- Flogging Molly
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Flogging Molly 
Flogging Molly performing live in Baltimore, MD, in February 2010Background information Origin Los Angeles, California, United States Genres Celtic punk, folk punk Years active 1997–present Labels SideOneDummy Records Borstal Beat Records Website www.floggingmolly.com Members Dave King
Bridget Regan
Dennis Casey
Nathen Maxwell
Bob Schmidt
George Schwindt
Matt HensleyFlogging Molly is a seven-piece Irish-descendant band from Los Angeles, California, that is currently signed to their own record label, Borstal Beat Records.
Contents
History
Early years
Prior to forming Flogging Molly, Dublin-born Dave King was the vocalist for heavy metal band Fastway featuring guitarist "Fast" Eddie Clarke of Motörhead and bassist Pete Way of UFO in the early to mid '80s. He later fronted a hard rock band called Katmandu (1991), featuring Mandy Meyer of Krokus on guitars. Afterwards, Dave King retained a record deal with Epic records and began to work on a solo album, but began to reconsider his record deal when the label opposed his idea of bringing in traditional Irish instruments. King negotiated out of his record deal to go his own way musically soon after.
In 1993, King met guitarist Ted Hutt, bassist Jeff Peters, and fiddle player Bridget Regan and put together a rock band with a celtic feel. They began to play a mix of Irish traditional and rock. Putting Dave's poetic lyrics to rocking melodies, they played at a Los Angeles pub called Molly Malone's weekly building a small, but loyal following. Together they wrote songs such as Black Friday Rule and Devils Dance Floor, which was the beginning of Flogging Molly's unique sound. Ted and Jeff then left Flogging Molly because an earlier band of theirs received a record deal. Dave and Bridget began to find new members and the current band was formed.
They continued a routine of playing every Monday night at Molly Malone's. Then 17-year old Nathen Maxwell snuck into a show as a fan and soon after joined the band.[1] They put out a live album, Alive Behind the Green Door in 1997. In an interview with Kerrang! magazine, King stated that the band's name comes from the bar (Molly Malone's) that faithfully supported the band from the very beginning, "We used to play there every Monday night and we felt like we were flogging it to death, so we called the band Flogging Molly." They were signed onto SideOneDummy Records after a show when the record company's owners attended a concert and noted their intensity.
Career
Flogging Molly has released an independent (26f Records) live album titled Alive Behind the Green Door, as well as five studio albums: Swagger, Drunken Lullabies, Within a Mile of Home, Float and Speed of Darkness; and an acoustic/live DVD/cd combo Whiskey on a Sunday, which has gone platinum. They have toured with the Warped Tour, Larry Kirwan's American Fléadh Festival and contributed to the Rock Against Bush project. They have sold in excess of a million and a half copies of recorded output as of December 6, 2006.[2]
In March 2007, the band released an exclusive EP through iTunes entitled Complete Control Sessions. The EP includes two new tracks, as well as acoustic versions of previously released songs. A year later Flogging Molly released Float, an album dubbed "one of the most important CDs of the year, if not the decade" by Alternative Press.[citation needed] Flogging Molly also recognized the album as influential to their career as their first album recorded in Ireland (though mixed in California) by producer Ryan Hewitt. Fans met the release with great anticipation and enthusiasm, landing it at #4 on the Billboard Top 200 Chart. The album includes the band's first two chart singles, Requiem for a Dying Song (which hit #35 on the Billboard Modern Rock charts) [3] and Float (which hit #40).[3] Another accolade came to the band in June 2009 when their album "Drunken Lullabies" went gold.[4]
While touring to support Float, Dave and Bridget were married in a private ceremony in Tokyo, Japan. Flogging Molly released a live DVD/CD set called Live At The Greek Theater in March 2010. The 3-disc set (double CD + full-length DVD) captures Flogging Molly’s performance at the Greek Theatre on September 12, 2009, and includes content spanning the band’s entire catalog. The band currently performs live every year on their annual "Green 17 Tour". Beginning in 2004, they recently finished their 7th tour iteration, playing at 30 locations across the United States. The band appeared in the 2011 season premiere of Austin City Limits.[5]
Musical style
Flogging Molly's music is influenced by artists such as The Dubliners, The Pogues, Horslips, Johnny Cash, and The Clash. The album Within a Mile of Home is dedicated to Joe Strummer and Johnny Cash.
Their music ranges from boisterous celtic punk, like the pirate-themed "Salty Dog", "Cruel Mistress", 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)", "Life in a Tenement Square" and "Float." Lyrics typically touch on subjects such as Ireland and its history, poverty, drinking, politics, love, death, and include several references to the Roman Catholic Church. "What's Left of the Flag" and "The Likes of You Again" were written as tributes to King's father who died while Dave King was a young boy.[6]
Members
- Dave King – lead vocals, acoustic guitar, bodhrán, banjo, spoons
- Bridget Regan – fiddle, tin whistle, uillean pipes, vocals
- Dennis Casey – guitar, vocals
- Matt Hensley – accordion, concertina
- Nathen Maxwell – bass guitar, vocals
- Bob Schmidt – mandolin, banjo
- George Schwindt – drums, percussion
Discography
Studio albums
Year Album details Peak chart positions US
[7]US
Ind.
[7]AUT
[8]BEL (Fla)
[9]CHE
[10]FIN
[11]GER
[12]NLD
[13]SWE
[14]UK
[15]2000 Swagger - Released: March 7, 2000
- Label: SideOneDummy (71219)
- Format: CD, LP
128 — — — — — — — — — 2002 Drunken Lullabies - Released: March 19, 2002
- Label: SideOneDummy (71230)
- Format: CD, LP
104 8 — — — — — 48 — — 2004 Within a Mile of Home - Released: September 14, 2004
- Label: SideOneDummy (71251)
- Format: CD, LP
20 1 — 96 — — — 61 — — 2008 Float - Released: March 4, 2008
- Label: SideOneDummy (71348)
- Format: CD, LP
4 1 27 81 91 26 45 37 36 — 2011 Speed of Darkness - Released: May 31, 2011
- Label: Borstal Beat (2)
- Format: CD
9 3 14 83 28 — 27 85 59 155 "—" denotes a release that did not chart. Live albums
Year Album details Peak chart positions US
[7]US
Ind.
[7]NLD
[13]1997 Alive Behind the Green Door - Released: 1997
- Label: SideOneDummy (71292)
- Format: CD
— — — 2006 Whiskey on a Sunday - Released: July 25, 2006
- Label: SideOneDummy (71287)
- Format: CD + DVD
67 3 45 2010 Live at the Greek Theatre - Released: March 2, 2010
- Label: SideOneDummy (SD 14132)
- Format: 2CD (+DVD)
40 5 — "—" denotes a release that did not chart. Extended plays
Year Album details 2007 Complete Control Sessions - Released: March 13, 2007
- Label: SideOneDummy
- Format: DI
Singles
Year Title US
Alt.
[16]Album 2000 "Salty Dog" — Swagger 2002 "Drunken Lullabies" — Drunken Lullabies 2004 "The Seven Deadly Sins" — Within a Mile of Home 2008 "Float" 40 Float "Requiem for a Dying Song" 35 2009 "The Lightning Storm" — 2010 "Punch Drunk Grinning Soul" — 2011 "Don't Shut 'Em Down" 39 Speed of Darkness "Revolution" — "The Heart of the Sea" — "This Present State of Grace" — 2012 "Saints & Sinners" — "—" denotes a release that did not chart. References
- ^ Broadley, Erin (2008-03-07). "Flogging Molly". Suicide Girls. http://suicidegirls.com/interviews/Flogging+Molly/. Retrieved 2008-03-31.
- ^ Kick Music A/S
- ^ a b http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/retrieve_chart_history.do?model.vnuArtistId=384232&model.vnuAlbumId=1103595
- ^ floggingmolly.com post from band 18 June 2009
- ^ "Saints and Sinners" Air Date 10/01/11
- ^ Ambrose, Anthony. "inTuneMusic Online: Warped Tour @ Oceanport 7/19". http://intunemusiconline.com/2009/07/27/warped-tour-oceanport-719/. Retrieved 2009-07-28.
- ^ a b c d "Flogging Molly > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. http://www.allmusic.com/artist/flogging-molly-p417207/charts-awards/billboard-albums. Retrieved 2011-05-20.
- ^ "Discographie Flogging Molly" (in German). Hung Medien. http://austriancharts.at/showinterpret.asp?interpret=Flogging+Molly. Retrieved 2011-05-20.
- ^ "Discografie Flogging Molly" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. http://www.ultratop.be/nl/showinterpret.asp?interpret=Flogging+Molly. Retrieved 2011-05-20.
- ^ "Discographie Flogging Molly" (in German). Hung Medien. http://hitparade.ch/showinterpret.asp?interpret=Flogging+Molly. Retrieved 2011-05-20.
- ^ "Discography Flogging Molly". Hung Medien. http://finnishcharts.com/showinterpret.asp?interpret=Flogging+Molly. Retrieved 2011-05-20.
- ^ "Chartverfolgung > Flogging Molly > Longplay" (in German). PhonoNet. http://www.musicline.de/de/chartverfolgung_summary/artist/FLOGGING+MOLLY/?type=longplay. Retrieved 2011-05-20.
- ^ a b "Discografie Flogging Molly" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. http://dutchcharts.nl/showinterpret.asp?interpret=Flogging+Molly. Retrieved 2011-05-20.
- ^ "Discography Flogging Molly" (in French). Hung Medien. http://swedishcharts.com/showinterpret.asp?interpret=Flogging+Molly. Retrieved 2011-05-20.
- ^ Zywietz, Tobias. "Chart Log UK – Update 11.06.2011". Zobbel. http://www.zobbel.de/cluk/110611cluk.txt. Retrieved 2011-06-12.
- ^ "Flogging Molly Album & Song Chart History: Alternative Songs". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. http://www.billboard.com/#/artist/flogging-molly/chart-history/384232?f=377&g=Singles. Retrieved 2011-05-20.
External links
- Official website
- Recent interview article in the International Herald Tribune Asahi Shimbun
- Interview with Dave King in the Irish Independent
- In the dressing room with Flogging Molly, recorded at the Pinkpop Festival in Netherlands, May 30 2008
- Interview with Bob Schmidt in 2007
- Burning Stars Interview with Flogging Molly - 2006
- Flogging Molly Music Videos-Interviews-Live Performance at Roxwel
Studio albums - Swagger
- Drunken Lullabies
- Within a Mile of Home
- Float
- Speed of Darkness
Live/compilation albums - Alive Behind the Green Door
- Whiskey on a Sunday
- Complete Control Sessions
- Live at the Greek Theatre
Categories:- Rock music groups from California
- American punk rock groups
- Celtic punk groups
- Musical groups established in 1997
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