Biddy on the Bench

The 2020 Samhain Celtic New Year Festival is excited to welcome Biddy on the Bench!

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The versatile combination of traditional acoustic instruments and vocal harmony lends itself equally to high-energy Irish rebel songs and shanties, lively session tunes, and mournful Gaelic ballads. Grounded primarily in the folk style of Irish music pioneered by bands such as “The Dubliners”, “Planxty”, and “The Bothy Band”, Portland’s own “Biddy on the Bench” breathes life and authenticity into old standbys of the genre and lesser-known tunes alike. The band approaches each song, each melody, with a passion for the music and sharing it with others.

Biddy on the Bench’s origins go back to the winter of 2014, when the original four members first began practicing together. Kevin, Casey, Noah, and Nick began carving out a niche in Portland, Oregon’s folk scene with a combination of ballads, pub classics, rebel songs, harmonized shanties, and traditional tunes. 2017 saw the arrival of Tristan, followed by his brother, Trevor. An ever-increasing schedule of pub gigs, Highland games, Celtic festivals, and private events around the Northwest cultivated a supportive and widespread audience. Nick left the band in early 2019 for other pursuits, but not before the six-piece recorded its first single with Billy Oskay at his Big Red Studio the preceding December. As a five-piece, Biddy continued to evolve and hone its sound. Spring of 2020 arrived along with the band’s debut album, “Make the Rafter Roar.”