Heron Valley

Heron Valley play Òran Mór on Saturday 16 January 2027, as part of Celtic Connections. They'll be joined by a support act, so it's a double bill rather than a single set.

If you've not come across them yet, they're a six-piece that works from Scottish and Irish tradition. The sound is built around Scots song, Scottish piping tunes and Irish banjo, with soaring bagpipe and fiddle melodies held together by a relentless rhythm section that turns traditional reels and jigs into something that feels more like a live experience than a session. They describe it as a blend of driving Scottish folk and festival-sized energy, and the six-piece line-up is designed to carry that across a room.

The band formed in 2018, after the members spent their early years playing together as a ceilidh dance band — which explains the dance-floor energy that still sits under the more composed stuff. Their first single and video, 'Pressed for Time', racked up 85,000 views, followed by 'Home' the next year and their debut album, Roam. The set will draw from that material, and the show is part of the wider Celtic Connections 2027 programme.

Òran Mór is up at the top of Byres Road in the West End, in the building that used to be Kelvinside Parish Church. It's a thriving venue known for food, live music and theatre, and this is one of the many nights it hosts during the festival. The show starts at 7:30pm and is for over-14s only, with under-16s needing an adult. Tickets are £22.40, which includes the booking fee.