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Ready to dispense Good Medicine


MOUNSHANNON traditional singer Peneleapaí Chung, who established Singers’ Club Loch Deirge, is administering new music medicine as her recently formed band delivers a fresh sound to the public.
Her new venture sees the formation of Peneleapaí’s first band, Good Medicine, which made their debut in November 2012 at the Spirit of Voice festival in Galway.
Peneleapaí’s love affair with music is long established and she shared her passion for singing by forming the Singers’ Club Loch Deirge in June 2006. She did so to preserve and cultivate tradition as well as offering a forum for people of all ages and inclinations to gather and sing a song, or share a story.
“It felt good and right to have both younger and older generations represented and united in the enjoyment and creation of craic agus ceol,” she said. 
Peneleapaí qualified for two years running to the provincial level in the Fleadh Cheoil in the Comhaltas Ceoltóirí na hÉireann adult traditional singing category. As well as her interest in song and music, Peneleapaí is an avid Gaelgóir.
Things took a radical detour in 2011 for Peneleapaí when she was invited to join original rock group ContraWave (now Torq) and as if that weren’t enough, she took brave new steps to compose her very own sounds, sharing with open minds and hearts along the journey.
The decisive hand of fate led her to rest the trad for a bit, as she learned about mics, monitors, amplified gigs, music videos and studio recording. She entered more unchartered realms as she discovered and developed her own native style of conception, composition, and arrangement in music and song writing. From this Good Medicine, was born.
She describes Good Medicine’s sound as “a fresh and raw collective of rhythm, tone and musical truths of a pilgrim”. Their songs are full of energy and vision and deal with ecological questions, revolutions of the heart.
She describes the music as very simple and also somewhat difficult to define as she said it encompasses all of the following attributes: “world roots, singer songwriter, flowers, soil, stone, air, bone, shame, home, youth, revolt, alone, sean-nós, traditional and original non-musical minded soul tunes”.
The current band line-up has Kieran Glas on lead guitar and vocals; Kai Price on cajón and other percussions, and Michael McGuire on clavé, conga, and other percussions. 
Kieran hails from Somerset, England, having first come to Ireland in 2011 as a volunteer. Kai has been based near Tulla for the past 35 years and Michael is originally from Dublin, although well settled in Clare. Michael leads a drumming class in Scariff every Wednesday sharing his love for all things rhythmic from 6-8pm.
Peneleapaí explains how the acoustic group came about.
“It seems the songs’ own life force propelled its occurrence. There are ways of existing, subsisting, and living. The band explores each, trying to reflect the human condition back to the microcosm who chooses to play audience. Being my brainchild, there was more than music to be had. After the music fell into place with the band, other artistic passions found ground,” she said.
This came out of collaborations with the Hip Hop Dance Conservatory of New York and with the Limerockers Cru – under direction of Barry Burke, as well as with other friends and those in the world of movement and dance.
What Peneleapaí loves about Good Medicine’s music “is the fact that the songs are being breathed to life via the spirit and energy of these other humans”.
“The chemistry and collective vision is between band members and audience. It’s the great honour and privilege of being listened to, to be accepted, to be understood, valued, and connected with, in the issues that are sung about. Issues such as social exclusion/inclusion, ecological and moral standards and perceptions, life peculiarities and on a more grassroots level, emotional journeys we’ve made in love or in fear,” she said.
Their next performance will be on Thursday, March 21 at the Crane Bar (Sea Road) in Galway where Peneleapaí and Good Medicine will be one of three acts for the Mná Mná Women in Music series curated by Niceol Blue, which will be their 2013 début.

 

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