Avalon Rising plays progressive Celtic and Medieval rock, a blend of original rock with traditional Celtic and Medieval music. Their rich acoustic/electric sound features strong male and female vocals over intricate instrumental arrangements, supported by a vibrant Celtic-flavored rhythmic background. Avalon Rising is one of the pioneering bands to include the Celtic harp in their line-up, which also includes guitars, electric fiddle, flute, bass, drums, and vocals.
Their repertoire includes both original and traditional songs and ranges in feel from driving, danceable primal beats to atmospheric harp-based ballads. Their lyrics speak of love and longing, quests and revels, magic and transformation, in a style reminiscent of Loreena McKennitt, Dead Can Dance, and Renaissance, with touches of Jethro Tull and the Grateful Dead.
Avalon Rising has been performing in California and the Pacific Northwest for nine years. Performing highlights have included the High Sierra Music Festival, the Starry Plough and Beckett's in Berkeley, Foley's Irish House in San Francisco, the Fairfax May Day Festival, the Dublin St. Patrick's Day Festival, and the Avery Ranch Folk Festival. Their song "The Great Selkie" was chosen to be included in mp3.com's "Spring Sampler 2001" and reached #7 in the Celtic genre on mp3.com. Avalon Rising has had over 133,000 downloads of its music at mp3.com, and the band has released one CD on the Flowinglass Music label.

AVALON RISING IS:
MARGARET DAVIS - lead vocals, flute, Celtic harp, recorder
KEVIN FANNING - drums
KRISTOPH KLOVER - lead vocals, 12-string and electric guitar, octave mandolin, oboe
CAT TAYLOR - electric and acoustic fiddle
MARK UNGAR - bass, mandocello

ABOUT THE CD
Recent band highlights include the release of their first, self-titled CD on their own Flowinglass Music label. Featuring their signature sound based on richly textured instrumental arrangements and soaring vocals, the Avalon Rising CD includes two Medieval songs, three Celtic songs and five original compositions by band members. In the words of one reviewer:
The rendition of "The Great Selkie" is marvelous -- splashing harp and thrumming bodhran wonderfully evoke the ebb and flow of surf; the first time I heard this one live I involuntarily looked down to be sure my feet weren't getting wet. "Andray Soulet", an arrangement of a 15th-century composition, seems a French round with a hint of North African rhythm..."Dark Moon Circle", a get-up-and-dance song, begs for a sweetly-scented bonfire on a wild and glimmering, night...

"Wets the mind like Irish mist...Clear and bright, up-front and passionate...
The musical teamwork is superb." Harpbeat of the Bay