Happy new year, new month, and of course a new Monthly Marker!

ZiRP – Low Lights (Circle Divine, 2020)

We cannot deny, that these are dark times of worry and loss, and most of us are secluded to our homes, staying safe by minimizing our physical interaction with the outside world. Yet reflecting on the year we are leaving behind us, we are delighted to see that so many beautiful things can arise from our confinements too. Creative resilience brought us livestreams, online festivals and lots, lots of music.

Going through all the wonderful albums that were recently released, there was one that stood out. The ‘Circle Divine’ of ZiRP is a collection of tracks that are exquisite to dance to, some really powerful bourrées, a cuddly mazurka, bouncy polkas and, of course, a divine circle. But it was the closing Scottish track that struck that chord where we immediately feel we’ve found the one.

Inquiring about the background story of this masterpiece, it became clear why. Florian: “The song is dedicated to a very good friend, who was a life-long musician, an accordion teacher and also my father. Jürgen Fügemann left this world far too soon in 2017 because of cancer. He would have loved this album, I’m sure, and this song, in particular, reflects his kind of soul. I owe the ‘soft side’ of myself to him.“

Florian was not always a drummer. In fact, he started with playing the piano at his parents’ home, the one where the whole family played on. And for his part of this track, he put aside his drumsticks and sat down at that very same piano, still at their house, and recorded his take there.

Stephan wrote the tune on his Irish low whistle and to keep the piece quiet, Olaf played a reduced picking and Flo took the double bass.

Florian: “Alex, who mixed it, had some trouble connecting all the pieces. But isn’t that closer to what life is really like? It’s not always perfect, but if we find love, we can pass it on. This is what I see in this song.“

And as indeed we currently are all struggling and trying to piece things together, this is the core of what CeltCast strives for: at the heart of it all, we want to pass on the love through music and strengthen our connection in these solitary times. Which is why with a heartfelt virtual hug we are happy to play ‘Low Lights’ five to six times a day for the full month of January.

And to boost your spirits and have you dancing in your own livingrooms, we definitely recommend that you listen to the whole album. As I type, Cliff is actually writing his review… and I can already tell you: it is a perfect bringer of those festival vibes, while we eagerly await to get the chance to see ZiRP perform there some sunny day when we meet again.

– Love, Alex

ZiRP can be found here:

• Website: https://zirpmusic.de/
• Facebook: @zirpmusic
• Instagram: @zirpmusic
• Spotify: Zirp