JRM - Jig Reel Maniacs - Celtic fusion

JRM (Jig Reel Maniacs) is one of Poland’s longest-running Irish music bands. JRM hane played traditional Celtic music (Irish, Scottish, Welsh, Breton, Galician) for 34 years, blending folk sounds with modern arrangements, drawing from various global trends. The group’s music is hard to classify: it’s World Music inspired by the Celtic legacy, with a strong foundation in jazz, rock, reggae, funk and chill-out, which can only be summarized as Celtic fusion. JRM is one of the most energetic, unique and exceptional live bands in Poland, one that wins the hearts of their fans with their spontaneity and directness.

History

JRM (previously known as The J.R.M. Band or JRM Band) was first started back in the early 1990's by a Scott Rory Dallas Allardice and his two Polish friends Jacek Podbielski and Michał Jankowski. It was the initials of their first names that formed the band’s name. From the start the band was famous for their great concerts and shows, which are still their basic activity currently. The repertoire includes standard Celtic instrumentals such as jigs, reels, hornpipes, airs, polkas, waltzes, etc. combined into sets, songs sung in English or Gaelic, as well as their own stylized compositions and arrangements.

The Present

Today’s JRM is a return to their fascination with the jig and the reel: the two fundamental Celtic rhythms and dances. Thus, the name JRM now spells ‘Jig & Reel Maniacs’. The band get their inspiration from the traditional Celtic melodic tradition (primarily Irish and Scottish) and the sounds of its characteristic instruments (fiddle, accordion, whistle, emphasized by a frequent soprano sax unison, and pipes), supported by the harmonic layers of the keyboards and guitars (acoustic and electric) and the rhythm section (bass guitar and drums). JRM’s Celtic tunes with their varied modern rhythms and harmonies influenced by jazz, rock, funk, reggae or latin are far from monotonous.

Gigs and discography

JRM is first of all a concert band. They have played more than 2000 concerts in Poland and abroad since 1990 (a few dozen a year). Spontaneous improvisations and the authentic interaction with the audience are the substance of JRM’s live concerts, appreciated by both the ‘dancers’; and the ‘listeners’. Jig Reel Maniacs have made 3 releases (wydawnictwa) so far: the In the Pub cassette (1996), the Cosa Gan broga CD (2009) and the album Celtic fusion LIVE (2016), CD which features 21 musical themes and sums up the period of the band's activities from 2010 to 2015.

Irish Music and Dance

Jig Reel Maniacs work together with the Wrocław-based Irish dance group Tuatha & Ellorien. The product of this cooperation is the show Eachtra - a Celtic Journey and a series of music and dance shows under the title Celtic fusion and dance.

JRM line-up

Michał Jankowski - acoustic guitar
Aleksander Brych - flute, whistles, wind instruments
Michał Mazur - bagpipes, whistles, drumla, dudaire dubh, Irish bouzouki
Dobrochna Surma - fiddle
Mariusz Sprutta - bass guitar, vocals, narratives and ceremonies
Filip Wyrwa - drums, percussion

Photographs and video

The photo and video gallery is presented in Polish and English. Please visit the Galeria Photo and the Galeria Video sections.

The current sound and look

Cape Breton - Jig Reel Maniacs video clip - Poznań, Blue Note Poznan Jazz Club, recording: 2019-01-27
- publication: 2019-06-24 - recording during a concert titled Celtic fusion with pipes connections
- official Jig Reel Maniacs music video:




Jig Reel Maniacs in action together with the Tuatha & Ellorien - camera recording:

References

A quote from Celtic Fusion's private review in an e-mail from our fan in the USA (2019-02-12):

(I) respond to tell you how impressive it and your band are. Great mixtures of rock, Irish classic, jazz and folk, all done perfectly. (Steve Nagle)

We couldn't have put it better ourselves!