Scottish Gaelic punk (also known as Gaelic punk) is a subgenre of
punk rock in which bands sing some or all of their music in
Scottish Gaelic
Scottish Gaelic ( gd, Gàidhlig ), also known as Scots Gaelic and Gaelic, is a Goidelic language (in the Celtic branch of the Indo-European language family) native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a Goidelic language, Scottish Gaelic, as well ...
. The Gaelic punk scene is, in part, an affirmation of the value of minority languages and cultures.
Gaelic punk bands express political views, particularly those related to
anarchism and environmentalism.
History
Punk in the
Welsh language
Welsh ( or ) is a Celtic language of the Brittonic subgroup that is native to the Welsh people. Welsh is spoken natively in Wales, by some in England, and in Y Wladfa (the Welsh colony in Chubut Province, Argentina). Historically, it has ...
, particularly the bands connected with the
Anhrefn
Yr Anhrefn, also known simply as Anhrefn, were an influential Welsh punk rock group of the 1980s and 1990s.
History
Anhrefn (Welsh for "Disorder") were an influential punk rock band from Bangor, North Wales and formed in 1982,Hill, Sarah (200 ...
record label
A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the produ ...
, was an early inspiration to the Gaelic punk scene in
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
. The Scottish rock band
Runrig
Runrig were a Scottish Celtic rock band formed on the Isle of Skye in 1973. From its inception, the band's line-up included songwriters Rory Macdonald and Calum Macdonald. The line-up during most of the 1980s and 1990s (the band's most succe ...
's first album (
Play Gaelic
Play most commonly refers to:
* Play (activity), an activity done for enjoyment
* Play (theatre), a work of drama
Play may refer also to:
Computers and technology
* Google Play, a digital content service
* Play Framework, a Java framework
* Pl ...
) in 1978 is considered to be the first notable modern Scottish Gaelic-language music album; other than
Ultravox
Ultravox (earlier styled as Ultravox!) were a British new wave band, formed in London in April 1974 as Tiger Lily. Between 1980 and 1986, they scored seven Top Ten albums and seventeen Top 40 singles in the UK, the most successful of which was ...
's 1984 album "Lament", which contained some Gaelic lyrics in the song ''Man of Two Worlds'', and mid-1990s
grindcore band Scatha, from
Tomintoul
Tomintoul (; from gd, Tom an t-Sabhail, meaning "Hillock of the Barn") is a village in the Moray council area of Scotland in the historic county of Banffshire.
Within Cairngorms National Park, the village lies close to the banks of the River ...
who featured Gaelic in several of their songs, there were no further albums of modern music all in Gaelic until spring 2005, when
Oi Polloi and
Mill a h-Uile Rud both released all-Gaelic EPs.
, based in
Seattle
Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
, United States, formed in Scotland, and have played at least as many concerts in Europe as they have in the United States. All of their material is in Gaelic. They are occasionally active, although they have not released any new material in some time.
Oi Polloi, from
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...
,
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
started performing in English in 1981. They released a Gaelic EP, ''
Carson?'', in 2005, followed by an all-Gaelic LP, ''Ar Ceòl, Ar Cànan, Ar-a-mach'', in 2006, and the all-Gaelic LP, ''Dùisg!'', in 2012. Their live set features a mix of English and Gaelic material, although they tend to favour the Gaelic material when they play in Scotland. At some concerts in
Portree
Portree (; gd, Port Rìgh, ) is the largest town on, and capital of, the Isle of Skye in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. Murray, W.H. (1966) ''The Hebrides''. London. Heinemann. Pages 154-155. It is the location for the only secondary school o ...
and
Stornoway, all of their songs and stage banter were in Gaelic.
The backgrounds of the musicians in the subgenre are diverse, from Tim (Mill a h-Uile Rud), who hails from
Seattle
Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
in the United States, to Anna Rothach (
Nad Aislingean and Oi Polloi), who was born and raised in
South Uist
South Uist ( gd, Uibhist a Deas, ; sco, Sooth Uist) is the second-largest island of the Outer Hebrides in Scotland. At the 2011 census, it had a usually resident population of 1,754: a decrease of 64 since 2001. The island, in common with the ...
. The uniting feature of all of these bands is that most of the Gaelic-speaking members have spent some time at
Sabhal Mòr Ostaig
Sabhal Mòr Ostaig () (Great Barn of Ostaig) is a public higher education college situated in the Sleat peninsula in the south of the Isle of Skye, with an associate campus at Bowmore on the island of Islay, Ionad Chaluim Chille Ìle (the ...
, a Gaelic college on the
Isle of Skye. In
DIY
"Do it yourself" ("DIY") is the method of building, modifying, or repairing things by oneself without the direct aid of professionals or certified experts. Academic research has described DIY as behaviors where "individuals use raw and sem ...
-punk style, the Gaelic punks started out by teaching each other the language at ''Gaelic for Punks'' classes; first held at the ''
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...
European City of Punk'' festival in 1997. After these individuals gained fluency, they took advantage of scholarships available at Sabhal Mòr Ostaig, and there has been a small, but steady, stream of punks at the college ever since.
The Gaelic punk band Mill a h-Uile Rud were featured in the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
arts documentary series ''Ealtainn'', which followed them on a tour of Europe and filmed them at concerts in the Gaelic-speaking heartland of the
. ''
'', a national Scottish paper based in Edinburgh, regularly covers the Gaelic punk scene, and the American publications ''
'' (2005), Oi Polloi. This vinyl EP was the release that launched the subgenre.
* "Ceàrr" (2005), Mill a h-Uile Rud. This CD EP was the first ever CD released of all-original new compositions in Gaelic. The liner-notes in the CD are also exclusively in Gaelic.
* "Ar Cànan, Ar Ceòl, Ar-a-mach" (2005), Oi Polloi. This is the first full-length rock LP sung entirely in Gaelic since Runrig released their ''Play Gaelic'' LP in 1979. Lyrics and sleeve-notes are entirely in Gaelic and English translations are only available on their website.
* "Ceòl Gàidhlig Mar Sgian Nad Amhaich" (2006). Four songs, one each by Oi Polloi, Mill a h-Uile Rud, Nad Aislingean and Atomgevitter.
* "
" (2006). Fifteen songs by Oi Polloi, Mill a h-Uile Rud, Nad Aislingean and Atomgevitter, and the 80s
.
* "Togaibh Ur Guth" (2011) by An t-Uabhas.
* "Dùisg" (2012) by Oi Polloi.
* "Luathas-teichidh" le Drilseach (2014).