Galvladi Oglaigh

History

In early 2020, the idea for Galvladi Oglaigh began developing out of a deep love for indigenous world music, folk metal bands such as Eluveitie, Amorphis, Schandmaul, Subway to Sally, Percival, and Korpiklaani, as well as fusion bands Sepultura, Soulfly, and Dead Can Dance.  The band name comes from a merging of the Irish word for 'soldiers' and the Cherokee word for 'Heaven', thereby forming a portmanteau for "Soldiers of Heaven". Inspired by artists such as Prince and Trent Reznor, Justin Bruce is the only permanent member of the band and plays 95% of the instruments himself.  Justin only brings in studio musicians when necessary and assembles a band when playing the compositions live.  The members of Galvladi are a mix of Scottish/Irish, northern European, and Native American heritage. The band is well-known for blending a wide variety of traditional world instrumentation, including Scottish/Irish, Native American, Spanish (Latin), Middle Eastern, Arabic, and Asian instruments to create a sound that simultaneously represents the cultural heritage of the particular region and is radically progressive by fusing it with modern rock and metal elements. Galvladi also does not stick to one particular sound and very often varies widely from more traditional ethnic folk maqams, taksimsragas, and jams to melodic or symphonic folk hard rock/metal.

Discography

Galvladi Oglaigh

  • Elysian Fields (album, released sequentially - 2022)