2008 Woodie Awards
Flogging Molly is back
Celtic ballads and punk rock make the group unique
Kevin Fixler
Issue date: 2/8/05 Section: Arts & Entertainment
Mix together traditional Celtic folk with hardcore punk, throw in a smidgen of inventiveness and a few pints of Guinness, and you get the rocking sounds of Flogging Molly.
Last September, the Los Angeles based septet released its third studio album, Within a Mile of Home, and with it reaffirmed the band's status as one of the more infamous indie bands in today's music scene.
The band, now with much more expectation and a significantly larger fan base, picked up right where they left off with their very popular 2002 sophomore release, Drunken Lullabies, and before that, their 2000 coming out party, Swagger.
For those unfamiliar with Flogging Molly, you are certainly in for a surprise.
Led by singer/song writer Dave King, who calls the seven-year tenured group "basically a bar band."
FM plays anything from emotional and meaningful sing-along folk ballads, to fever pitch fist-pumping edgy rock, and usually everything in between.
"If it didn't have mandolin, accordion, fiddle and whistle, it would be punk-rock, if it didn't have guitar, bass and drums, it would be traditional Irish music.
Flogging Molly has both," said King, describing the band's unique sound.
FM kicks off Within a Mile of Home with "Screaming at the Wailing Wall," a melodic and heavily Irish tune that embraces the sound that the band has come to be known for.
It is a fast-paced, politically charged song that discusses America's involvement in the Middle East.
Songs two and four, "The Seven Deadly Sins" and "To Youth (My Sweet Roisin Dubh)," continue the band's foot-stomping torrent, while song three, titled "Factory Girls," throws the listener for one of FM's lighter trademark album loops.
The incorporation of country singer Lucinda Williams to King's vocals in this song is certainly a change of pace for FM, but it also shows the band's continuing maturity and versatility.
However, much of the sound stays the same throughout the rest of the record.
Last September, the Los Angeles based septet released its third studio album, Within a Mile of Home, and with it reaffirmed the band's status as one of the more infamous indie bands in today's music scene.
The band, now with much more expectation and a significantly larger fan base, picked up right where they left off with their very popular 2002 sophomore release, Drunken Lullabies, and before that, their 2000 coming out party, Swagger.
For those unfamiliar with Flogging Molly, you are certainly in for a surprise.
Led by singer/song writer Dave King, who calls the seven-year tenured group "basically a bar band."
FM plays anything from emotional and meaningful sing-along folk ballads, to fever pitch fist-pumping edgy rock, and usually everything in between.
"If it didn't have mandolin, accordion, fiddle and whistle, it would be punk-rock, if it didn't have guitar, bass and drums, it would be traditional Irish music.
Flogging Molly has both," said King, describing the band's unique sound.
FM kicks off Within a Mile of Home with "Screaming at the Wailing Wall," a melodic and heavily Irish tune that embraces the sound that the band has come to be known for.
It is a fast-paced, politically charged song that discusses America's involvement in the Middle East.
Songs two and four, "The Seven Deadly Sins" and "To Youth (My Sweet Roisin Dubh)," continue the band's foot-stomping torrent, while song three, titled "Factory Girls," throws the listener for one of FM's lighter trademark album loops.
The incorporation of country singer Lucinda Williams to King's vocals in this song is certainly a change of pace for FM, but it also shows the band's continuing maturity and versatility.
However, much of the sound stays the same throughout the rest of the record.