Flook
were formed in Manchester, November 1995, under the name of
'Three Nations Flutists' by flutists Brian Finnegan, Sarah Allen
and the amazing Michael
McGoldrick. They added guitarist Ed Boyd and
changed their name to 'Fluke!' (which was soon amended to 'Flook!'
so as not to clash with a Manchester techno band of the same
name.
1997 saw the release of the "Flook!
Live!" album which captured the three
talented flutists at their best during the Sidmouth Folk Festival.
The following year
Michael McGoldrick left the band
to concentrate on his solo work and spend time with his other
bands (including Toss The Feathers and Capercaillie). As it
was deemed almost impossible to replace him with another flutist,
Flook decided to add Irish Mancunain bodhran player, John Joe
Kelly, instead.
Whilst Michael
McGoldrick and John Joe Kelly were part of
the Manchester Irish scene from a young age, the other members
were fairly late-comers. Brian Finnegan was raised in Armagh
in Ireland whilst Sarah Allen was originally from London. Ed
Boyd spent his childhood in Bath before he moved to Manchester
and formed Red Ciel prior to Flook!
Like many other Manc Irish bands,
Flook's music mixes Irish traditional with many other styles
and traditions, however they are a purely instrumental band.
Their amazing 1999 "Flatfish"
album is testament to their diverse talents. Heralded by almost
every music publication available, the album earned the band
labels like 'the best young musicians in the land' and 'the
best celtic album of 1999', with John Joe being crowned the
greatest bodhran player alive!
Flook are set to spread their name
even farther in 2004 with a continued tour, and the fact that
they've made it this far is far from being a fluke!
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