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Flogging Molly
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July 20, 2009 11:18 AM by Jess
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By Kaleb Schwecke
July 20, 2009
Of the Frontpage Milwaukee staff
Flogging Molly Summerfest concert review
Every year on the Fourth of July, Americans celebrate Independence Day. But this was not the case this July 4th at the Miller Lite Oasis stage on the Summerfest grounds. The first words out of Flogging Molly frontman Dave King’s mouth as the band took the stage were “happy St. Patty’s Day”. And although it was not technically St. Patrick’s Day, all the Guinness and Irish jigging was enough have me convinced that it was.
The first thing that I noticed as soon as Flogging Molly’s unique blend of Irish folk music and punk rock tore through the audience, was that it was impossible not to smile. Flogging Molly, a seven-piece band from Los Angeles, has been pumping out smile inducing songs since they started playing weekly shows at a small pub called Molly Molones in their hometown.
The real heart of the band comes from frontman King’s rough and accent-laden vocals. He commanded the stage as he strutted up and down wielding his acoustic guitar.
A little known band from the 80s called The Pogues was one of the first bands to fuse together old Irish folk elements with newer punk influences. The Pogues had a great influence over Dublin born Dave King, and lead him to incorporate traditional Irish and folk instruments in with newer punk roots. This fusion of old and new leads to a very eclectic assortment of instruments on stage.
Flogging Molly skillfully weaves in such obscure instruments as uillean pipes and a bodhran to compliment the normal assortment of bass and acoustic guitars.
But despite using some old instruments that have been around since the days of St. Patrick, Flogging Molly packed the Summerfest benches with a relatively young crowd. While there were very few people there that could actually grow a serious beard, there was a handful of old diehards sporting fiery red beards and plaid kilts. Thankfully, the no crowd surfing policy was enforced because that is something that kilts were not exactly designed for.
For the entire 90-minute set the crowd was a jumping, jigging, and clapping mass. While the crowd was always bubbling and foaming (Guinness analogy) a few songs whipped them into a proper frenzy.
The night got kicked off with a couple songs off of their latest album, Float. This was their fourth full-length album and was released in 2008. While not the best album all around, the title track from Float really worked very well live.
Drunken Lullabies, the title track off of the 2002 album that just very recently went gold, was the song that really made Milwaukeeans dance the jig. Drunken Lullabies rides on the fast-paced frantically joyous fiddling of Bridget Regan. Regan not only masterfully plays the fiddle, but in the words of King, Regan is the most beautiful black-haired beauty he has ever seen. Which is good since the two are married, having met when the band formed and since fallen in love.
Not only does Flogging Molly know how to play a raucous jig, but such slow songs as Forever and If I Ever Leave This World Alive had the strange effect of making everyone in the audience want to hug. Strangers put their arms around one another and in unison swayed back and fourth singing along with King.
And those are only two gears that Flogging Molly has: slow-swaying-heartfelt-folk-songs and in-your-face-take-two-shots-of-whiskey-before-joining-in-the-pub-brawl. But it works. Just when you think that you can’t jig anymore, they give you slight reprieve with a slow song about love lost or love found. And when you have had just enough time to catch your breath and rest your legs,
Flogging Molly demands that you get back on your feet and jig until you’re out of breath.
Although today is the 5th, and no longer St. Patty’s day, just because the music has stopped, doesn’t mean that the smiles have faded. Cheers, and I’ll see you next St. Patrick’s Day.
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