In Search of a Rose

In Search of a Rose have been playing in the league of the best German Irish folk rock bands for over 23 years. Founded in Lemgo in 1992, the quartet from East Westphalia, Germany, combines an imaginative and varied style with virtuosity and humor, which is an absolute must for fans of Celtic rock.

In Search of a Rose plays at the 9th blacksheep Paddy’s Night

In the middle of the 90s, In Search of a Rose made fans and experts sit up and take notice for the first time with their debut album “Conquering”. Since then, the band has occupied a permanent place in the German folk rock scene with their typical Sham Rock’n’Roll – a popular, cross-generational mix of traditional Irish tunes, supported by punk, folk and rock. The debut success was quickly followed by the successor “Fresh Lotus Surprise”, a unique, courageous interpretation of folk rock, mixed with influences from the Levellers and the Waterboys.

Already at this time it became clear how versatile and creative and, above all, at what high musical level In Search of a Rose work. The band toured through Germany and neighboring countries until the end of the millennium and met with scene leaders such as the Pogues, Oysterband, Fiddler’s Green, Celtas Cortos and New Model Army for musical exchanges. In 2000, In Search of a Rose released the album “Extravaganza”, which also attracted fans outside the folk rock scene due to its more mainstream character with pop elements.

In 2008, In Search of a Rose recorded the album “Kind of Green” in the Hamburg studio intermediate floor, with which they captured the zeitgeist of the “Paddy Rock” scene that was blossoming through Flogging Molly and Dropkick Murphys and interpreted it in their very own way (record of the month, Celtic Rock). With humor and pathos, “Kind of Green” used typical folk elements with fiddle and mandolin with loud guitars and strong drums.

New album “Horses for Courses” (Hopeless World Records/Dedication records)

With “Horses for Courses” the new studio album is now released, in which the components of traditional folk rock and paddy punk music are combined and creatively mixed. A folk-rock album that tells stories with its tasteful country touch. Stories from the big wide world such as from the London N21 night bus or from the temporary English home of Bath (“Somerset Cider”), but of course also from the musicians’ hometown of Lippe. The cult song “Rebel Town” receives a worthy successor, the favorite innkeeper Fritz receives a final greeting and with the self-deprecating song “Paddywhackery” the band achieved a hit in the scene with numerous live performances even before the album was released. With “Idilia Dubb” the gruesome story of a Scottish tourist in Lahneck am Rhein also finds its place and with Sentry the text of an English army cook was set to music, which he sent directly from the commercial kitchen somewhere in Afghanistan.

Recorded in Düsseldorf’s old town, the East Westphalians present a highly varied masterpiece with the twelve songs on “Horses for Courses”, humorous and virtuoso. The band’s greatest strength – their musicality – is in the foreground, making the album a real enrichment, and not just for classic folk rock fans. “Horses for Courses” shows that In Search of a Rose can be counted among the best German Celtic rock bands.

In Search of a Rose is a great live band. With an experience of over 1000 concerts in Germany, Switzerland and Italy as well as various guest appearances in England and Ireland, the five boys will also transform the Kursaal in Bad Wimpfen into a cozy Irish pub on Saturday, March 16, 2024.

Tickets are available for 24 Euros in advance (box office 26 Euros) at www.reservix.de. Members of the blacksheep cultural initiative Bonfeld e.V. only pay 22 Euros.