Ceòl Dannsa (Feat. Donnie Munro) is the innovative new single from Valtos, set for release this week.
The avant-garde electro-trad track comes from their upcoming self-titled debut album and features a Gaelic vocal sample from legendary former Runrig frontman Donnie Munro.
Valtos are the Isle of Skye-based pairing of Martyn MacDonald and Daniel Docherty, who find inspiration in the breath-taking beauty and rich traditional music of the island to create groundbreaking folktronica sounds.
Whilst Daniel and Martyn both have a background producing electronic music, they also have a deep love of their culture and community, and after witnessing Niteworks and the Peatbog Faeries at Skye Live 2019, felt particularly inspired to combine the two.
Fittingly described by Folk Radio UK as ‘like nothing you have heard before’, the duo is influenced by trail blazers across the electronic and folk music scenes, including Martyn Bennett, Peatbog Faeries, Odesza, Madeon and Bicep, and have already earned a sterling reputation for themselves remixing tracks from trad music innovators like Niteworks and Project Smok.
Here, the pair have taken a recording of Donnie Munro talking about hearing Runrig for the first time captured when the band just consisted of the MacDonald brothers and Blair Douglas. This is combined with a contagious electronic beat that is sure to captivate fans of folk and dance music in equal measure.
Martyn MacDonald said: ‘We wanted to craft a song that encapsulates traditional music and Gaelic that would not be out of place in a club. This single takes the electronic nature of Home, our last single, and doubles down on the club-late night sounds we’ve teased previously.’
Daniel Docherty added: ‘The sample from Donnie Munro is gold. We couldn’t have found a better piece of wording related to our sound and what we are trying to achieve. When Donnie agreed that we could use this sample we really knew we were on to something great and we’re seriously excited to let people hear a little more of what’s to come on the album.’
Ceòl Dannsa, which directly translates as ‘dance music’ in English, sees Valtos joined by Euan MacLaughlin. The fiddle for the single was recorded at GloWorm Recording Studio in Glasgow and the electronic work was done in Valtos’ home studios on Skye.
CeòlDannsa will feature on Valtos’ self-titled debut album, due for release in early summer 2022, which will be a ‘love letter to the Highlands, Islands, and Gaelic community’, with a cutting-edge electronic twist fit for the late-night scene.
CeòlDannsa (Feat. Donnie Munro) will be available to stream and download on all major digital platforms on Friday 8 April.
For more information, visit: www.valtosband.co.uk.
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