The Gloaming

The Gloaming is the debut studio album by the contemporary Irish/American music group The Gloaming. It was released on January 20, 2014 on Real World Records, and on Brassland Records in America, Justin Time Records in Canada, and Planet Records in Australia. The album received widespread critical acclaim on its release and is considered one of the finest recordings of 2014. The Gloaming made several end-of-year lists for publications such as the Irish Times (who named it No.1 Best album of 2014), Irish Independent, and NPR, while also being nominated for three BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards, winning Best Traditional Track for "Samhradh Samhradh". It won the Meteor Choice Music Prize for Album of the Year in 2015. Background and recording In April 2011, the Irish Times reported that a “supergroup” made up of some of the biggest names in traditional Irish music had met for a collaborative session at Grouse Lodge Studios where material had also been demoed and recorded. A live date at Dublin's National Concert Hall was also billed for August of that year which would sell out before the group had released any music. Following more highly subscribed live outings in late 2011 and early 2012, the band entered Grouse Lodge Studios for a two-week period in August 2012 to record definitive versions of pieces they had been performing live up to that point, with a view to completing an album. While a couple of tracks had been earmarked for inclusion, there was a degree of flexibility from the band over the ultimate tracklisting. A recording of "Samhradh Samhradh" made during those very first Grouse Lodge sessions in early 2011 was used in the final cut of the record.