Slack Jaws, also known as Aiden, Sean, Will and Joe. One of the best bands in the Midlands on the Irish Scene

You wouldn’t exactly call The Slack Jaws a boy band. However, there are four boys - or rather men - amongst the line up, their cover renditions are more than adequate but they have a more confident and entertaining manner about them than the majority of boy bands we’ve all seen in the past.
They appear to have what some people might say as a bit of an edge to them (in a good way that is!) It could be down to the fact that these four musicians have bonded so well together. It’s obvious they’re all familiar with the music scene and possess an awareness of exactly what type of music suits a particular crowd.
They are currently one of the main highlights at The Ceol Castle and it’s obvious they thrive on getting the crowd animated and raring to go of a weekend. Incidentally, they’ll be the regular attraction in the Castle each Saturday up until early March followed by a succession of Friday night performances.
When asked to describe the type of music The Slack Jaws perform, Aiden O’Brien, lead vocalist, player of the pipes and guitar, describes it as a kind of rock type with guts. To me and you that means they’re into the sounds of U2, Thin Lizzy, Crowded House, Goats Don’t Shave, The Saw Doctors and The Waterboys, to name but a few.
The band is currently setting up their own website, to be accessed at www.slackjaws.net within the very near future. With their reputation growing and their music becoming much appreciated around the Midlands, the lads are enjoying their current successful list of bookings.
The Slack Jaws has been described by Vince Alcorn as one of the most amazing bands in and around the West Midlands - and he should know. He highly recommends taking the time to see the band for yourselves.

The boys playing live on stage at the Ceol Castle, Moseley, Birmingham

So where can you meet up with the lads? Well, apart from The Ceol Castle they’re currently inundated with requests to perform at weddings and birthday bashes as well as entertaining the crowds at corporate events. Aiden informs me that all bookings are considered and should anyone have an interest in the lads playing at a special event, all they need do is contact Aiden on 07971792 864.
So who exactly make up The Slack Jaws.
As mentioned earlier, there’s Aiden, who also played alongside his brother Paul, in the band Juno before Paul decided to head to Canada to try his luck at the Canadian music scene. Aiden tells me that while dedicating most of his time to the band as well as his family (not in that order, mind!), he is currently kept busy touring primary schools in Birmingham in an attempt to teach children to play the tin whistle.
He says: “For some reason, the art of playing the tin whistle seems to be attracting the attention of a lot of children. It’s great to go out to St Mark’s in Great Barr, Perry Beeches school and St John’s in Sparkhill and observe the enthusiasm this little stick instrument instills in the children.”
Aiden’s no stranger to the music scene and has travelled all over Ireland with the likes of Rob Strong and Brush Sheils and has even performed on the Late, Late Show.
Then there’s Will on the drums, who Aiden describes as a real professional. So it would seem that no only is Will an impressive drummer, he’s also a teacher and a self-confessed family man.
Next there’s Sean who holds down a full-time job but he’s also a wicked keyboard and bass player and works freelance as a sound engineer.
Last, but by no means least, is Joe. Joe was also involved in the band Juno and his name has been linked to the Irish music scene for many years now. His excellence on the fiddle and his recognisable vocal talents make him one of the Midlands success stories in itself.
It would seem that The Slack Jaws have ambition. Not only do they intend to continue on their current musical road, but Aiden confides that they will, one of these days, get around to putting pen to paper and writing some of their own songs.
He says: “We’re so thrilled at the current popularity of the band. What we’d like to strive for in the future is to combine our usual gigs but also break through into the Festival scene but we’re all aware that in order for this to happen, we need to come up with our own, original music. It’s something we’re all keen to do but presently, we still haven’t managed to put aside enough time to take this next gigantic step.”
I reckon this band could elevate with ease to the Festival scene. Being part of the Festival scene requires passion in order to promote mad, musical mayhem. These four gentlemen of Birmingham have talent instilled in them from a very early age by their Irish and English ancestors which has made all four of them instinctive musicians.
I’d suggest having seen this lot perform at The Ceol Castle, the Festival scene won’t know what’s hit them!
For further information contact Aiden O’Brien on 07971 792 864 or Joe Murphy on 07973 739 311.