Southeast Ireland’s TULUA come out swinging with “Michael Relihan’s / Rigney’s / Cap and Bells (Reels),” a blazing three tune set that rips straight through the opening of their acclaimed second album, ‘In The Snug,’ out now. This is a band lighting the fuse and letting it run, “Michael Relihan’s” reel kicks the door open, “Rigney’s Reel,” a tune made legendary by the playing of Paddy O’Brien, keeps the energy climbing, and the set explodes into its finish with “Cap and Bells,” a Josephine Keegan tune the band picked up halfway across the world during an unforgettable 6 a.m. kitchen session with fellow traditional players while touring Australia. Evan O’Grady joins the fray on bodhrán, driving the whole set forward with relentless, foot-stomping momentum.
‘In The Snug’ is the sound of a band throwing everything they have at the tape. Early in 2026, TULUA disappeared into the Comeragh Mountains in Waterford, holed up in a tiny studio carved out of an old cow shed overlooking the valley, and over an electric, almost two-week stretch, they tracked all 12 songs live and together under one roof, no safety net, just four musicians chasing the take. The result is a record that swings from history to legend to pure invention without ever losing its nerve. “Dunlavin Green” resurrects the harrowing 1798 massacre of 36 Irishmen in County Wicklow with real weight and urgency, “The Cliffs of Cullenstown” takes a century old local poem and gives it a melody built to last, and “Valo,” a tune by a Finnish accordion player, was learned from scratch and nailed on the very day they recorded it. Guitarist Cian O’Grady throws three blistering original compositions into the mix, including “Ebb and Flow,” torn straight from his childhood on the coast.
“What makes this album special is the traditional roots that are deep within the music and songs, which are part of our daily lives in Ireland,” the band says. “It is songs from our area that are shared in kitchens and snugs, tunes that are written and shared by friends from afar and in old bars, a moment to tap into the never-ending repertoire of traditional Irish music that binds so many of us together.”
‘In The Snug’ features Kayleigh Moran tearing it up on fiddle and vocals, Diarmaid Murphy on flute, low whistle and mandolin, Ella McGrory on keyboard, piano and synth bass, and Cian O’Grady on guitar, Irish bouzouki and backing vocals, joined by guest firepower from Evan O’Grady and Donnchadh Gough on bodhrán and Billy Sutton on shaker. The album was recorded by Benny McCarthy at Doon Studios in County Waterford, with additional recording by Neil McGrory at Macruari Audio in Donegal, mixed by Billy Sutton in St. John’s, Newfoundland, and mastered by Aidan Foley at Masterlabs in Roscommon.
Since bursting onto the scene in 2019, Tulua, whose name translates to “tribe of many paths,” have rocketed into position as one of the most electrifying young acts in Irish traditional music today with one of the most acclaimed Irish singers of their generation at the forefront, Kayleigh Moran. The Irish Independent has called them “one of the hottest young prospects in traditional Irish music,” Irish Music Magazine praised their “true bond and empathy,” and the National Celtic Folk Festival went even further, calling their sound “music that transcends the mind.”
TULUA’s self-funded 2023 debut album, ‘No Coming No Going,’ written, recorded, mixed, mastered and released in a lightning-fast six months, has already sold more than 5,000 copies and smashed past 80,000 streams on Spotify. Since then, the band has torn across seven countries on three continents, landing official showcase slots at the 2025 Folk Alliance International Conference in Montreal and the National Celtic Folk Festival in Australia, and lighting up major stages at Stan Rogers Festival, Goderich Celtic Roots Festival, Milwaukee Irish Fest, Lorient Festival, and many more all while sharing bills with heavyweights like Beoga, Dervish, De Dannan, Atlantic Arc, Fergal Scahill and Cormac Begley. In 2024, Creative Ireland and Wexford County Council handed the band an even bigger canvas, commissioning an original multicultural, multidisciplinary work telling the story of migrants seeking safety in other countries.
Now Tulua brings that same explosive energy to Canada, launching an ambitious, coast to coast run of tour dates this fall and winter that promises to be their biggest and boldest yet.
Tour Dates:
October 17, 2026, Reiger Theatre, Courtenay, BC
October 18, 2026, venue TBC, Duncan, BC
October 19, 2026, Gleneden Hall, Salmon Arm, BC
October 22, 2026, The Bassment, Saskatoon, SK
October 24, 2026, Irish Cultural Society, Calgary, AB
October 25, 2026, Maclab Centre for the Performing Arts, Leduc, AB
October 27, 2026, artsPlace, Canmore, AB
October 28, 2026, Old Church Theatre, Okotoks, AB
October 30, 2026, Creekside Theatre, Lake Country, BC
October 31, 2026, Rogue Folk Club, Vancouver, BC
November 1, 2026, ArtSpring, Salt Spring, BC
November 4, 2026, Stonecroft Folk Club, Ingersoll, ON
November 5, 2026, German Canadian Club, London, ON
November 6, 2026, Aurora Cultural Centre, Aurora, ON
November 7, 2026, Little Red Wagon Winery, Clarendon, QC
November 8, 2026, MERA Schoolhouse, McDonalds Corners, ON
November 8, 2026, Motel Chelsea, Chelsea, QC
November 9, 2026, Marigold Centre, Truro, NS
November 10, 2026, Osprey Arts Centre, Shelburne, NS
November 11, 2026, Acadia Performing Arts Centre, Wolfville, NS
November 13, 2026, Scott MacAuley Performing Arts Centre, Summerside, PE
November 14, 2026, L’Association le Moulin de la Baie Sainte-Marie, Church Point, NS
November 15, 2026, Astor Theatre, Liverpool, NS
November 17, 2026, The Carleton, Halifax, NS
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