Brocach's greatest intonation

Because for some inexplicable reason this blog is inundated with traffic today, I'll seize the opportunity to mention something about Brocach, the Irish pub on Water St. in Milwaukee achieving notoriety this morning.

I don't know anything about it — I've never been there — but there is a superlative traditional Irish combo appearing upstairs this Sunday from 6 to 8 p.m. called áthas (pronounced AH-haas ... I think).

My good friend and occasional partner in musical misdemeanors, the lovely and talented Heather Lewin-Tiarks, is on the fiddle; Jeff Ksiazek strums the flattop guitar; Amy Richter handles the bodhran; and the recently acquired Kathleen Bremer is the flautist.

I can testify that Mr. Ksiazek renders a mean hornpipe as well, as it was prior to Ms. Bremer's joining the ensemble that I last saw them.

They are truly superb and Ms. Richter makes the bodhran — which is that giant Irish tambourine without the jingly things that you play with a stick — sound like Neil Peart. Seriously, she's amazing.

áthas is one of the best traditional Irish outfits around, so do check them out. If not Sundays at Brocach, then somewhere, sometime.

They have my personal stamp of approval, so you can't go wrong.