Press Reviews
Irish band sparks Guinness' interest
Irish band's logo may grace Guinness glasses of the future. By Shelley Marsden - 26/03/08
The Irish World - Irish band sparks Guinness' interest
GOOD things come to those who rock, as a London-Irish band have discovered.
When North Londoners "Keltica" patented a new logo which they named 'the Electra Harp', they had no idea that it would be used for anything other than their own promotional purposes.
But they weren't counting on a friend, who noticed it bore a resemblance to the famous Guinness harp and emailed it to Guinness, for 'a bit of a joke'.
"Our mate sent the logo over to Guinness to wind us up really", said guitarist Wilz. "They thought it would go straight to spam, or that Guinness would sue us, because it looks like their symbol!"
However, it looks like the world-famous brewers might be thinking of giving the Guinness brand a 21st century facelift and ridding it of its image as an 'old man's drink'.
To the amazement of the group, Guinness spotted the email and were impressed with both the logo and this new, unsigned Irish band.
Keltica's 'electra harp' has now been passed on to the brand team; who are considering using it in future advertising campaigns.
Said Wilz; "Our music is reflective of Ireland present and past, and our electra harp is a futuristic adaptation of the Irish harp, also the national symbol of Ireland. It's metaphor of the futuristic technological society we live in."
If you'd like to finds out more about Keltica and the 'Electra Harp' logo that's caused all the fuss, go to www.kelticaonline.com.
News of the World - Rav's show biz page from March 16th 2008
LOSING TODAY WEBSITE MUSIC REVIEWS
Keltica 'the purple edit' EP (self released). Damn well near knocked us off our favourite listening pedestal and straight into next week. Debut 4 track Boz Boorer produced outing from unsigned Irish trio Keltica is a party packing pop treasure - make no bones about it. Those much missing a more sentimental and drifting melodic curvature to their listening experiences will do well to hook into this, led from the fore by Keslyn whose softly lingering vocal has the ability to all at once seduce and crush, Keltica excel at crafting sweetly gilded honey combed melodies that drift in washes of hazy West coast accents and soft 60's hues. Blissfully faraway in moods these little gems idly glide bitter sweetly amid terrains more readily associated with the Strawberry Switchblade - that is if McDowall and Bryson had consorted to collaborate with the Bangles, the Heartthrobs and Lush (best viewed by casting an ear to the closing 'nixer'). From the hurting acoustic pinches of the reflectively resigned and hollowed 'set me free' to the softly sheen radiating 'bonafide' with its snaring crisply sly prickling infectious daytime radio friendly hooks its quite blindingly obvious that a mercurial chemistry flows cherry picking pristine pop motifs and fluffing its fringe with lazy eyed country swirls and silken MOR strokes destined one would imagine for a hungry American market. The subtly psychedelic 'Naked brunch' sees Keslyn standing down momentarily while the distinct early career Marr-esque accents filter through though our money and indeed affection is snaffled by the adoring shimmering cast of the lilting spangle dashes of the decidedly understated 60's threads of 'Nixer' which unless the ears are deceiving had us fondly transported to witness a secret embrace between the Adult Net and 'kid' era Pretenders replete with the impeccable trademark craft of fulsomely lingering Honeymoon-Scott styled overtures breezing through as were like sun kissed spectres. Ones to watch for. www.kelticaonline.com
STREET VOICE UK MUSIC MAGAZINE (MYSPACE.COM/STREETVOICE)
Street Voice UK Music Magazine Review
KELTICA - Promo CD: This Irish Indie Pop band aren't bad at all. Imagine the Cranberries, Snow Patrol and the Kaiser Chiefs all thrown together and you get Keltica. Despite being a three piece the 5 studio tracks on this CD have something in them that many four/five piece bands can't capture in the studio and live it's fair to say Keltica are the business too! There's some good tracks throughout this recording and you'll figure that out for yourselves when you hear such numbers as 'Lifter' and 'Naked Brunch'. Given the quality of material I am listening to right now there's nothing stopping this band from hitting the big time. Keltica rock and they should rock your world too! Check them out! 9/10
ROOM 13 REVIEWS
Room 13 Reviews
Room 13 Reviews on MySpace
We've had a few bands hailing from Ireland over the past few years; Boyzone, the Corrs and U2 to name but a few. New faces to the industry are Keltica and they plan to bring something a little different to the tables.
This three piece have a way of creating some unique indie pop tracks with an optimistic feel. Their writing ability incorporates every side of life possible; the happy and the less so but with a lighter feel to it. One track that stood out for its lyrical elements and its catchy chorus was 'Bone Fide'.
After the first chorus, I couldn't help but get sucked into the next few that came along.
The majority of the vocals come from talented Keslyn. They are smooth running and mostly upbeat. The track that stands out in vocals is 'Naked Brunch' due to the fact that as well as Keslyn's vocals there are male vocals from Tylir. The vocal harmonies work well between the genders.
Each of the tracks is laden with hooks while at the same time offers a variety of sounds. 'Nixer' is electric and 'Lifter' while being upbeat has an electric rhythm introduced at one point, which deepens the track somewhat more.
There are a few more acoustic numbers here to even out the balance. 'Naked Brunch' has a relaxed and softer touch, while the live recording 'Set Me Free' definitely has the acoustic side down.
One thing I wasn't happy about with this release though, was the packaging. If you are going to have the cover in black, it looks great, but NOT when the material used rubs off on your fingers and then over the CD. Worked wonders trying to get it off. Thanks guys. Music was good, packaging a nightmare.
It's very hard to believe these guys are still unsigned, but I'm sure that will change when everyone gets a listen to 'The Purple Edit'.
TOXIC PETE CD REVIEWS
One thing that I'm sure about, Keltica are different! 'The Purple Edit EP' is four tracks of testing, challenging and somewhat confusing pop-rock with the occasional folkish undercurrent. It's raw - then it's honed, it's catchy - then it's a little annoying - and so it goes on; I'm confused and feeling a little battle weary! But read on....!
I'm not at all sure about whether Keltica actually do it for me; it's very much a case of yes they do, no they don't, yes they do, no they don't...etc. However, this Irish outfit certainly turn pop-rock on its head with their very individualistic approach and sophisticated writing that's just as easily described as cumbersome and weird! Certainly, I get an overall feeling of 'too much clutter' on most of the tracks; sounds that feel just to juxtaposed and at times uncomfortable. And then, they go and do a 180 and come up with something bright and easy on the ear - Keltica are indeed a strange bunch!
Keltica seem to go down an entirely different 'dynamic' road to most outfits; they seem to thrive on the 'strangely strange' and miss the 'oddly normal' by miles. And, I have to admit, I'm finding it really difficult to decide what I actually think of Keltica and their 'Purple Edit EP' - I like the way Keltica are not like anybody else but, there's something so almost off-kilter about their whole sound. Now, it may just be me coz I know that Keltica are already making a pretty big impression and quotes like, "Keltica possess a passion that's insatiable, an attitude that's unshakeable and a modesty that's debatable", "..making the listener feel like they're floating in zero-gravity" and "...where Celtic mysticism meets Star Wars" are already being hurled about.
Ok, 'The Purple Edit EP' by Keltica is a multi-tasker's dream and a rhythmically-challenged's nightmare; if you can tap out one thing with yer fingers whilst tapping out something completely different with yer feet, something else with yer head and let yer brain un-scramble it all into one intrinsic theme you'll be ok - but, if you fall short in the coordination or concentration departments this'll be tough work!! Interesting stuff from Keltica - certainly different and definitely a challenge!! But, You know what? This strange little bugger creeps up ya and pulls yer in - slowly, but it does happen!