Matthew Byrne

An overdue Spring update.

matthew — Mon, 13 May 2013 13:39:25 +0000

Well it’s been a relaxing Spring…I haven’t been gigging much and it’s been a great opportunity to catch up on other work, see friends and actually be home for more than a week. But the busy season is right upon us. I head off to Norris Point with The Dardanelles next weekend for the Tails, Trails and Tunes Festival. We love this festival and we’re delighted to play it with fiddle legend Kelly Russell this time. He’s one of our heroes and a great friend…rehearsals sounded awesome, so we’re pumped for this. After that I’m hoping to get back to recording for the second album. I have a lot done, but there’s still much left to do. It’s looking like a release will happen in the Fall. The Summer is shaping up with some great festivals, many of which are with the Dards. Check out the schedule page of our (brand new) website to see where we’re headed, and there’s more to be added shortly. As for solo performances, I’m tickled to be doing the Newfoundland & Labrador Folk Festival this year and showcase new material in anticipation of the next album. I’ll have some awesome players with me to make it more of a band set….really can’t wait for that. As always, you can track me on Twitter – @mattbyrneNL. Talk soon!

Celtic Connections, Folk Alliance, and ECMA.

matthew — Fri, 01 Feb 2013 14:03:41 +0000

Just back from Glasgow with The Dardanelles. We were part of this year’s Celtic Connections Festival, which is pretty much the mecca of traditional music. Wow. It was brilliant. We did two really great sold out shows and a live taping for BBC Radio 3 Scotland. An amazing experience with wonderful people. So exciting to bring Newfoundland traditional music to the UK. I’m home now for a couple of weeks before heading off to the Savannah Irish Festival with The Dards, followed by Folk Alliance in Toronto and then the ECMAs in Halifax where The Dardanelles are nominated for TWO awards! Group Recording of the Year and Roots / Traditional Group Recording of the Year. We are simply delighted with that. And huge congrats to all of the nominees – see ya in Halifax!

Happy New Year!

matthew — Mon, 07 Jan 2013 15:36:49 +0000

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season, and here’s to a safe and happy 2013! I want to thank you all for your support this past year. You’re all wicked. I’m excited for 2013…lots happening. I’m currently recording my second solo album, which I hope to release this Spring. The wonderful Billy Sutton is one again in the Producer chair and I’m really getting excited about what we’re creating. Still in the early stages yet, but I’ll be sure to provide more info before long. Playing some more awesome festivals this year as well, both solo and with The Dardanelles. The first is Celtic Connections in Glasgow, UK at the end of January. What a time that will be! We’re also showcasing at the ECMAs and Folk Alliance this year. So yeah, my 2013 is shaping up to be awesome and I hope yours is too! Use the old Twitter machine to see what and where I’m at, either solo or with The Dards – @mattbyrneNL and @TheDardanelles

And it’s Christmas!

matthew — Tue, 11 Dec 2012 19:24:33 +0000

Wow…almost halfway into December! Crazy. I’m not long home from two weeks of house concerts in Alberta. Such a great experience. Played to so many wonderful audiences and met some truly awesome people. To all of the hosts – thanks you so very much for your amazing hospitality and warm welcomes. It sure is good to be home, though. I’m very excited to report that my second solo album is officially under way. I started in the studio last night and it feels amazing to be working on new music. Hoping for a Spring release…stay tuned! And have a wicked Christmas in the meantime! I’m doing a couple of hush-hush shows with The Dardanelles in St. John’s – keep an eye on Facebook and twitter to see what that’s all about

Update from Alberta!

matthew — Sun, 25 Nov 2012 02:09:12 +0000

Hey all! I’m writing this from lovely Red Deer, AB. Tonight is the sixth of an eleven show house concert tour. It has been such an awesome experience so far. Meeting amazing people on every stop and getting a chance to see this beautiful province. The mountains…the big sky….wow. I’m excited to get home though because I’ve been asked to perform as part of The Once’ annual Christmas concert at Gower Street Church in St. John’s. They are dear friends and incredible performers and I’m really pumped to be part of this awesome show. Check out all the details here…there aren’t many tickets left! And after that? It’s Christmas! Wicked. The Dardanelles are planning a couple of hush-hush Christmas gigs…more on that soon. Bye for now!

Busy November – Ontario and Alberta shows!

matthew — Sun, 04 Nov 2012 15:18:59 +0000

Heading to Ontario with The Dardanelles on Wednesday to do a short run of awesome shows. Very excited to be playing the legendary Hugh’s Room in Toronto. We’re back at The Dakota where we always have a blast, as well as Sharbot Lake Inn and the A.N.A.F Club in Guelph with local heroes The Kramdens. If you’re in the area we’d love to see you! After that I’m home for a week and then off to Alberta for my Home Routes house concert tour. This is a first for me and I’m really excited! Small, intimate shows in eleven beautiful Alberta cities…in the Fall. Should be wonderful. All of the dates for Ontario and Alberta are on the shows page. I’ll be sure to tweet along the way – @mattbyrneNL. Talk soon!

Awesome Fall shows w/ The Dardanelles!

matthew — Thu, 27 Sep 2012 13:07:24 +0000

Hey folks – just a quick update now as a busy Fall gets under way! I’m playing a small concert at Commissariat House this Saturday. Totally intimate, totally acoustic. Really looking forward to it. The Dardanelles are honoured to be part of the sold-out show for Ron Hynes at The Delta Ballroom this Sunday. What a huge night that will be! More Dards shows after that – Halifax, Celtic Colors Festival, Ontario tour…it’s all on the shows page, or go to www.TheDardanelles.com!

NL Tour recap, gearing up for Fall!

matthew — Thu, 30 Aug 2012 14:23:17 +0000

Well holy crap….what an amazing time we (The Dardanelles) had on our first ever NL tour. Every single show was awesome, the audiences were fantastic, the parties brilliant, the laughs plentiful. It really was a huge success and we are so grateful to all who came out to the shows! Big shout out to Richard White who came along and did sound…he’s some hand! I’ve a bit of down time now until The Dardanelles play The Rock House in St. John’s on September 7th. That promises to be a big night and we can’t wait. After that the Fall is pretty busy….some cool solo concerts, a Dards tour in Ontario, and a solo house concert tour of Alberta! The basics are on the Shows page, and I’ll get more details up shortly. And as always you can keep track of my comings and goings on Twitter. Wicked!

Another Summer update!

matthew — Wed, 08 Aug 2012 14:19:17 +0000

Hey all – thought I’d check in with a mid-Summer update. I’m still recovering from what was probably one of the best Newfoundland & Labrador Folk Festivals ever. What an amazing weekend! The Dardanelles played on Friday night to a beautiful, full park – it really was wicked. I also joined my good friend Andrew James O’Brien for his set on Saturday evening, and then I did a workshop with James Keelaghan and Geraldine Hollett on Sunday. What more could I ask for? Brilliant. And hats off to all of the organizers and volunteers for bring the festival back after last year’s monsoon – she’s back in full force! Check out this article for an overview of the weekend.

I have a few days of down time now and then The Dards hit the road for a full tour across the island, which we’re super excited for. Check out the website for details, and click here for the tour poster. I can’t think of a better way to spend a couple of weeks than touring through this beautiful province and playing shows…awesome! Here’s the poster for tweeting, posting, and sharing.

New Dards album – “The Eastern Light” – Now on iTunes!

matthew — Thu, 21 Jun 2012 17:26:08 +0000

The Dardanelles’ new album, “The Eastern Light” is now available on iTunes! In fact, it just spent a few days at number one on the iTunes World Music chart…how wicked is that?!? We’re really looking forward to touring this album across Newfoundland in August, and playing some awesome festivals this Summer and Fall. All of that can be found in the Shows section, and all things Dards can be found on www.thedardanelles.com. More soon!