Review Centre: Folk Bands

"Just wanted to say a massive thank you from us for playing. You were fantastic and all our guests talked about how incredible you were so thank you. "

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"Booked these guys for my sister's hen party and they were brilliant. From the surprise entrance into the garden when no one was expecting them to the impromptu conga line dancing – they entertained us superbly. Several neighbours got in touch to say they'd brought a welcome spirit of Mexico to the village as they could hear the fabulous music in their gardens too. "

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"Fantastic band. All our guests loved them and their music. Very charismatic and friendly. Great choice for a wedding band, they had everyone up and dancing. They arrived early and set up easily, very nice guys and easy to chat to. Played our choice of a first dance song which they played very well. We will be watching out for them playing elsewhere and we would highly recommend them to anyone wanting some great live music."

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"Thank you so so much for the amazing music. We had such a good time and all the guests thoroughly enjoyed it! Thank you again! Jenny "

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"Last weekend i met the group at the Christmas Party of an Alzheimer care home. i was fascinated by the bright positive energy they spread. Musically there was everything from gentle soulful to vibrant upbeat, acoustic and yet virtuosic and strong - at the end the whole ward was singing and dancing along to Balkan music..."

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"Stephanie and Olly. Many thanks for playing so well at Vasi’s 60th. Great occasion. U delivered more than our expectations. You made the day for us and our guests and I will happily recommend you to friends and family. All the best."

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"Great band we are having a wonderful cooperation. Their music is enthusiastic for the clients..."

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"If you're looking for a band who can come onstage to a marquee full of people quietly chatting and drinking and within minutes turn them into full-scale dance Machine with everybody in the place laughing and enjoying themselves, Then I think BLAG might be the act for you. Guests at our event (held to raise funds to prevent the destruction of a greenbelt zone) ranged from 20s to 60s, But all were captivated by the humour professionalism and generally good time emanating from rom the band. I am a professional filmmaker and have shot an l lot of promo videos for bands, from Euorope (yep, “the final countdown”) to Paul Young to AC/DC, and BLAG have that same charismatic quality that you see in all these massively successful bands. For a 3 piece they also a pack a monster sound, and over the course of three sets in one evening they played not only the gay Gordons and other traditional stuff but also sex and drugs and rock'n' roll and people are strange by the doors - not something you hear from average ceilidh band. I would highly recommend them if you're having any kind of function we want to get the whole crowd involved. Oh and did I mention they’re very nice guys as well?"

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"I'm so happy I found Cold Weather Company for our recent event. They were the perfect fit our laid back vibe. Steve, Brian and Jeff are incredibly talented, so accommodating, easy to work with and super nice guys. I will definitely hire them again for future events."

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"Great tunes and dance selection. Good caller with a nice sense of humour."

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"The Brogues provided our wedding in Largs with 5 hours of fun Ceilidh and disco dancing at a very affordable price - I don't think they could have been beaten on value. We had friendly Grace on keyboard and sweet Alan on fiddle, and together they produced that distinct Scottish Ceilidh sound, beautifully. They played a well-balanced mix of group and couples dances, interspersed with well needed refreshment breaks, and concluded the Ceilidh with EVERYBODY on the dance floor for the head-dizzying 'Strip the Willow'. Grace did an amazing job on the mic, explaining the various dance routines and keeping everybody right. For many of our guests it was their first Ceilidh experience, and the Brogues certainly made it one we all will never forget. Everybody smiled and perspired heavily - a sure sign of thorough enjoyment! Our first dance was made extra special, with Grace and Alan performing a very romantic cover of 'How Long Will I Love You' - which would honestly not have sounded better had Ellie Goulding been there to sing it herself! The evening was then rounded off with a disco of songs, superbly mixed, from our chosen playlist. Grace and Alan, thanks again. You were lovely and truly helped us have the best wedding possible! Highest recommendations from Stephen & Daffne."

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"One of the hidden treasures of London is the range of talent that exists on the folk and acoustic scene that rarely get the acclaim they deserve. Three London based bands that excel at performing Eastern European/Balkan Music are Szapora, Mukka and Beskydy, each of whom are worth looking out for. Nine strong Beskydy perform songs and tunes from across Eastern Europe and beyond, in fact looking at the sources on their cd listing is almost like a tour around that part of Europe, from Macedonia to Hungary via Galicia and Bulgaria and taking a detour through Slovakia. The bands name itself comes from the range of mountains that run through the centre of former Czechoslovakia which according to the band has heavily influenced their musical choices whilst they turn their hand to music from a range of sources (excellantly). The first track is a Macedonian song, Jovano, Jovanke (click here to hear the song) and the range of Joanna Fosters vocal skills are further displayed in the three Slovakian songs that make up track 4, from the slow Janosik to the more up beat cheery Anicka Dusicka and A Ja Taka Dzivocka although Foster and the band manage to intertwine the tunes with sufficient skill so the songs merge as one. Again Track 9 is a duet with Accordian player, Peter Murphy, joining Foster on the Macedonian song Iz Dolu, along with some damned fine fiddling. The range of Beskydys musical skills are illustrated well by the instrumental tracks ranging from the delightful Slovakian Waltzes (Track 5) to the slightly more manic Tropanka from Bulgaria (track 10) and onto the ordered upbeat and furious synthesis between sax, fiddle and accordian that is Tantz, Tantz Yiddelekh (a wonderful Galician Jewish tune), yet again garunteed to result in limb movement, a delightful fusion of fiddles and saxaphone, furiously creating a wonderful atmosphere one that demands a physical response. One very minor complaint is the sleeve of the CD, it would be nice (or do I just lead a very shallow empty life) to have some information/lyrics or even translations of the songs, something about the origins of the tracks. That said its more than possible for bands with large bank accounts to produce nice extensive sleeves but not so easy for bands whose talents lie in their music rather than some slick marketing agencies. It would be impossible to identify one part of this cd that could be said to stand out more than the rest. The band have produced an album that is thoroughly enjoyable from start to finish - the question that comes to the fore when listening to this is when is the follow up going to be available? "

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"Blag played at our party last weekend to celebrate our wedding, they were truly lovely people and great musicians. All our guests really enjoyed themselves and said it was such a change from a tribute band or disco, do not hesitate to book these guys . ?"

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"The band was truly amazing. Themis, Magdalena and Antonia were very kind and professional. We had a wonderful evening and will surely invite them to our next event!"

Reply by Ta mortakia
Dor and his family make the event amazing. We were very happy to play for the birthday of his Grandfather, Unique people. Thank you Dor for the Great Night!!

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"An absolute breath of new life in the music scene. Fantastic musician with a wide range of styles with amazing vocals. Very entertaining. Watch out for this guy,he is well worth a listen. Go see him perform. "

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review: