In Conversation with Michael Darcy
In 2010, Michael Darcy packed up his songs and guitar, left his home in the green hills of Co. Clare, Ireland and journeyed westward across the Atlantic \u2013 to Toronto, Canada. Chasing adventure and devilment he fell in with three like-minded young music makers who would become \u2018The Atlantic Tramps\u2019. It was a whirlwind of folk traditions \u2014 where greengrass meets bluegrass. From soulful ballads to roof-raising barnstormers, Michael Darcy & The Atlantic Tramps whisk their audiences up to the rafters and down to the roots. Drawing from the well of rich Irish music that he grew up with and also being inspired by gritty American songwriters like John Prine & Guy Clark, Michael\u2019s songs bear the earthy tones of his Old Country roots, and the freshness of a newly cut path. Americana. Stories of loss and fortune, love and heartbreak, wanderlust and lives lived \u2014 told with a touch of banjo twang and a light Canadian frost. Michael tours both solo and with The Atlantic Tramps. Most recently, the band received a scholarship to attend the 2022 Folk Alliance International Conference in Kansas City, Missouri where they performed multiple showcases at the world\u2019s largest gathering of the folk music industry and community. Their single \u201cSweet St. John\u2019s\u201d, released in March 2022, was featured on the popular St. John\u2019s Morning Show for CBC Radio One in Canada which also included an in-depth interview with Michael. In 2021, they were honoured to be the only Canadian artists presented at the international Robinson Emerging Artist Showcase at North America\u2019s longest running pan-Celtic festival \u2013 Goderich Celtic Roots Festival. 2020 saw the band share the stage with multi-platinum Irish artist Mundy where they closed out the show together, performing the worldwide hit song \u201cGalway Girl\u201d at Toronto\u2019s legendary Horseshoe Tavern. In 2019, Michael\u2019s solo soft-seat theatre debut at the Saltwater Sessions in Kimberley, BC was a resounding sold-out success. After releasing his impressive solo debut Simple Drop of Rain, which garnered positive reviews and radioplay on both sides of the Atlantic, Michael returned to the studio with The Atlantic Tramps in tow for the eagerly-awaited follow-up album, titled Down to the Roots, released in the summer of 2022.