Lake Michigan College Mendel Center

Be at the Lake Michigan College Mendel Center for one hot St. Patrick’s Day!

Bagpipes with attitude. Drums with a Scottish accent. A blazing rock band and show so hot, it carries its own health warning! It’s the Red Hot Chilli Pipers (NOT the Peppers!) – a 9-piece ensemble consisting of pipers, guitarists, keyboards, and drummers. They have been rocking the world from New York to Beijing to Melbourne and everywhere in between with musicianship of the highest order and a passion for pipes that will leave you breathless. The band has four music degrees from the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama and all the pipers and drummers have played at the top level in bagpiping.

Since they walked away in 2007 with the top prize on the primetime UK TV talent show, “When Will I Be Famous,” the Red Hot Chilli Pipers haven’t stopped for a breath, other than to inflate their bagpipes! Formed in 2002, the Chillis have fast become a global phenomenon, taking their signature “Bagrock” sound to the masses with their unique fusion of rocked-up bagpipes and clever covers of popular songs from all genres. They have sold out tours across the planet including those in the UK, U.S., China, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, France, Spain, Belgium, Portugal, Ukraine, Dubai, Saudi Arabia, and India.

Their playlist includes traditional pipe tunes like “The Flowers of Scotland,” The Hills of Argyll,” and “Amazing Grace” (Chilli-style, of course) and contemporary anthems like Queen’s “We Will Rock You,” “Clocks” by Coldplay, “Chasing Cars” by Snow Patrol, and a fantastic rock medley of Deep Purple’s “Smoke on the Water,” and AC/DC’s “Thunderstruck.”

Feel the Chilli heat -  It’s time to come closer to the fire!