Flogging Molly
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Flogging Molly is a seven-piece Irish American Celtic punk band, that formed in Los Angeles and is currently signed under SideOneDummy Records.
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[edit] Background
In an interview with Kerrang! magazine, singer Dave King revealed that the band's name comes from Molly Malone's, an Irish pub in LA. "We used to play there every Monday night and we felt like we were flogging a dead horse, so we called the band Flogging Molly." The band started as Dave King and Bridget Regan playing Irish music in bars and pubs. They recruited more members until becoming the seven-person ensemble that they are today. They were signed onto SideOneDummy Records after a show when the record company's owners, who had attended the concert, were amazed by their intensity.
Their music is heavily influenced by such bands as The Pogues, and has many references to the Roman Catholic Church and ranges from boisterous punk rock like the pirate-themed "Salty Dog" and "Seven Deadly Sins," or the defiant "What's Left of the Flag", "Drunken Lullabies", and "Rebels of the Sacred Heart" to more somber songs like "Far Away Boys", "The Son Never Shines (On Closed Doors)", or "Death Valley Queen". The driving forces behind the music tend to be King's gravelly voice and Regan's manic fiddling. Prior to forming Flogging Molly, Dave King was the vocalist for Fastway, a late 80s-early 90s heavy metal band, featuring guitarist "Fast" Eddie Clarke of Motörhead.
Flogging Molly has released four major studio albums, Swagger, Drunken Lullabies, Within a Mile of Home, and Whiskey on a Sunday, as well as an independent live album titled Alive Behind the Green Door. They have toured with the Warped Tour and Larry Kirwan's American Fléadh Festival. They also contributed to the Rock Against Bush project. Also, they have done extensive touring with the self-proclaimed Gypsy punk band, Gogol Bordello, which is also signed under SideOneDummy Records.
[edit] Members
The band's members are:
- Dave King (vocals, acoustic guitar, bodhran, banjo, spoons, backing vocals on "Cruel Mistress" and "Queen Anne's Revenge")
- Bridget Regan (fiddle, tin whistle, uilleann pipes, backing vocals)
- Dennis Casey (electric guitar, backing vocals)
- Matt Hensley (accordion, concertina)
- Nathen Maxwell (bass guitar, backing vocals, lead vocals on "Cruel Mistress" and "Queen Anne's Revenge")
- Bob Schmidt (mandolin, mandola, banjo, bazouki, backing vocals)
- George Schwindt (drums, percussion, bodhran)
[edit] Discography
[edit] Compilations
- Flogging Molly's Song Laura is on the SideOneDummy Mix cd, which could be obtained at (at least some of) their concerts for free.
- Their Song Drunken Lullabies is on the video game Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4.
[edit] Trivia
- Main songwriter and lyricist Dave King composes his verse on a typewriter manufactured in 1916, the year of the Easter Rising in Ireland in order to celebrate his Irish heritage, having been born in Dublin.
- Dave King has described The Warped Tour as "the Survivor of ... punk rock shows."[1]
- The song "If I Ever Leave This World Alive" (studio version) is featured in Episode 8 "Scar Tissue" of Season 2 of The Shield, and was used in the first season of Showtime's Weeds as well.
- The song "Queen Anne's Revenge" is an allusion to the ship of the same name (Queen Anne's Revenge), captained by the infamous pirate Blackbeard.
- The song "The Worst Day Since Yesterday" is featured in the 2005 film Mr. & Mrs. Smith.
- The song "Drunken Lullabies" is featured in the video game "Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4".
- Matt Hensley (Flogging Molly's Accordionist and concertina player) is a professional skateboarder. He is currently skating for Black Label Skateboards. He is also the owner of Innes Clothing, a skateboard clothing company. A common misconception is that he skateboards in the "Drunken Lullabies" music video, when it was really Patrick Melcher another rider for Black Label Skateboards at the time.
- The song "Every Dog Has Its Day" makes mention of Van Diemen's Land, the original name for the Australian island (and penal colony) of Tasmania.
- The song "To Youth (My Sweet Roisin Dubh)" is featured on the video Game Fifa 2005.
- The song "Salty Dog" has a melody based upon the Kesh Jig, a famous Irish tune notably used in the film Titanic, in the scene where the two lead characters are in the pub dance and Rose stands on the tips of her toes. The band playing in the scene is fellow Irish act Gaelic Storm.
- Thousands of people have the song "Salty Dog" tagged as "Pirate Song" because that's how it was first leaked on internet file-sharing programs; another tag is "Irish Pub Song". Also, Flogging Molly's music is often incorrectly labelled as that of other Irish bands, such as the Dropkick Murphys. The reverse also happens.
- Flogging Molly played an unusual set at the 2006 Reading and Leeds Festival when they played twice in one day - once on the main stage and again in the Lock-Up tent.
- At the end of the song "Factory Girls" the "Richard and his court of kings" refers to Richard II of England.
- Revealed by singer Dave King during the last night of the 2006 "Side One Dummy College Tour," Flogging Molly will begin recording a new studio album in January 2007.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Biography
- Flogging Molly's web site
- Flogging Molly Videos
- Unofficial Street Team & Forum
- Flogging Molly Song Meanings
- Flogging Molly Concert Picturesde:Flogging Molly
fr:Flogging Molly it:Flogging Molly nl:Flogging Molly pt:Flogging Molly sv:Flogging Molly

