Podcast Corner: It's All Music, and Shketameeny
It's All Music comes from Knockadoon, Co Cork.
Based in Knockadoon, East Cork, this show started up in January, with a trio of co-hosts - Henny, Carey, and Quirky - talking to a variety of local musicians. Producer David Quirke explains: “I’m a musician myself and this was an idea I had from having met lots of musicians over the years playing music but never got the chance to get to know them properly and have a chat/hear their story.”
On the dozen-plus episodes to date, they’ve talked to members of bands such as Flake the Gander, August Walk, Franklin, and last week, covers group Kesh musician James Fleming. Whether you’re familiar with them or not, what quickly becomes clear across the series is the long and winding, circuitous route people take to carve out a career in music.
Fleming, for example, explains his beginnings - how he was getting £14 for a two-hour show when he was 16, being driven around by his dad to his slowly growing gig circuit. It’s a learning curve even though he felt burnt out by 21. “There’s no way I’d go back to playing on my own,” he says now.
Recorded weekly in Carey’s music room, the hosts cajole their guests into playing a song with whatever instruments they have to hand to round out the episodes. Once they gather enough tunes together, there might even be a compilation album on the way. You can listen to It’s All Music wherever you get your podcasts and they also have a Patreon where you can subscribe and support them, receiving bonus episodes and content in return.
Keeping things local is this west Kerry-based show that’s only three episodes in but seeks to help listeners on their journey learning the Irish language. Hosted by the relaxing Mickey Kelly and Caoimhe Ní Eochagáin, guests so far include the ubiquitous Manchán Magan, Dr Billy Mac Fhloinn, and Juli Malone, the ‘Dingle Druid’ who grew up swimming with Fungie.
The podcast has an interesting format: Kelly and Ní Eochagáin explain, in English, the story we’re going to hear from the guest, who tells it as Gaeilge. Then the hosts give some of the vocabulary from the first half of the story and replay that, give the vocab for the second part and replay that, and then we relisten to the whole tale with those extra phrases in our copybooks. “We’re trying to find the balance between craic and learning,” explains Kelly.
At the very least, it’s just nice to take a slice of time out of your day to listen to an Irish story; at best, it’ll help you with the cúpla focail.
