The High Kings

The High Kings
The High Kings performing in 2012 in Waterford, Ireland.
Background information
Origin	Ireland
Genres	Traditional Irish, Folk, Celtic
Years active	2008-current
Labels	Sony Music, Manhattan Records, Universal Music, Ard Ri Entertainment, Celtic Collections
Associated acts	The Clancy Brothers, The Fureys, Sean Dunphy, Celtic Woman
Website	Official site
Members	Finbarr Clancy Brian Dunphy Martin Furey Darren Holden

The High Kings is an Irish folk group formed in Dublin in 2008. The band consists of Finbarr Clancy, Brian Dunphy, Martin Furey and Darren Holden. By June 2016, the group had released four studio albums, two live albums, and two live DVDs. Their first three studio albums appeared at number three or higher on the Billboard world music chart, the first two went platinum in Ireland, and all of their albums charted in Ireland.

After the release of their first album, the new group moved from a highly staged format to a more natural performance style. Their third album "Friends for Life" contains both traditional Irish songs, as well as some original songs. Since the inception of the band, The High Kings has toured Ireland, the United States, and Europe on multiple occasions. Together they play thirteen instruments during their performances. The group's motto is "Folk 'n Roll," and their singing is especially noted for its close harmonies. Although they sing mostly traditional Irish songs, they are known to sing great arrangements of songs of other genres as well.

Finbarr Clancy toured the United States and Ireland in the 1990s with the Clancy Brothers, one of the most successful folk groups in Irish traditional music. He sang and played 5 string banjo, electric bass and flute with the group, which consisted at the time of Finbarr's father, Bobby Clancy, his uncles Paddy Clancy and Liam Clancy, and his cousin, singer-songwriter Robbie O'Connell. As part of this group, Finbarr appeared in the Clancy Brothers' filmed Farewell to Ireland performance in 1996, which has since been released on DVD. He also performed on three albums with this father. He usually plays the guitar and sometimes the banjo with The High Kings.

Brian Dunphy got his first break as a performer in Riverdance: The Show. After two years as part of Riverdance, he became a member of The Three Irish Tenors. Dunphy had also been a member of the band Druid. He released a solo album entitled, Timeless, as well, in which Darren helped cowrite some of the original material. Brian is the son of Sean Dunphy, who represented Ireland in the 1967 Eurovision Song Contest. He typically plays the bodhrán and guitar with the group.