To be released on March 20, 2025, with Liburia Records, Luna, cera e vino is the fifth album by Brigan, a Campanian trio active since 2009. After reinterpreting the Casertana tradition with Liburia Trip, the Brigan now dive deep into their subconscious. The album is a dreamlike journey through memories, recollections, and new images that emerge blurred, articulated in seven new tracks and two traditional songs.
It’s a stream of consciousness where sacred and profane, shadow and night alternate to tell stories dear to the trio: the search for roots, the Inquisition, the Land of Fires, popular devotion, and memories linked to hemp cultivation. Through a hybrid sound that blends electronics, voices, and traditional instruments, the Brigan bring an ancient and rural world into the present, where music—suspended between ritual and entertainment—has accompanied entire generations and continues to do so today.
Enhancing the album are the contributions of Nikos Angousis (clarinet, Greece) and Efren Lopez Sanz (hurdy-gurdy, Spain). The new work by Brigan is a complex intertwining of past and present, tradition and innovation, taking shape through original sounds and a profound artistic vision.
Biography
Brigan was founded in 2009, driven by a shared passion for traditional music and the desire to explore its many influences.
Following their debut album, Irish Roots (2011), the band continued their journey with Ti sfondo bodhrán – Tradizione e contaminazione, a record that marked the beginning of their first European tour through Slovenia, Croatia, Switzerland, and England. In 2014, they released Transumanza sonora, an album where Celtic musical traditions intertwine with the sounds and rhythms of southern Italy.
Their musical exploration deepened with Rua San Giacomo (2018), the result of extensive research and travels in the northern Iberian Peninsula. Co-produced by Marocco Music and introduced by a foreword from Peppe Barra, the album was recorded between Naples and Santiago de Compostela, further defining the band’s distinctive sound. This work led Brigan on an extensive European tour, performing at major international festivals such as Jacob’s Ladder Festival in Israel and World Music Asia in Shanghai, China. The album received numerous accolades, including a spot in the Top 40 of the Transglobal World Music Chart, recognition as Album of the Month by BloogFolk, a place among the Top 10 at the One World Music Awards (UK), and a Top 20 ranking in the Global Chart (USA).
Years of touring and performing around the world, combined with a renewed interest in rediscovering their own cultural roots, culminated in Liburia Trip (2023). Released in the spring, this project blends world music with electronic elements, bridging research with ancient musical traditions from the historical Terra di Lavoro – Terra Felix. In 2024, the group released the EP L’epopea della canapa, dedicated to the tradition of hemp cultivation in the Campania region.
In 2025, supported by the Culture Moves Europe program (Goethe Institute and the European Community), Brigan embarked on a documentary project exploring the connection between Mediterranean music and the traditions of Norwegian Lapland.
March 2025 saw the release of their latest work, Luna, cera e vino (Moon, Wax, and Wine): a journey between the sacred and the profane, light and shadow, unfolding in a single stream of consciousness. The album tells stories close to the hearts of the Caserta-based trio, from the search for their own roots to the Inquisition, from the Terra dei Fuochi to popular devotion, and the historical memory linked to hemp cultivation.
Over the years, Brigan has collaborated with internationally renowned artists such as Davide Salvado, Nikos Angusis, Efren Lopez Sanz, Lino Cannavacciuolo, Torgir Vassvik, Xurxo Fernandes, and many others. Among their most notable awards are the Universo Folk Prize (Oviedo, 2014), the Pentafinum Jacobeo for Best Album Dedicated to the Camino de Santiago (2019), and the Ethnos Generazioni award (2022)