Gaels take recording studio by storm
Friday, January 21, 2000 – John O’Groat Journal

Stephen Cashmore is pleased to find that the Howlin’ Gaels have lost none of their live magic in the transition from stage to CD.

Regulars at Howlin’ Gaels gigs have often wondered whether the spontaneous excitement generated by the band’s live performances is transferable to a hi-fi in the living-room setting.
Take away the influence of a room filled with adrenalised bodies and all the trappings of a licensed dance hall, and what would be left? Would it be a case of home alone is no place for the Gaels?
Well, now we know.
Rock the Millennium is eight prime sides, recorded by the Gaels in Phil Anderson’s Kirkwall studio. Those with long teeth may remember Phil as a member of the seventies hit band Middle of the Road. Never mind, Phil still keeps his musical hand in. On Rock the Millennium he fills in with keyboards, rhythm guitar and backing vocals where necessary.

The first album by the Gaels was committed to tape in two-and-a-bit days – an astonishing achievement given that the songs on it are all their own compositions and, with one or two exceptions, will be fresh to most ears. Rehearsal time was, by all accounts, at a premium, but this turns out to have been no bad thing – what rough edges there are on Rock the Millennium merely pepper up an already tasty musical stew.

For those who don’t know, the Howlin’ Gaels are four young Caithness musicians, fully committed to the cause of blues-rooted rock ‘n’ roll. Singer and leather-lunged harmonica man Donnie Williamson fronts the line-up of Alex Mcintosh (lead guitar), David Tashinizi (bass) and drummer Ewan Barker. Versatility is a key note of the band and it is not unknown for Alex to play rhythm guitar, Taz to take a leading hand and sing the odd song, and Ewan, too, has a voice of his own.

“Too Hot Too Soon”, a beefy pounder in the best Gales manner, kick-starts the album. Over an up-tempo blues beat, Donnie Williamson unfolds a story of fractious passion, underlined by a wailing harmonica and keyboard chords. The song ends with Alec’s nimble fingers storming up and down the guitar scales, while Ewan demonstrates just how good a drummer he is.

Next up is a slow, moody blues number, “Baby B’ Troo”, on which Phil Anderson’s keyboard evokes a late-hours nightscape “Play me the blues,” demands Donnie halfway through the song, and Alec does just that – in spades. Old-timers may find this reminiscent of the Animal’s , in their slower moments, which is not such a bad thing.

Continuing on a blues track is the third offering, “12 Bars Too Late”. Forty year of rockin’ blues tradition is encapsulated in these four minutes. It’s a familiar tale of what happens when the lure of drink delays a man. He gets home at some timeless hour, murders his old lady and lands in the clink. Out on parole, he takes another fill, wraps his car round a telegraph pole and ends up back inside. The whole escapade is driven along by a pumping beat.

Now comes a change: “Blue Ocean” is untypical of the Gaels we know. Nevertheless, it is perhaps the most commercial offering on the CD. Wistful and evocative, with an infectious busy rhythm and a masterly tempo change, “blue Ocean” paints a picture equivalent, in some ways, to walking out in autumn under a windswept northern sky. This is a pop song in the best possible sense.

Those of you familiar with the Trudge Euphoria CD Festering days will detect the mutual influence of David Tashinizi on “Can Anybody Tell Me?”
Taz was one of the mainsprings of Trudge Euphoria, and on this track his experience with that band is pressed into service with the Gales. He takes the song himself, an intense performance, backed by aching guitar lines that go on forever.

The next one emerges like an uncoiled snake. “Where is the Feelin’?” has been a feature number at Gaels gigs for almost a year now. Chopped guitar chords in the classic rock style introduce this saga romance gone cold, with Donnie agonising over the dregs of love’s bitter aftertaste. This number continues the tradition started by Led Zeppelin long before some of the Gaels were born, a tradition in which skilled musicianship translates primal emotions. Gut-wrenching.

“Here’s to You (and your rock ‘n’ roll)” is another instant-access tune with a memorable faster-tempo chorus and space-ranging guitar. Again this has commercial potential in a market beyond blues rock.

Initially, a feeling of being short-changed followed a first listen to the final track of Rock the Millennium. Somehow less than two minutes for “The Gaels Anthem” just didn’t feel right.
But a few helpings of this trot-along ditty, on which Stewart Shearer plays a lively banjo, explained everything.
For many, this is just how a Howlin’ Gaels session really does end – calling for a taxi and rolling home intoxicated… even those of us who are teetotal.