What a morning for your intrepid reporter. Another grey day at WOMAD dawned, another coffee downed, another wave of anticipation for the ear-tingling experiences to come. Starting off gently, easing into Sunday with some soothing Irish trad sounds to warm the cockles, a musical muscle rub in preparation for the day’s endurance test ahead.

Or so we thought…

On paper – and to a bleary-eyed reporter three festival days deep who, ahem, perhaps hadn’t quite done the required research – The Olllam present very much like you know what you’re in for. Uilleann pipe and whistle melodies from the legendary John McSherry (Lunasa, Tamalin, At First Light) and his protégé Tyler Duncan. Backed up by some kind of rhythm section, presumably. So far, so trad.

…And that’s how it started. The sight of McSherry and Duncan sitting centre-stage facing each other, matching tune for tune with barely a blink, was striking to behold; their playing effortless, intricate, and spirited. The band fell in line with sweet, muted accompaniment.

A few songs passed, and a figure cropped up in the peripheral vision. In sunglasses and a suit, bouncing to the groove; and lo, there was bass. Those chops were lifting the ensemble to take off. Funk took over as keys and rhythm responded. Guitar followed suit, and we were flying.

“That guy is doing a really good Joe Dart impression”, said an awed voice in the crowd.

Then came a mega wig-out, a couple of heavy drops, and some serious enthusiasm bass-side, and the crowd couldn’t keep still. This was something entirely new, and it was pure joy. At which point, your correspondent decided to dig a bit deeper.

“Wait…what….that IS Joe Dart!!?!”

It was an extraordinary revelation. To have this particular highly acclaimed, exquisitely buoyant bassist turn up to play Irish folk in a WOMAD tent on a Sunday morning was beyond conceivable. Yet here he was, before our delighted eyes. It was a captivating show from all involved.

The Olllam’s funk-folk hybrid is so much more than ‘Neo-acoustic Celtic post-rock.’ It nods to prog, psych, and jazz in a twist on tradition that emanates exuberance. It’s top-of-the-game quality delivered with infectious enthusiasm. And you really can’t beat that bass.

Rhythm Passport was lucky enough to chat with ace drummer Michael Shimmin and the man himself about the origins of this inspired collaboration and how the band put their music together.

Rhythm Passport: How did this marrying of the traditional folk and funk elements come about?

Michael Shimmin: It started with the two whistle players, Tyler Duncan and John McSherry, who have a long history. Tyler rocked up to Ireland as a kid (he was 13 when he made the trip across the Atlantic from Michigan) and John became his Irish music mentor.

Fast forward a few years, and I joined Tyler’s Irish fusion group in America, Millish. We toured for a long time, and that got me involved in the Irish scene.

A bit later, Tyler and John had the idea to start something new. They’d write tunes on the whistle, then we’d collaborate on bringing the other elements. We have backgrounds in rock, jazz, and classical, so based the music around a rock/funk rhythm section. That was the writing style that naturally occurred, and resulted in what we have today.

RP: What’s the writing process like?

MS: We’ll start just with the whistle melody, then we’ll add the piano and drums, trying to find a groove that works; it happens that way naturally. We’re not trying to make it Irish or not-Irish.

One thing that’s really significant about how we’re writing and arranging this stuff is that we’re thinking of these pieces more as songs – in traditional and Irish music usually it goes ‘A part repeat, B part repeat’. We’re thinking more in terms of verse, chorus, verse, double chorus, outro.

RP: You’re playing with other projects, based in a different style – what do you get out of playing traditional music?

Joe Dart: What’s cool about it is that Mike and I both come from a similar place – we have the Red Hot Chili Peppers and this kind of punk-rock, Zeppelin, groove-oriented rock and roll bands. The Olllam is not and never was a traditional Irish group, it just happens to be a collaboration of Tyler and John, John and their instruments being in that tradition. But I learned quickly that that wasn’t the overarching theme.

For me, it was actually way more natural than I thought it would be.

I kind of do my thing, I play these parts that are a little bit outside my normal wheelhouse, but I still get to do what I do and to lock in with Shimmin. It’s a brilliant band to play with – really.

RP: How is it playing with an acoustic guitarist rather than electric?

JD: Sean (O’Meara) is a phenomenal trad guitarist, really unbelievable. He’s a particular player that is just so unique. I first saw him in a trad context, but he’s influenced by Mark Knopfler and real rock and roll guitarists – he has that real driving, percussive background too. So I fit in really well there.

And John McSherry is not only a piper but also a Led Zeppelin fanatic, and I have the late nights playing records with him to prove it!

It’s just way more natural than I could have ever imagined – you might think it’s a bizarre idea and rock up thinking ‘how does this work?!’ But then it somehow does, you know?

RP: People rock out at Irish pub sessions – they’re drinking, having a wild time. It makes sense in that respect….!

MS: Exactly! We’ve had a great reaction in Ireland on this tour. They’re very passionate about their tradition. There tends to be a lot of younger people. To me, it seems like the younger generation of trad musicians is very excited about where it is right now – there are a lot of bands going in really cool directions, honoring the tradition.

JD: There might be bands that are branching out into more fusion territories, but probably also playing trad in a pub. The love of the tradition is so solid there. They do that, and then they’ll also have a band and add drums and keys – and that’s what we do too. I love both aspects of it.

MS: After we play at the Irish Cultural Centre in London, we’re going to a pub session – then we’ll go trad! I’ll play cajon, and it’s great to hear Tyler and John do their thing in a properly trad setting. I love a session in a pub – it’s so much fun.

Photos © Ursula Billington