Festival Interviews
The Ploughboys
Can you tell us a little about The Ploughboys line-up and how the band got together?
The Ploughboys consists of Damian Howard on lead vocals, keyboard and acoustic guitar (he is also the band's song writer). Tony O'Neill on Fiddle, Mandolin and backing vocals, his son Declan O'Neill on drums and percussion, Jason King on electric and acoustic guitars and backing vocals and finally John Edgar on bass guitar and backing vocals. The Ploughboys under Damian's leadership first hit the Australian music festival circuit back in 1994, and included John on Bass guitar. Some 8 or 9 years ago Tony brought his considerable mandolin and fiddling skills to the band, (Tony is originally from the legendary Australian band the Bushwackers and is arguably Australia's leading Mandolin player). About 5 years ago in adding a bit more ‘rock' to the Celtic folk sound of the band, Jason King on electric guitar was invited to join and has never looked back. (He has 15 years of experience with various Celtic and cover bands.) And last but certainly not least, our youngest member of the band Dec who is only 17. He has been playing with us full time now for the last couple of years and previously for a couple of years before that on a fill-in basis. Obviously with a musical father like Tone, and coming from an Irish musical family, Dec is gaining a formidable (and deserved!!) reputation as a great drummer already, plus lowering the average age of the band fairly dramatically, so makes us all feel a bit better.
Are there any other artistes/performers that have inspired the band?
Like many Celtic bands the Waterboys and Pogues have always inspired Damian and the guys. Damian is one of the legendary Howards and was raised within a very musical family, with 7 siblings, a musical mother and a very supporting father. Damian's life has always involved music and performing, from church and wedding singing in his younger years, through to experiencing the dizzying heights of having a brother (Shane Howard) and sister (Marcia Howard) in one of the most famous Australian iconic bands "Goanna". He played and recorded with them on songs like ‘Let the Franklin Flow' and ‘Solid Rock', to name a few. It was empowering stuff, as was being a supporter of the 80's environmental movement alongside Midnight Oil and Redgum in his earlier formative years.
The early years helped shape Damian's life, (both musically, morally and philosophically) igniting the passion for supporting social, environmental and indigenous issues that still burns just as brightly today. Over the years Damian has supported and recorded with the likes of Mary Black. In fact, Mary has recorded one of Damian's songs on her latest CD. Bob Dylan, John Farnham, Hothouse Flowers, Kutcha Edwards, Archie Roach, Dave Arden, Deborah Byrne, just to name a few that have been inspirational.
The Ploughboys are already being tipped to be the find of the festival. What can the HebCelt audience expect at your show?
I will give you a couple of quotes that I reckon probably sum up the guys and the band's kudos and pretty well where we come from and would like to go:
A. "The Ploughboys have always divided opinion. Their brand of raucous folk-rock fused with sublime balladry has driven many a sane man to fits of hysterical sobbing, and more than a few well-balanced women to bouts of whiskey-fuelled interpretative dance. In other words, The Ploughboys perform every show like it is their last and will be damned if they ever take a stage without being bound to giving their heart, soul, life blood and liver to the audience. From Stornoway to Singapore, Darwin to Denmark, Hobart to Helsinki, the Ploughboys have enthralled crowds the world over for more than 15 years. As five accomplished musicians in their own right the Ploughboys remain a genuine folk-rock force. The songs, the spirit and the power of living for the moment. The Ploughboys will soothe your heart and rock your socks off!"
B. "The Ploughboys are a great band to watch. They seem to have a crowd of instant fans (like fish in the desert after rain, they magically appear) attracted by a swaggering and cheeky Aussie gregarious presence that raises the stakes with real passion." (Jamie McKew Port Fairy FF Artistic Director.)
How popular is Celtic/Traditional music in Australia just now?
Celtic music (Including Traditional) in Australia is still a large part of the music scene here and there are still numerous Celtic festivals throughout all of Australia and a large part of the industry is still based around here. Like many bands we work around the edges of the traditional scene, but it is still an immensely strong force here and I doubt that that will ever change.
What is the band looking forward to at the festival and for the rest of the year?
Getting our music out to what we have heard is one of the country's best festival venues and crowds, is something we all are pretty excited about and looking forward to. Like many Australians we have substantial family and musical roots in Scotland and a chance to bring some of our music back to places "whence it came from" is empowering stuff.
Of course being Australians, we do enjoy the odd social drink, odd party and interaction with the festival goers, so we're really looking forward to that side of things too. The rest of the year for us first of all includes 3 more weeks in Ireland, Scotland and England (final festival is Speyfest in Fochabers in Northern Scotland). After that we are back home to continue on the festival circuit around Australia playing various Celtic, folk and more main stream music festivals.
There is a new album waiting in the wings and a bit of time required to complete that for release in March next year at Australia's largest folk festival – Port Fairy Folk Festival and basically we start straight away in putting together next year's tour as we are definitely back to the UK again. We look like doing a stint in the States at some stage or other next year too, so busy times ahead. We would be arguably one of Australia's more harder working bands, and would work about 45 weeks out of the year, but it is what the guys enjoy and all are looking forward to whatever the next year brings as we know it will just be bigger and better!!!
Can you name a track that best sums up The Ploughboys' music?
The Wild Colonial Boy, whilst one of our older songs, is one that has kept us in pretty good stead over many years, as well as reflecting the basic ethos of the band. Damian has reworked the song several times over the years and the current version, which is a much more up-beat and rockier song, with in particular the electric guitar and violin (I guess the old and the new!!) working very well in tandem. It shows that whilst the band has still retained its Australian and Celtic heritages, it is a different world and differing audiences today and you must be prepared to embrace changing societies and work with and for them.
The Ploughboys have always had a bit of a "rebel or perhaps a not so politically correct" reputation, as a band that passionately supports many social, environmental and indigenous issues that perhaps many other bands may shy away from, but goes to the heart of Damian's song writing and the way the band performs their songs and realistically the way they all live their lives.
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