< Michael Becker RECORD REVIEW HE CELTIC spirit is deeply embedded with- in the Canadian fabric. The most recent wave of its music washes over the country from the East Coast. The massive success of Cape Breton’s Rankin Family and the love affair many are having with Rita MacNeil primes audiences for more of what seems naturally to bubble forth from the regional culture. * Newfoundiand’s The Irish Descendants recently released Look To The Sea; a sea-faring, randy land-lubbering 12-track mixture of celebration and ‘lament, reel-and ballad. ‘Ye landsmen, seamen and fair young maids alike should appre- ciate the boys’ Bodran. tight vocal: harmonies, sparkling instrumentation and. honest hearts. o The trish Descendants appear soon’ for: two shows in Vancouver. On March 29 they open for trish folk group The Fureys at the Commodore, and March 30 the band headlines a show at the.Town Pump. Music Now recently spoke with the band’s singer and gui- tarist Con O’Brien. Music. Now: Is Look To the Sea your first release? O’Brien: “With Warner it is. We had an independent release ourselves.” _Music Now: How did you con- nect with Warner? O'Brien: “We had a cnance meeting with Sam (Sniderman) The Record Man. He twisted the arms of some of the people at ’. Warner to have a look at us.” Music Now: How long have you -guys been together? O’Brien: “We're together four ° ‘years in May.” Music Now: Were you in differ- ent groups before? O’Brien: “We had separate bands and we admired every- thing we were doing and we decided to put together a four- piece. We've since added two more people.” TOP 109 ALBUMS 1) Mariah Carey. 2) R. Kelly......... 3) Ace Of Base... 4} Snoop Doggy Dogg. Photo submitted HAILING FROM Newfoundland and wielding strong ties to the Celtic tradition, the irish Descendants appear here next week. Music Now: How is the music scene in Newfoundland? Is it vibrant? O'Brien: “It's very vibrant. There's been an explosion on the East Coast with respect to the music industry recognizing it.” Music Now: Do you thirik the success of the Rankin Family has had a lot to do with that? O’Brien: “Oh i would have to say yes, they’ve certainly helpect out. Rita MacNeil has been a pioneer | guess in the last decade. The success of people like that has certainly turned attention to bands like ourselves, It’s all based on the roots of the people, that’s where the music comes from.” Music Now: How long has your family in particular been in Canada? O'Brien: “In Canada since 1949,” Music Now: Yes, right. Trick question. Newfoundland then? O'Brien: “My family dates back to the 1750s.” Music Now: A lot of what you sing about has to do with the sea and fishing and that whole lifestyle. With that industry falling apart do you feel you have a special role in keeping that part of the culture alive somehow? Music Box (Columbia) seuss EZ Play (live) wrtstniesanssaneenonen FH Sign (Arista) Doggystyle (Death Row/Interscope) 5) Salt ‘N’ Pepa........ Very Necessary (Next Plateau/London/PLG} G) Celine Dion.... The Colour of My Lave (Song 550 Music/Epic) 7) Counting Crows.............August and Everything After (DGC) B) TON BraxtOn.essessssssssseen 9) Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, sssastaseeseneennens THE Cross of Changes (Charisma) 10) Enigma.......... Toni Braxton (LaFace/Arista) .Greatest Hits (MCA) TOP 5 MUSIC VIDEOS 1) Ace of Basen ccc 2) Bruce Springsteen 3) Salt ‘N Pepa 4) Counting Crows 5) Beck.. eee cesssnnecssne EEO ign (Arista Streets of Philadelphia (Sony) Whatta Man (Next Plateau/London/PLG} Mr. Jones (DGC) .. Loser (DGC) O’Brien: “In a small way we're trying to help. The cultural aspects are being hurt right now. With the fisheries gone, we're going to lose a lot of our cultural richness, The traditions that are associated with it are going to be Jost. Let’s face it, 70% of the people in Newfoundland are directly related to the fisheries somehow. Music Now: Have you played across the country before? O'Brien: “This will be our first cross-Canada tour, We've heard that your part of the world is beautiful but we're glad about ours, We suspect that our salmon is much better.” Music Now: While we're on the topic, here on the West Coast, fish-farmed salmon has become a big industry. Is fish farming an option on the East Coast? O'Brien: “My family has a codfish factory in Bay Bulls and we've experimented ... with rais- ing codfish in farms but we're not taking it from a hatchery. We've transported the fish from the wild and just fattened them. it works but it’s very expensive to feed these fish. It’s really at an experimental stage.” WEST VANCOUVER POLICE LUOK FOR RESERVES Calling all would-be Law Enforcers. The West Vancouver Police Department is recruiting members for its Police Reserves, an auxiliary unit providing assistance to the regular force. Reserve members accompany regular police members on week- end and evening patrols, and provide back-up en special occa- sions. : Applications must be Canadian Citizens with Grade 12 education or equivalent, and must be in good physical condition. Candidates must also have a satisfactory driving record and will be subjected to a background investigation. Interested potential candidates are asked to cail Sergeant” § Bob Willock, weekdays from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at 922-4141. n ry sae * ETAL TIBURON TE AirCare SPECIALESTS © Our 36th Year * Tune-ups Sa AS * Fuel systems * Electrical AirCare Gow. 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