JigJam

JigJam has been described as one of the top Irish bluegrass bands on the planet and they’re about to light up the Loreto stage for a St. Patrick's Day celebration!

Originally hailing from Counties Offaly and Tipperary, this youthful and exuberant quartet combines traditional Irish music with lively American bluegrass. JigJam crossed the pond in 2015 for its first U.S. tour and they fell in love with American bluegrass music, which they started to work into their own sound, building on the historical connections between Irish music and bluegrass. “That's what we discovered when we started putting it all together, that bluegrass started from Irish music really,” says McKeogh. “The Irish immigrated to the States years and years ago, and that helped kind of kick off bluegrass and American folk music.”

Still, no matter how much JigJam experiments with progressive bluegrass or extemporaneous jamming, they remain first and foremost an Irish band. “That's why we still have a job here in the States,” McKeogh laughs, pointing to the universality of Irish music. “Our songs are very much upbeat and feel-good. Our motive is to bring people together for the two hours that they're at our show and to make sure we can include everybody, and it doesn't matter if you've never even heard Irish music. You can still tap your foot to it no matter what your background is and no matter what your beliefs and views are.”