Port is a collection of songs by current Droichead Artist in Association SJ McArdle, all inspired by real and imagined stories associated with Drogheda Port’s rich and storied history, composed for folk-rock ensemble and guest vocalists. Joining SJ to perform the song cycle will be special guests Carol Keogh, John Ruddy, his fellow Kern band members Barry Kieran and Brendan McCreanor, along with  Josh Johnston,  and Michael Holohan. 

As a singer-songwriter, SJ has released three albums, most recently Blood and Bones in 2014. The album’s lead-off song, Two Steps From Heaven, was the main song in the Cecelia Ahern-written movie, Between Heaven and Here, while another of SJ’s songs, Till The Docklands Drown, was performed during Element Pictures’ A Date For Mad Mary (2016). SJ has performed in Ireland, Germany, Switzerland, Canada, the UK and the US, most recently as one third of critically acclaimed folk trio Kern, whose new album is due later this year .

“Bravo for an artist who has taken contemporary Irish music to parts it far too seldom reaches” - Hot Press

Funded by the Arts Council and Create Louth, Louth County Council Arts Office. With sponsorship from Drogheda Port Company.