Artist description THE WICKED TINKERS perform the kind of music you might have heard hundreds of years ago at a Scottish wedding, ceilidh, or around the campfire of a Highland raiding party. Since 1995 they've brought their vitality and humor to stages across America. They have been blending the emotion and power of the Great Highland Bagpipe with the pounding of raw tribal rhythms for over seven years and have recently added the haunting sound of the Bronze-Age Celtic Horn - a sound lost for over a millennium. They play the music of the Scottish Highlands, spicing it with the Celtic tunes of Ireland and the many lands graced by the Gaelic people. Touring the U.S. for most of the year, WICKED TINKERS has made friends and fans of folks from all over the world. THE WICKED TINKERS perform 'Gaelic bagpipe music' - not the refined piping and drumming of a modern pipe band, rather they have been waking people up with their own version of this tribal, ethnic music. Now, they are a four piece band with Aaron Shaw's award winning piping; Warren Casey's loud, warm, and earthy drumming; Keith Jones' sure, rapid-fire snare and percussion; Wayne Belger's, rich, soulful didgeridoo and now, the Celtic Bronze-Age Horn. This mixture brings bagpiping back to the forefront of the Scottish Highland Games entertainment circuit. It has a way of converting all ages into fans of bagpipes and drums. WICKED TINKERS have entertained audiences at some of the largest Highland Games, including Pleasanton and Costa Mesa, in California; the Pacific Northwest Scottish Highland Games in Enumclaw, Washington; the Texas Highland Games in Arlington, Texas; and festivals in Estes Park, Colorado, and Las Vegas, Nevada. Also, as far east as the Macalester Scottish Country Fair in Minnesota and the Kentucky Scottish Weekend. In 2002 they will be making it to the east coast for the Rhode Island Celtic Festival and the Mid-Winter Scottish-Irish Festival and Fair in Pennsylvania. You may have seen them on TV in the drama, "High Incident," in the recent Dixie Chicks music video, "Ready to Run," and on the Chabad National Telethon. In fact - if you've ridden the 'Discovering Scotland' attraction in Edinburgh, Scotland you've already heard them! Some of WICKED TINKERS' biggest fans are kids! The band has performed and instructed at schools for children of all ages. WICKED TINKERS now have three CDs and three cassettes which have sold over 15,000 copies. For more information, or to purchase the CD online, please visit the web page: www.wickedtinkers.com, which you can do simply by clicking the "Other Homepage" button above. WICKED TINKERS sound is the distillation of the passion of a people and their music. Like a fine, smoky Scotch whisky, it's a little rough around the edges but unmistakably the real thing.

Music Style hard, fast, percussion driven, traditional influenced celtic music

Artist History Aaron and Warren met in the early '90s at the Celtic Arts Center in Los Angeles. "We both felt an affinity for what could be simply produced by Scottish bagpipes and a big, skin-headed bass drum. This combination seemed to tap the very soul of Gaelic Music. We had each been looking for a way to somehow express the feeling of the ancient within the modern world. With WICKED TINKERS, we are able to get back to a simple roots sound that can best be described as a sound of our ancestors, re-animated and re-dressed, to connect with the 21st century - a raw sound that can touch you on a deep emotional level.

Group Members Aaron Shaw, Bagpipes, Trumps. Aaron Shaw has been playing the Scottish Bagpipes for over 25 years. He is a much loved and well-respected teacher, both in the LA area and at the California summer school put on by the College of Piping in Glasgow, Scotland where he is the only American on staff. He first heard the pipes at three-years-old in the highlands of Santa Cruz, CA, where he grew up. At 16-years-old, on a trip to Scotland, he bought his first set of bagpipes. He has been competing for 23 years, and has won many top awards from Los Angeles to London, including the Silver Chanter at Costa Mesa and the Strachan Trophy. His piping is known for its musicality, and it's the love of the music that keeps Aaron playing. He says, "Most pipers shy away from the emotion of this music. But pipes amplify sorrow and longing, exuberance and joy; even the bloodlust of battle. I do not run from this power. I embrace it." You've heard his music on TV in "Friends," "The Drew Carey Show," and others, as well as in several big-budget films including "The Fugitive." He is a member of the LA Police Pipe Band and has recorded with many artists including Bonnie Raitt. On stage, Aaron is known for his dry wit and having "too good a time" playing the instrument he loves. Warren Patrick Casey, big drums, bodhran & percussion. Warren Casey literally walks to the beat of a different drummer. As a young man, the music of the world, more than the popular music of his generation, is what turned him on. He found a purity of feeling and a universal language. He has been playing world music for 27 plus years. At 16-years-old, he built his first instrument, a Tapan, which is a skin-headed bass drum of the Balkan nations and is what he still plays today. He has a degree in Fine Art from Art Center of Design in Pasadena, CA. He is the WT's visual creative director. He also has a drum company in which he builds most of the drums he plays. On stage, Warren is known for his gyrating energy and thundering, pulverizing drum playing. He is also quite nimble at the Irish Rim Drum called the Bodhran. He says, "We're part of a living tradition that goes back to the ancient Celts. It's not about pretty. It's about passion and strength." Keith Jones, snares & percussion. Keith Jones has known what he wanted to do since he was a kid. "I want to be a drummer," and that is what he is. However, he is not just your everyday drummer. Keith brings an incredibly diverse drumming language with him when he joined the band. Keith graduated from Hollywood's Percussion Institute of Technology, leads drum clinics and seminars, and he won a CMAA Rising Star Award in 1996. He has spent decades playing every style imaginable from Rock & Roll, Jazz, Marching Band, to Country. He has performed with such greats as Joe Houston, John Mayall, Dwight Yocum, The Marshall Tucker Band and the Neville Brothers. He also makes some of the drums he plays. When Keith joined the band, he immediately embraced his Scottish heritage with fervor and enthusiasm. In fact, his enthusiasm spills over into every one of his performances. His high energy is infectious and his drumming intoxicating. Keith says, "I've found my place," and that is obvious. We know the fans think so too. Wayne Belger, didgeridoo, celtic bronze-age horn & bodrhan. Wayne Belger's Irish heritage brought him to the Celtic Arts Center in LA, CA, where he met Aaron and Warren. Soon he was puffing his didgeridoo along to the Wicked Tinker's tunes, and the sound was resonant and luscious. They liked it so well, they had him play the didj on their second CD, "Hammered", and he joined the band soon after. Wayne is one of the few musicians in the country to play the Celtic Bronze Age Horn. When not playing the didj or the Horn, you'll find him wailing on the Bodhran. Wayne loves the primitive, the ethnic and nature. It's evident in everything he does... like playing a hollowed-out tree trunk! He is also a visual artist shown in galleries in CA, and an avid sportsman, which helps maintain all that verve and vitality on stage. But it's all worth it because, as he says, "Chicks dig it."

Instruments Bagpipes, drums, diggeridoo,

Albums Not about Pretty, Hammered, Loud

Press Reviews "Music that truly isn't about being pretty, it's about being forceful and filled with rhythms of life." - Chuck Thurman, The Coast Weekly. "A sound powerhouse!" - Antje Depone, Monterey County Herald. "The Celtic bagrock band ... the bagpipe-and-drums answer to The Clash! ... They play like their sporrans have been set ablaze!" - Dean Bonzani, Flagstaff Live.

Additional Info Go to: www.wickedtinkers.com

Location Glendale, CA - USA

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