Taking top honors for "Best Celtic Rock Band" of 2006 in the Celtic MP3s Music Magazine Annual Audience Poll, RATHKELTAÍR (pronounced rath-KELT-ur) enjoys a loyal and growing international fan base.
RATHKELTAÍR consists of bagpiper Neil Anderson and drummer Nick Watson, two original members of America's ground-breaking Celtic rock supergroup 7 Nations, and guitarist Trevor Tanner, front-man/lead guitarist/songwriter for The Bolshoi, one of the most influential UK rock bands of the late ‘80’s. RATHKELTAÍR can tailor its show to any venue, appearing as a power trio, or as a four-piece (bass guitar) or five-piece (bass guitar & fiddle).
It's been a crazy couple of years for RATHKELTAÍR, with 'piper Neil Anderson being called up for a tour of duty in Iraq. The band down-shifted temporarily while Neil went off to serve his country. Neil's recent return home has kicked the band into high gear again, with a new CD and lots of new dates in the works.
The name RATHKELTAÍR comes from drummer Nick Watson, a native of County Down, Northern Ireland. It means "hill of the Celts" and is an ancient archeaological site near the village where Nick grew up.
