skills to create a richness of sound that perfectly suits their ability to write some endearing and lasting bittersweet melodies.
In 2003 Mick Lynch and Kevin May set about writing songs in a tiny flat in Dublin. Soon they had enough material to release a five track EP, A Lifetime In Heat. To help them put the finishing touches to it they approached Shane Power, a local studio engineer and musician. Pretty soon they joined forces and The Guggenheim Grotto was complete.
They began working together on their first full length album, Waltzing Alone. This was an extremely well received release. A single taken from it, “Told You So”, reached number 12 in the Irish National Airplay Chart. Their music even made the journey across the Atlantic where several DJ’s picked up on them and gave them regular plays.
Pretty soon they were signed to the New York City indie label United For Opportunity and Waltzing Alone was released in the US. This acted as the springboard the band needed and live sessions, airplay, television, and a tour of the States quickly followed.
On their next tour of America they hosted a five night residency at New York’s Mo Pitkin’s House Of Satisfaction. In September this year they released an E.P. Tigers as a forerunner to the now released second full length album Happy The Man. The album is available digitally and is scheduled for full release in February 2009.
Tigers is very much a taster for what is to come. It contains five tracks, two off the new album plus three extra songs including the recent single, released in Ireland, “Waking Up In America”. Tigers starts with a funky “Fee Da Da Dee”, from the new album. The choice of these five tracks illustrate the bands sometimes eclectic nature and versatility perfectly.
Article comments
1 - jim lane
My wife and I saw Guggenheim Grotto in ft. Wayne, In 2/09. We thought they were original and enjoyed their music as well as their performance. We wish them well.