photo: Christine Keating

Saltcutters initially came together as ‘The Bog Standards’ in Liverpool, early 2014. Flautist Nick Branton and Guitarist Simon Knighton met with Fiddler Mikey Kenney in the basement beneath Mello Mello Jazz Café to play Irish tunes. Kenney was hosting a weekly Irish seisún at Liverpool’s well-known Caledonia pub and it would soon launch the newly-formed trio headfirst into prominence and popularity with especial thanks to their passionate performances during the Liverpool Irish Festival that year. Their fast-growing reputation would be further bolstered by appearances on BBC Radio Merseyside and regular residencies across Liverpool.

By 2015, the three lads were a well established and sought-after act but they were still searching for something more. Kenney had been bringing original tunes to the table and the three wanted to arrange and orchestrate but hadn’t the space between their parts. Three must become Four for that. Then, bang on cue, Evelyn Broderick and her flute appeared at the Caledonia seisún and was instantly recruited. Now, their arrangements are sounding huge and complex and their rhythm pounds harder than ever. Their transition from trio to quartet would be marked with a change of name.

Mikey Kenney - fiddle, Irish tenor banjo, mandolin
Nick Branton - Irish flute, whistle, bodhrán.
Simon Knighton - guitar, harmonium
Evelyn Broderick - Irish flute, whistle, concertina.

Links:

www.mikeykenney.co.uk
facebook.com/fiddlermikeykenney
www.saltcutters.co.uk
facebook.com/saltcutters

Press:

“..they hit hard, their melodies instantaneously transporting you to those green lands, managing to embody the most swirling of Irish music… Their version of trad folk sounds like the kind that makes you feel real nostalgia even if you’ve only been to a wedding in Cork, once… The toe-tapping gets a little too fast for my skills, but Knighton expertly drives on as Nick Branton whistles around the sharp and precise fiddling of Kenney, surely fatal to anyone standing behind him!” ~ Bido Lito Magazine

“A True Companion, and I can think of no higher praise” ~ Bearded Magazine

“A diverse wondrous portrait of a thoughtful soul and his home.” ~ Spiral Earth

“Perplexingly attractive.” ~ FolkWords

”A one of a kind album.” ~ Is This Music?

“Truly this is music from the heart, for the heart.” ~ Rocksucker

photo: Christine Keating