Journeying along the River Shannon, the River Barrow and the Royal & Grand Canals – August 7th – September 7th 2021
Meeting friends along the way: Laura Quirke, John Francis Flynn, Cormac Begley,
FeliSpeaks, Brigid Mae Power, Anja Murray, Manchán Magan, Erin Fornoff, Leo O’Kelly, and
Thomas McCarthy and more.
Folk duo Ye Vagabonds have been planning a very ambitious and novel trip for over a year
now, and soon they will take to the inland waterways of Ireland for over a month for their
‘All Boats Rise’ tour.
Brothers Brían and Diarmuid MacGloinn will travel by barge along with filmmaker Myles
O’Reilly, and will perform small, informal ‘happenings’ of many different strands throughout
the smattering of counties that encompass the River Shannon, the River Barrow, and the
Royal and Grand canals.
This is an exercise in slow touring – rejecting the planes, trains, and automobiles for a slow
moving barge, as well as getting to know about the history, folklore, and song of some of
Ireland’s lesser heralded gems.
Speaking about the trip, Diarmuid MacGloinn of Ye Vagabonds says “We’re so excited to
get out there on this trip. A river tour has been a pipe dream of ours for years but there’s
never been a more perfect time for it. Everything outdoors! What was always a bit of a mad
idea now seems obvious. It’s hard to imagine returning to normal gigs after the weird hiatus
we’ve all experienced so it’s great that we’re returning with some really abnormal gigs
instead.
All tours are partly about people we meet along the way but on this tour we’re planning to
really involve guests in chats, tunes, collaborations, whatever happens!
Most tours we see the venues and one corner of each town before we jump back into the
monotone of motorways. This time it’s really about the journey too and it’s also time-travel.
Waterways are the oldest roads and time moves differently when you’re on the water.”
Ye Vagabonds will meet up with friends for performances and recordings along their
journey, meeting Laura Quirke, John Francis Flynn, Cormac Begley, FeliSpeaks, Brigid Mae
Power, Anja Murray, Manchán Magan, Erin Fornoff, Leo O’Kelly, Thomas McCarthy and
more.
Filmmaker Myles O’Reilly will be on board the barge with the brothers, to capture their
journey and encounters.
Myles says: “Ever since our first video collaboration back in 2014 with Willie O’Winsbury,
I’ve had the pleasure of growing as a filmmaker alongside the lads growing as musicians.
We have a finely tuned appreciation for and understanding of each other’s art, which has
helped us to keep creating more exploratory and ambitious works together.
This project picks up from the film ‘Seven Songs On Six Islands’ when we documented a tour of several
remote islands off the coast of Ireland. It’s such a natural step forward in our filmic legacy.
Moving inland. The music still carried by water. Negotiating ancient veins of Ireland
surrounded and immersed in uniquely beautiful and timeless nature.”
The dates and locations for each show will be announced at a later stage. Follow Ye
Vagabonds’s journey on their social media pages and Patreon:
Web: http://yevagabonds.com
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/yevagabonds
Twitter: @yevagabonds
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/yevagabonds
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yevagabonds
“All Boats Rise” is produced by Ye Vagabonds, Islander and Hibernacle.
