Peat and Diesel, with their own unique brand of punk folk rock, are one of the biggest things to come out of the Western Isles since Harris Tweed.
But having played the Ironworks three times during their four years together, the venue in the Highland capital has become a “home from home” for the band.
Tonight at 7pm the Western Isles outfit will play “One Last Session” there.
The Ironworks will close its doors for the last time on February 4 when The Elephant Sessions will bring down the curtain on the popular venue.
It will be an emotional night for many at the Academy Street nightspot.
Bringing an end to 17 years of live music, the much-loved Ironworks will be demolished and replaced with a hotel.
Peat and Diesel’s singer and songwriter Calum “Boydie” MacLeod spends much of his time in Inverness.
A spontaneous goodbye
Feeling compelled to pay homage to the Ironworks for all it has done for the Highland music scene, he spontaneously suggested P&D play one final gig.
He and his bandmates have promised it will be a send-off the Ironworks deserves.
With Boydie in the studio and accordion player Innes Scott busy at work as an electrician, drummer Uilly Macleod took some time out to talk to us.
The Western Isles DJ told us the venue has a special place in their hearts.
He said: “The atmosphere you get when it’s full to capacity (1,200) is one that is very hard to match elsewhere. The whole crowd is bouncing all night long and quite often it can become quite a hot gig for all of us!
“We’re very sad that the Ironworks is closing as it’s a home from home for us. The Highland capital is one of our most followed areas so we always love coming back and putting on a show for them.”
Peat and Diesel members say the Ironworks will be difficult to replace.
‘Nowhere that can really replace’
Uilly noted: “There’s nowhere to this size and setup that can really replace the Ironworks.
“A lot of people will say Eden Court could, but that’s totally different again due to it being a seated gig. If you’ve ever been at one of our shows, our crowds become quite rowdy and sitting down is the last thing on our ticket-holders’ minds.”
The youngest member of the group told us about their fond memories of the city centre location.
He said: “Our first headlining show at the Ironworks was pretty special. Like the Barrowlands in Glasgow, the tickets sold out in no time at all. The place was full and the crowd were absolutely outstanding. We’ve had some great memories in the venue during our time.”
Revealing that this latest and final Ironworks gig was arranged at short notice within two weeks, Uilly said: “We played Banchory last Saturday night and at the end of the gig Boydie suggested it out of nowhere after everyone had left.
“Boydie is basically a resident of Inverness these days and he wanted to give this iconic venue a P&D send-off, one it deserves for everything it has done for the music industry over the years.
“This will be a very special night we’ll get to share with our fans, our team and the venue staff who have served the Ironworks so well. Emotions will definitely be high but we’ll make sure to have one heck of a party as a last hoorah from P&D. Our fans always do it in style!”
Tickets sold out within an hour of going on sale. The Laurettes are supporting.
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