Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Reno 1/17/08: N8i Begins to Conquer the World!

OK we haven't really made any progress on conquering the world, but Nine-8ths Irish finally got to make our first trip out of state when we played Ceol Irish Pub in Reno, Nevada! This was on Saturday, January 17th, which also happened to be our favorite bodhran player's birthday! Yes, Chris just turned 25 (again ;-), and when asked what he wanted for his birthday, he replied, "I get to play music in Reno with the band, and have a few drinks.....I don't need anything else!"
So we trekked to Reno, through the sun-dappled snow-covered hills outside of Nevada City, then onto I-80, through the northern part of the beautiful Sierra Nevada, past Truckee, then into Nevada and to Reno. We arrived to a beautiful warm day, checked into our hotel, and had to go immediately to the casino, where we, being the high-rollers that we are, played 25-cent Video Poker and both 1-cent and 5-cent slots!! We actually won enough to pay for the few drinks that we had, and then went back to our room to prepare for the gig.
We arrived at Ceol Irish Pub around 7pm, got the lay of the land, and were going to go somewhere for dinner, but being that it was Chris' birthday, we left it up to him....so we ordered a pizza!! (Ceol is right on "The Strip" in downtown Reno, and though they don't serve their own food, they recommeded a pizza place and then went to pick it up for us!! It was fabulous! Also their were some patrons at Ceol that were having a birthday party - not for Chris, though it WAS his birthday - but we had a built-in audience of about 20 people before we started playing!
Once we got set up, we started playing - and for this trip, Kathy was unable to make it so we kidnapped Pierce Marines from the Pub Scouts in Chico. He's one of California's best DADGAD guitar players, and he also brought along Connor O'Bryan, a fabulous Irish flute/whistle player. The birthday party-goers were great, and the three sets went by SO FAST, we just had an absolute blast!! Stacie and Tom Cannon, the owners of Ceol, were just wonderful, sweet, generous, and enthusiastic. Ron, the manager, and all the staff were just great, and we ended up closing down the bar!! Actually, we were the ones being pushed out the door while they turned the key!! IT WAS SO COOL!! We haven't closed down a bar in years....
So to recap: we played some great tunes, got some decent video, which we'll post probably on MySpace, Facebook and YouTube...then put links on the website....Chris had pizza, Dead Guy Ale and Tullamore Dew for his birthday, and later (though admitting he didn't remember the drive back to the hotel!) proclaimed it to be the best birthday he's ever had!!
We've been talking to Tom about possibly working something out for another trip up there soon, maybe even for St. Paddy's Day, but also for their "Hirish" Festival: the highest elevation Irish Festival in the country! That will be in July....and there are other events in our bid for World Domination coming soon, including a trip to Ohio!! Keep checking for updates at www.nine8thsirish.com/calendar.html

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Exciting Things Coming in 2009!!

So the last few months of 2008 we quite exciting: we got some new photos, and in the process, Chris broke his leg (which is now completely healed, in case you were wondering.)

In late September/early October we made it to the Grass Valley Celtic Festival again (KVMR Festival), and had a fabulous time!! We got to hear Solas (INCREDIBLE, as always!) We got to play some tunes with the guys from Molly's Revenge, among others, and met all kinds of great people, heard all kinds of great music! We're waiting to hear when the Compilation CD will be available, which will put us on the same recording as those groups named earlier: Solas, Molly's Revenge, Enter the Haggis, Cathie Ryan and more. We'll definitely be posting info about that when we get it!!

In 2009, we are already off to a great start!! On January 17th we are playing in Reno, Nevada (our first out-of-state gig!) at Ceol Irish Pub (website http://www.ceolirishpub.com ).

On the 21st we'll be lending our talents to the "Grand Opening for a Grand Cause" event, which is actually a Benefit for the UC Davis Cancer Center....this event is taking place at the new pub of which we've talked for quite a while: DeVere's Pub in downtown Sacramento, at 16th & L Streets in the old Firestone Building. Tickets for this event can be purchased here: http://www.mixdowntown.net/
DeVere's was originally slated to open back in September, but things took much longer than expected, and they are just now getting close. As of yesterday, Jan.13, they were still installing equipment, finishing the floors, etc. So Wednesday Jan.21 will be a "soft" opening, but the Grand Opening to the public will be on Friday, January 30th. Nine-8ths Irish will be on hand for that as well, with tunes starting around 7:30pm. Then on February 8th, Sunday, we'll be having the first DeVere's Pub Irish Session. This session promises to be a fun one - it will take place the 2nd and 4th Sunday of each month, from 4pm until 7:30 or so. We'll be advertising this as an Advanced Fast Session, so newbies beware.
DeVere's imported the bar from Ireland, and will serve a wide variety of beers (including two specially brewed for DeVere's, an Irish lager and Irish ale), as well as an impressive list of whiskeys, including Scotch and Irish whiskey. They will also have an extensive menu of food items, pub grub and such. Check out their website for all the information: address, map, drink list, menu, etc: http://www.deverespub.com

More excitement for N8i in 2009 comes in the form of a couple of festivals to which we have been invited. First in mid-March is the Sonora Celtic Faire, which puts us on the same bill as Wicked Tinkers, Tempest, and some old friends from Texas: Needfire!! Check the Festival website for directions, schedule and other details: http://www.sonoracelticfaire.com

Next is a bit further into the year - we've been invited to travel to Dayton, Ohio for the July 4th weekend to be a part of their CityFolk Festival, three days of concerts, workshops, fireworks, and the like! If you happen to be in the area and want to drop by, check their website for details: http://www.cityfolk.org/festival/

We're planning on getting back into the studio some time this spring, perhaps after the Big Day for anyone who plays Irish music: March 17th, St. Patrick's Day.....we'll add details on what we're doing that day as soon as we have it all worked out, but for now, there are plenty of opportunities to come and see us, even if you're in Ohio!! We are really looking forward to even better things as the year goes by!

Cheers for now.....
Linda, Chris, Bo & Kathy
Nine-8ths Irish
www.nine8thsirish.com