The Bands

Shooglenifty: Garry Finlayson, Quee MacArthur, Luke Plumb, Angus R Grant, Malcolm Crosbie, James Mackintosh We hardly need to introduce the pioneers of "acid croft" - suffice to say, these talented lads have had audiences bouncing from Stirling Folk Club to Sydney Opera House. Headlining on the Saturday night, Shoogles are bound to prove to be crowd-pleasers.

Dàimh ("da-eve"): Colm O'Rua, Gabe McVarish, Angus MacKenzie, Ross Martin, James Bremner, Calum Alex MacMillan. "Offer a fresh, up to date approach to traditional music. An exciting combination of musicians hailing from Cape Breton Island, Ireland, the West Highlands of Scotland and the ever-innovative Irish/American scene, the band effortlessly blends music from their native traditions with a few more tunes picked up en-route. Their music is a very high energy, fast-flowing mixture of tunes and songs from the traditions of their countries represented. Fusing together their individual styles on bagpipes, fiddle, banjo, guitar, bodhran and mandola to create a unique and compelling sound, their music knows no boundaries."

Lori Watson and Rule of Three (Lori Watson, Innes Watson, Fiona Young) Currently a PhD student at the RSAMD, Lori grew up in the Scottish Borders playing traditional music from a young age. A BBC Scotland Young Traditional Musician of the Year 2002 and 2003 Finalist, Lori has performed extensively throughout Britain and Europe. She has broadcast on radio, television and internet throughout Europe and in the USA. Performing with artists such as Brian McNeill, Aly Bain, Cathal McConnell, Dick Gaughan, Duncan Chisholm, Karine Polwart, The Unusual Suspects and Scottish Women has solidified Lori's reputation as a leading traditional musician of her generation.

Bombskare (Andy P: Vox/Harmonica, Murray: Vox/Gtr, Rev. Scott McC: Gtr/Vox, Papa Joe: Bass, Sam: Drums, Matt: Keys, Colin McC: Trumpet, Mike: Trombone, Jay: Tenor Sax, Tom: Alto Sax) They proclaim themselves to be "Edinburgh's original Ska juggernaut". Most of us remember them from those hazy Sundays of the Rum festival...these guys are playing on the Friday night here in Knoydart.

Mystery Juice: Donald Hay plays drums, Joe Peat plays bass, Donald Mac Dougall plays guitar and sings, Tim Matthew plays violin and sings. Donald "Drummy" is one cool guy who is also playing Knoydart with Ceilidh stars the Squashy Bag Dance Band. In their own words...."We've been playing together for a hundred years. We live in Edinburgh but Donald Guitar and Tim Fiddle come from the wild west coast. We tour around the UK and Ireland and also play gigs in Russia and Ukraine." Their MySpace profile describes their sound as "a bloody racket". We agree, but it's the best bloody racket we've heard for a long time.

Squashy Bag Dance Band (Eilidh Shaw, Sarah McFadyen, Tam the Banjo, Sandy Wright, Donald "Drummy" Hay). What can we say about these guys and girls? Controversial to say the least, their last appearance in Knoydart was at a storming Hogmanay gig, where ripping tunes, enthusiastic calling instructions and a bizarre political rant about Osama Bin Laden and Jimmy Shand led to a non-stop night of excess. Get your dancing boots on and prepare to ceilidh like you never have before...

DJ Dolphin Boy Also present at the above gig was Dolphin Boy, a ubiquitous presence in the dance culture of this part of the west coast. Equally home in the clubs of Edinburgh (and Glasgow during this years' Celtic Connections), he's someone who knows how to rack a party up a gear or two.

"Celtic Storm Highland Dancers were founded in 2006 by Arlene Berwick and Jayne Shedden.  Since their creation, the group have gone on to enjoy much success, performing for the likes of Gordon Ramsey, performing on Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway and representing Scotland in various cultural festivals throughout Europe. With wild, energetic and vibrant performances, Celtic Storm strive to show the true spirit of highland dance, a total contrast from the regimented style of Highland dancing seen at competitions.  Music is upbeat and lively, usually to a bagpipe and drum ensemble. Elements of ballet, jazz, Cape Breton and Irish set Celtic Storm Highland Dancers apart from other highland dance groups.  As well as the contemporary style of dance, all Celtic Storm Dancers are highly trained traditional Highland dancers, all prize winners in their own right."

Vaguely Cajun (Lynn Johnson, Donald "Mad Dog" Murdoch, Cliff "the Hurricane" Hewitt, Tommo "the Tornado" Thomson and Mike "the Rhythm-meister" Barmeister) We've known Lynn Johnson here in Knoydart for a long time, but this is an opportunity for the wider public to see just how special her talents are. Vaguely Cajun were formed in the heads of a boogie piano player and blues guitarist over a dram or two in the bar of the Lochalsh Hotel many years ago. After scouring the country for many years they finally found all the members of the band in various states of disrepair, apart from the singer, who took charge and beat them into shape over the winter of 2008. Fully refreshed from the beating they took to the road and started playing. The music they play is a combination of boogie piano and Nashville blues guitar, with searing accordion runs. All this is driven by the "rhythm meister", and the power and glamour of the lead singer. As their name suggests all the songs are of a Vaguely Cajun flavour.

Cast Ewe Ceilidh Band: A traditional band based in Glenelg and Skye, specialising in parties, ceilidhs, dances and just about anything else you can throw them. Their influences as mentioned on their Bebo page include vodka, gin, whisky, lager, cider and crisps. Should be good.