DUG can seem like a band in search of a musical home. In Ireland, where they’re based, their style is considered old time American roots music, not Irish. But when they travel to the US, audiences tend to respond to the Irish Celtic heritage underlying their sound so strongly that Jonny Pickett, who’s from California, says he once had someone tell him to never lose his Irish accent. “We seem to be foreign everywhere now,” mused Pickett, one half of the Dublin-based duo with Conor O’Reilly. Whatever label one wishes to ascribe to their sound, there’s no denying its appeal. The duo started as buskers on the legendary Grafton Street in Dublin singing along with a resonator guitar and banjo. By early 2024 they were selling out club shows and the release of their debut Have At It! in 2025 launched them even further into their own rootsy stratosphere. They offer an intoxicating brew of bluegrass, country, folk and celtic influences that depending on the listener might have you pining for a pint of thick Irish stout or a shot of corn whiskey before rushing the dance floor. Their live shows are so popular that following festival performances last year their merchandise emblazoned with the logo, I DIG DUG, sold out so quickly they resorted to selling hand painted rocks to eager crowds. - Sean Myers