by erin thursby scopes1925@msn.com
What: Flogging Molly
When: April 28th @ 9pm
Where: Irish Festival, Jacksonville Fairgrounds
It certainly doesn’t feel like it’s been 10 years since Flogging Molly threaded into the Celtic-punk scene, but it’s true. Since ’97, the band had been singing edgy Irish tunes with a punk sensibility, becoming a sort of leader in the genre. Their fans are loyal and Molly tends to play to packed houses wherever they go.
And they go everywhere, including Japan and Australia, which they’ve just come back from touring. According to band member and electric guitar strummer Dennis Casey, there’s a surprisingly large market for Celtic rock in Japan.
“We had a great time over there. Japan is a wonderful country to tour. They really know how to take care of you and the fans are really, really receptive…You wanna hear something incredible? So, we’re over in Japan…I’m rifling through this CD shop and I come across this compilation…I open it up and it’s all Japanese Celtic rock bands.”
Casey looks back at the band’s 10-year career, which seemed to have passed quickly for him and the other members. All of that experience, whether on the road or recording, has shaped the band.
“I don’t know a lot of bands that stick around, make records and tour after 10 years. Thinking about it, I consider it to be a major accomplishment…I think we’ve all become better musicians. I think we’ve all become closer as people, so I think the music reflects that…When you hang around somebody for 10 years—there’s just some things you don’t even need to say…and I think that translates into music as well.”
The 7-piece band has stayed intact, with the all the original members, until this year. Earlier this year Matt Hensley left the band to spend more time with his son Oliver, who was only a toddler when the band started touring. Replacing him will be PJ Smith.
In a band that owes much of its success to the politics of Ireland, it should make sense that Flogging Molly has become part of the rock-politics movement. They have participated in various rallies and concerts of a political bent, the most notable of which was Rock Against Bush.
“I’d always been interested in politics, but I never really had a platform to do something like Rock Against Bush…When you’re in a band and you have a name, you can spread some sort of idea, or just get people to register to vote…That’s a great thing to be able to do.”
Moving away from politics, I asked Casey if the band ever planned to launch a pirate song compilation CD, since a few of their songs (such as the infamous ‘Salty Dog’) have a notable sea and pirate flair. Casey replied that they hadn’t but was excited about the idea and thought that it would be a “great idea to do with a bunch of Celtic bands.”
Casey’s also stoked about an actual project: the band’s latest CD. They haven’t really started recording it, but they have started writing it.
“We’re writing our new record…[in Ireland]. Dave lived in Blackwater Village, which is South East in Ireland. We rented a house in January. We were there for 3 weeks and we wrote a bunch of new songs. We’re gonna go back in June and do the same thing, finish writing the new album, hopefully record it by the end of the year.”
Catch Flogging Molly at the Irish Festival on April 28th at the Jacksonville Fairgrounds.
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