What a night in the Clickimin Centre here in Lerwick last night.
Shetland band Fullsceilidh Spelmanslag played a blinding set of reels, polkas and waltzes to a packed out crowd who were up for a bit of dancing. Five fiddles, double bass, guitar and drums certainly started the feet stirring and by the end of the set the dance floor was not empty anymore.
Maurice Henderson (he of Fiddlers Bid fame) showed his musical prowess during an Inga Thomson Tune,
Jock's nearly 40, switching from mandolin, to mandola and finishing up on button accordion. Not just an excellent fiddler.
My only feeling was that the shed that is Clickimin loses some of the subtly of the music by being so acoustically bad and therefore the PA has to be loud, either that or there is something wrong with my hearing which is a possibility.
The main event was the Peatbog Faeries and boy did they deliver. One and a half hours of folk, rock, african jive guitar, funk, soulful horns, fiddle, bagpipes - just bloody great music all blended together to get folk dancin and put a smile on your face.
Not really any stand out tracks although the guitar and drum duel towards the end was definitely a highlight.
Again the hall started emptying out with folk opting to try and get into the club, it was certainly apparent that the dance floor had thinned out a bit as well as more empty seats than should have been.
Saturday beckons with a day in the club and off to Whiteness and Weisdale tonight.
Cannae wait.
