Kick off the silly season with a bit of whiskey in your jar at a Christmas show dedicated to iconic London Irish band The Pogues.
Melbourne-based outfit Streams of Whiskey bring their Christmas Special show to the Barwon Club on Saturday 6 December, kicking off a run of gigs that concludes at Sydney’s Factory Theatre later in the month.
The nine-piece band, which formed in 2010 as a Celtic band performing a mix of traditional and contemporary Irish songs, has evolved over the years to focus more heavily on the music of The Pogues, according to Dublin-born frontman Stephen Milligan.
“It was just three of us, initially, that decided it would be good fun to play a few Pogues songs and some traditional numbers,” Milligan said.
“It started off as a bit of fun doing small shows and whatever, and it just grew from there. We became more Pogues-focused and it got a bit of a following.”
The band includes players from a wide range of musical backgrounds, bringing a stylistic breadth fitting for a group celebrating The Pogues.
Milligan, drummer Johnny Gibson, guitarist Scott Bakker, mandolin player Greg Stainsby, bassist Andy Papadopoulos and vocalist Mel Carroll have all performed in punk and heavier rock bands, among other things.
Bringing a more traditional element, banjo player Sheldon King, fiddle player Carmen O’Brien, accordionist Rowan Blackmore and piper Paddy Connor have long histories among the folk scene.
“It’s very eclectic in terms of the punters that you draw in,” Milligan said.
“You will have your punks and whatever in the crowd, but then you’ll have older Irish expats that want a bit of a sing-song. And they might be so old that they can’t even stand up.
“With several of us having that punk band history and lineage, we bring that energy to it, but with those musicians from the more traditional side of things it’s a really good mix.”
Visit barwonclub.com.au/gig-guide for tickets and more information.
