GATLINBURG, Tenn. – The band, Tuatha Dea released their latest album, “Irish Eyes” comprised of 14 tracks, featuring a mix of new songs, and a sprinkling of old favorites with new twists.
The new album includes four songs from previously released albums that the band characterizes as having “evolved” from their original compositions, as well as one cover of AC/DC’s “It’s a Long Way to the Top” done in a style that is signature Tuatha Dea.
Image courtesy of Tuatha Dea
The recording was originally planned to be released as a celebration of the band’s 10-year anniversary in May of 2020, but the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic derailed their plans. Instead, what was originally slated to be a shorter album grew to nearly double in length since time and access to the studio were endless with no live shows to play and no travel.
One thing that is mostly absent from this new release is the predominant sound of hand drums that have previously been at the heart of most of their music. Drumming is still a part of the music, but far less evident than on previous releases.
Band members spoke with The Wild Hunt about their new release and their plans. Danny Mullikin, the “patriarch of the band as one of the four founding members,” said “In this particular case under Sound Biscuit banner, which is primarily a Blue Grass label, we elected to present this style of Tuatha—a more string-centric version of the band,”
“In no way does it negate our previous music and we will continue to play those songs,” he continued, “This album was a departure from previous work and reflects our ability and desire to be versatile.”
The music of the new album demonstrates the band’s ability to embrace and incorporate different styles while still retaining their distinctive sound that is described as Appalachian Americana.
While the current members of the band are: Danny Mullikin, Rebecca Mullikin, Katherine Holman, Chris Bush (anything that blows!), Jeremiah Waldo (bass), Brett Maney (drums), and Haley Olson (violin), the work of past members that include violinists Laura Smith and Chantal Haskell, guitarist Adam Ogle, and bassist, Tesea Mullikin are also featured on Tuatha Dea’s release.
Mullikin’s granddaughter, Sarah Faith Copeland, who is credited on the track, “Sweet Little Sister,” recently made the decision to join the band after the release had already been sent off for production.
The predecessor group, Tuatha Drum Nation, began in 2008 facilitating drum circles as a way to promote community connection. They developed their performance skills at all kinds of events from community drum circles to school shows and even senior living facilities, On December 21, 2010, they formed Tuatha Dea and debuted at the Preservation Pub in Knoxville, Tennessee, their first gig.
Tuatha Dea promotional poster – courtesy of D. Mullikin
From there the band began traveling a road filled with plenty of twists and turns on their own personal journey of evolution. As band members changed and Mullikin’s musical skills expanded, the group’s sound shifted to reflect those changes. Different members brought different musical skills to the stage, those skills would be reflected in the music that was written. Mullikin considers the changes and expansion a natural progression from all the writing circles around instrumentations.
The smoking hot guitar riffs written and performed by Brandon Mullikin that are so evident in songs like “Wisp of a Thing” became more prominent over some of the more acoustic aspects like the flute in prior songs, and would in turn eventually make room for the introduction of strings in the form of the violin licks that are laced through the current album.
Of his own musical skills, Mullikin said, “The drumming is my thing, has always been at the heart of my music, but as I evolved with other instruments the style of the music has expanded and evolved.”
Almost everything on the album has been played for public audiences via livestreaming or in more recent shows in person. Mullikin said, “We went into the studio in Fall of 2019 and expected to have a release in May of 2020.” The pandemic turned everything on its head.
“The only new song we had played publicly prior to the shutdown was ‘The Black Douglas.’ Then as we did the livestreams for a year, we began incorporating more of the new songs, so many people have already heard them before the album’s release,” Mullikin explained.
He went on to say, “Everything worked a little weird with Covid and kind of backward. We began dropping those songs into the mix because honestly, we weren’t sure if we were ever going to even get to play in public again.”
The title cut, “Irish Eyes” is noticeably light on drumming, but very reminiscent of the band’s roots. The song features Chris Bush providing counterpoint on pennywhistle, with Rebecca Mullikin on vocals, and the violin of Laura Smith threaded throughout.
The new songs featured on the album like, “How I Roll,” and “Sweet Little Sister,” reflect the hard-hitting guitar interwoven with fiddle riffs that echoes the band’s earlier works.
For drumming fans, “Gone, Gone, Gone” and “Miss Me When I’m Gone” both feature Brett Maney on his drum kit who captures a lot of the same energy of hand drumming so associated with the group.
The fourth track on the album, “Following Your Shadow” is denoted as being “For Charlie” and while the liner notes do not elaborate, it is a tribute to the 10-year-old son of author Alex Bledsoe who died suddenly in 2018. The song is masterful and reflects the best of the musical skills Mullikin and the Tuatha tribe bring to the table. Even without explanation, it is clear the song was crafted with caring and more than a generous dollop of love.
The updated or “evolved” versions of previously recorded songs reflect not only the growth and expansion of the group but also the original intent of Mullikin. He explained that “The Sky is Falling,” which was on their very first release, in this latest incarnation is more in line with what his original idea was for the tune.
“Looking back at the music off the first album there were only three songs that were truly original, but it just wasn’t what it was supposed to be. We were not musically adept enough to do what I originally wanted. With more instrumentation, it is now what I envisioned it to be.”
Another re-envisioned track on the album, “Falling Down.” often is mistakenly attributed as being written to Becca because of us singing it together. I wrote it in 1999, a decade before we even met, but it became a thing with me and Becca and it fits,” Mullikin said.
On the decision to include “Hypocritical Mass” on the album Mullikin said, “‘Hypocritical Mass‘ has evolved in amazing ways and after being recorded on video at Floyd Fest 2019 it has gotten enough traction that we wanted to capture that version.”
It was also the song that placed the band at number 15 out of the 10,000 bands competing globally in the Hard Rock Rising 2015 Battle of the Bands.
The work of both Grammy-nominated producer Dave Maggard and multiple Grammy-winning engineer Paul Blakemore, while evident across the album, is exemplified in the remixed and remastered “Open Letter” from the band’s 2018 release.
Mullikin said, “Maggard insisted on sending it off to Paul Blakemore. The studio thought that it was that good and wanted it. Maggard heard what it could be. And it shows what Maggard can do as a producer.”
One new song, that had not really been played publicly or livestreamed until the album, was released last weekend is the last track on the album, “Somethin’ for Nothin’.” The song is reminiscent of music from the 1940s and features Dre Hilton on piano.
Mullikin also told TWH that plans are underway for the production of a video of “Somethin’ for Nothin’” that will be shot in black and white, feature period garb, and will be focused on capturing the retro vibe of the 40s. Mullikin himself will be sporting a look for the video that may surprise fans and will show a side of him and Becca Mullikin, his wife and partner, that few fans are acquainting with since it will include dancing styles from the 1940s.
Of the album overall, Mullikin had this to say, “This is may seem like a redirection but it is all us. Some pieces of music on the album I feel are some of the strongest we’ve ever done, like ‘Open letter,’ ‘Following Your Shadow’. We’re just trying to remain viable and don’t know what the future holds we hope to continue to exist and evolve.”
He continued with, “We’re missing some people. We’ve lost some people in 2020, Allison Wallace, one of the first members and wife of Dustin Wallace who created the cover art for Tuatha. The world keeps turning the new the old passes – the same month we lost Allison, we gained Finnegan. We’re still here.”
The new album “Irish Eyes” is available through the band’s website and Apple music. A vinyl release of the album is scheduled for May 2022.
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