Skipinnish

About

Skipinnish is a Scottish traditional music band founded in 1999 by Angus MacPhail (from the Isle of Tiree) and Andrew Stevenson (from Lochaber), who met while studying at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama in Glasgow. Blending bagpipes, accordion, fiddle and Gaelic song with a full rock rhythm section, the band built an independent label, released ten albums and grew into one of Scotland's biggest live acts. Their 25th-anniversary concerts in 2024 - at Edinburgh Castle Esplanade and near Inverness - drew thousands of fans, and in September 2025 they headlined the OVO Hydro arena in Glasgow.

Albums released

100M+

Audience reach - 'Walking on the Waves' at Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo 2022

9,204+

Songkick tracked fans

What's new

2025-11
In November 2025, Skipinnish announced that lead singer Norrie 'Tago' MacIver would not continue with the band in 2026; MacIver stated publicly that the decision was not his own, and three other members - drummer Rory Grindlay, guitarist Euan Malloch and keyboardist Alistair Iain Paterson - also announced their departures.
2025-09
Skipinnish headlined the OVO Hydro arena in Glasgow in September 2025, Scotland's largest music venue, capping their 25th-anniversary celebrations.
2024
For their 25th anniversary in 2024, Skipinnish performed two landmark concerts: one near Inverness in the Highlands and one on Edinburgh Castle Esplanade, a stage previously used by Rod Stewart, The Who and Runrig.
2024
Skipinnish won 'Event of the Year' at the Scottish Trad Music Awards for their Edinburgh Castle concert in 2024, and also received the Sound of Scotland Award at the Nordoff and Robin Scottish Music Awards.
2026-11
Skipinnish are undertaking their first major German headline tour in November 2026, with eight shows across Hamburg, Berlin, Hanover, Cologne, Bochum, Stuttgart, Munich and Leipzig.