téada is A young band you probably haven't heard of yet, but their star is rising and we're fortunate to get them here to Columbia while they are still humble. These guys are heading for greatness. Danu, Lunasa and other hot young Celtic bands better make room for teada!

I got their CD in the mail and decided to book them after the first five tracks. Below are a couple reviews of their self-titled debut album. They laud Osian's fiddle playing, but I have to say that the banjo-playing of Seán McElwain really got my attention. Yowsa! They stand out in a crowd.

Folk Roots Review Aug/ Sept 02
téada are a traditional quartet with a rising reputation, thanks in parts to the spirited unison playing of fiddler Oisin MacDiarmada and flautist John Blake, backed by first rate banjo and bouzouki from Sean McElwain and the sensitive bodhran of Tristan Rosenstock.
Hugely enjoyable throughout and definitely one to watch out for. Thumbs UP!

Taplas June/July. The Welsh Folk Magazine
téada, (say tay-do) are a  boy band of the exciting young, traditional variety.
Interestingly they are a bit different in their laid-back and more “traditional” approach to the music. Translation: they tend not to play fast and frantic, there are no cheesy “arrangements”, synthesizers or crossover attempts.
The band features flowing fiddle and singing from Oisin MacDiarmada, contrasting with exciting flute of John Blake, with banjo/ bouzouki and bodhran completing the line up.

Pay the Reckoning, Irish music e-zine at www.paythereckoning.com
Pay The Reckoning know what we like (and we like what we know, but that's a different story). And we LIKE this album.
Are you fed up with ham-fisted, hob-nailed approaches to Irish traditional music? Do you hanker after playing with depth, soul, meaning? Music where the wild, "high lonesome" sound is at the heart of its being?
Then look no further than téada, the young 4-piece who have redefined the word sensitive and elevated understatement to an art-form.

The musicianship on this collection is impeccable. John Blake (flute/guitar/piano/whistle), Seán McElwain (bouzouki/banjo/backing vocals) and Tristan Rosenstock (bodhrán/backing vocals) display a talent which can only be described as virtuoso. However I'm sure that they will forgive our waxing lyrical for a few moments over Oisín MacDiarmada's utterly mesmerising way with the fiddle.

Here is a young lad whose voice and style are unique. While aspects of his playing call to mind, variously, the approach of the Sligo maestri Coleman and Morrison (MacDiarmada's a Sligo man himself!), the fluid style of Kevin Burke, the keen intelligence of Martin Hayes and the heart-stopping subtlety of Paddy Canny, there's little doubt that MacDiarmada walks alongside the greats; not in their footsteps!

Young, ferociously talented, sensitive, intelligent. Pay The Reckoning cannot overstate just how accomplished this album is. The band have dug deep and constructed tune sets which are truly their own and yet which hold together so well that the listener could easily be fooled into thinking that time itself had brought the tunes together in a happy coincidence. The lads play like they've each been at the music for longer than their collective years. Let's hope they stick around for another two or three albums at least!