Clann Zú

Clann Zú
Origin	Melbourne, Australia
Genres	Post rock Folk rock Art rock
Years active	1999–2005
Labels	G7 Welcoming Committee
Associated acts	Non-Intentional Lifeform, My Disco, The Black Hundred
Website	clannzu.com
Members
Benjamin Andrews Russell Fawcus Declan de Barra Liam Andrews Lach Wooden

Clann Zú was an Australian and Irish band that formed in Melbourne in 1999.

Biography

The forming members drew inspiration from an eclectic mix of musical styles, such as punk, rock, folk, electronic, and classical. Their fusion of Celtic folk, electronic music, and rock has created a unique epic soundscape full of powerful atmospheric sounds and off-beat instrumentation. Their songs are bilingual, utilising both Irish and English lyrics.

Before the band's breakup, it was signed to G7 Welcoming Committee Records, an independent record label established by Chris Hannah and Jordan Samoleski—of labelmates Propagandhi—and Regal in 1997.

Clann Zú's second album, Black Coats & Bandages, was released in June 2004. This saw a move away from the traditional Irish and folk influences which had characterised their first LP, Rua. Despite this stylistic departure they retained and indeed increased their use of the Irish language, with two songs ("T-éan Bán" and "An Deireadh Scéal") sung entirely in Irish.

The animated video for the song "Five Thousand More", created by vocalist de Barra, was featured in various festivals and online film and animation sites worldwide, including the 47th Cork International Film Festival. They subsequently released an animated video to accompany an Irish version of "Crashing to the Floor" in mid-2003.

Clann Zú released the following statement, announcing their break-up, on their website [1] in May 2005: "Clann Zú regret to announce that it is no longer continuing to tour or record. Such is the life of a band. Benjamin and Liam will continue to tour and record with My Disco on the Crashing Jets label [2] and Declan de Barra [3] will continue with his own solo project."

Russell Fawcus recently joined The Black Hundred, with former members of Oneironaut, Season, and The Grand Silent System. The Black Hundred are set to release their first album by January 2009 on 9" vinyl and CD.^{[citation needed]}

Discography

• Clann Zú EP (2000, self-released)
• Demos For Black Coats & Bandages (2002)
• Red-Emitting Light Organ EP (2003)
• Rua LP (2003, G7 Welcoming Committee Records)
• Black Coats & Bandages LP (2004, G7 Welcoming Committee Records)

Members

• Benjamin Andrews – electric guitar
• Russell Fawcus – electric violin, keyboard
• Declan de Barra – vocals, bodhrán
• Liam Andrews – bass guitar
• Lach Wooden – sound manipulation

External links

• G7 Welcoming Committee Records
• Declan de Barra's site
• Summer 2004 Interview with Declan