Ishna – Slí Amach: Way Out (Ishna Music, 2025)
Boston-based contemporary Irish folk band Ishna has released its superb debut album, Slí Amach: Way Out. The six-piece ensemble draws from traditional Irish repertoire reflecting the members’ varied musical backgrounds, which include jazz, musical theater, western classical music, and other folk influences. All songs and tunes except for one are beautifully crafted recreations of Irish traditional music.
The set is quite diverse, from a darkly comic story about a murderous wife to lively instrumentals, emotive ballads, and stimulating rebel songs, then lands in an Irish pub setting. Notably, the band’s sound is characterized by the dynamic lead vocals of Ciarán Nagle, stirring fiddles, flutes and Irish pipes, rhythm guitar and an irresistible mix of Irish and global percussion.
Ishna began in Dublin under husband-and-wife founders Ciaran and Tara. After their move to Boston in 2012, they assembled the current group in 2015. Each member came from a different part of the world, and the musicians first connected outside Irish music before the band later focused on acoustic Irish traditional styles.
The recording took place June 29 to July 2, 2025, at Cold Comfort Farm, an 18th-century barn in Peterborough, New Hampshire. Producer and engineer Robert L. Smith handled recording, mixing, and mastering at Defy Recordings. The sessions brought the band together on and off the clock, with hikes, shared meals, cocktail recipe debates, and late nights around a fire pit during their stay in the region.
Musicians: Ciarán Nagle on vocals, spoons (Dublin Ireland); Tara Novak on fiddle, vocals (Omaha, Nebraska); Dan Meyers on Irish whistle, flute, uilleann pipes, and bodhrán (Spokane, Washington); David McGrory on piano, accordion, viola (Belfast, Northern Ireland); Björn Wennǎs on guitar, chitarra battente (Uppsala, Sweden); Brian O’Neill on bodhrán, cajón, riq, additional percussion (Phoenix, Arizona).
Buy the CD from Ishna.
Author: Angel Romero
Angel Romero y Ruiz has dedicated his life to musical exploration. His efforts included the creation of two online portals, worldmusiccentral.org and musicasdelmundo.com. In addition, Angel is the co-founder of the Transglobal World Music Chart, a panel of world music DJs and writers that celebrates global sounds. Furthermore, he delved into the record business, producing world music studio albums and compilations. His works have appeared on Alula Records, Ellipsis Arts, Indígena Records and Music of the World.