A Celtic Carousal Comes To Long Island

Behind the scenes with Flogging Molly

Dennis Casey’s Fresh Tunes For Flogging Molly Fans

In recent conversation with Flogging Molly guitarist Dennis Casey, he was asked to recommend three bands that a fan would enjoy but that they might not have heard of. These were his recomendations:

Skinny Lister

Formed in London, and currently opening for Flogging Molly and AntiFlag on their current tour. Their fast paced folk influenced tunes will have any packed barroom hoisting their beer and shouting along to every song.

Flogging Molly, formed in Los Angeles by native Irishman Dave King in the mid 1990s, took its name from an Irish pub called Molly Malone’s, where they spent their early days as the house band. Front man King, with his distinct Brogue and acoustic guitar, continued to add members to the band from a wide range of musical backgrounds. Many of the current band members are a diverse group of musicians King met at Molly Malone’s and asked to join the band, each member adding diversity and nuance to their complex sound. The current lineup is founder and vocalist / guitarist Dave King; King’s wife, Bridget Regan, on violin, tin whistle and vocals; Dennis Casey on guitar and vocals; Matt Hensley on accordion and concertina; Nathan Maxwell on bass and vocals; Spencer Swain on mandolin and banjo and Mike Alonso on drums.

As the band grew, so did their following. Known for their rigorous touring schedule, the band spends months on the road every year playing to packed venues of all sizes, performing at music festivals and headlining one of the most unique cruises imaginable.

Style of music

The band recently took the stage with their unique assortment of instruments at Huntington’s Paramount Theater. The result was raucous punk rock verve, blended seamlessly with Celtic melodies and a sea of undulating bodies, electrified by the energy that Flogging Molly brings to every show. The attendees ranged from school age kids to seniors, the result of having drawn fans with their eclectic sound and energy for approximately 25 years.

While many bands may fit neatly into a particular genre, a band as diverse as Flogging Molly can be more difficult to classify, but it is often referred to as Celtic punk. Longtime Flogging Molly guitarist and former Long Islander Dennis Casey put it this way:

“It’s kind of hard to do in a tagline because we’re people with really diverse backgrounds and we bring all kinds of influences to it, but Dave King, being from Ireland, I would definitely say there is a Celtic element of the band for sure as well as the instrumentation. He writes a lot about Ireland. And so I would say that’s a pretty good summation of what we are”.

Spend some time listening to the bands seven studio albums, and the band’s range immediately becomes apparent. From the slower more acoustic folk songs such as “If I Ever Leave This World Alive” to the strident electrified “Seven Deadly Sins” to “Whats Left Of The Flag” where King’s mournful lyrics and solemn acoustic accompaniment are set ablaze with a strum of Caseys overdriven guitar, Flogging Molly maintains a continuous musical thread through a diverse palette of songs.

Touring

Spending a lot of time on the road is a large part of what Flogging Molly has been known for. Over the years they’ve been all over North America and Europe and have toured in Japan. Casey had this to say about touring in Japan: “I remember we played Japan and the first time we went there... It’s such a completely different vibe. And

Flogging Molly made an appearance at The Paramount in Huntington.

I’ve been very fortunate to be able to do that.” He added “playing that far (away) and then having people know your music it was just kind of mind boggling. It blew me away, wow, our music is resonating halfway around the world.”

Pandemic

For a group of musicians who spend so much of their lives traveling and interacting with large groups of people, the recent pandemic had an enormous impact on the band. Casey put it this way: “in the beginning, there is this chaos, like What the hell’s happening? We were on tour and we went into California and, we saw it coming and then, everything shut down and so there was this state of fear, and the unknown, everybody staying home and realizing I may never do this again. What I do for a living is very people oriented, people in large groups.” As a father of four Casey was also quick to point out the silver lining: being able to spend time with his family. “The pandemic was a blessing and a curse for our band, because in the more than 25 years that we’ve been doing this, we never got to spend a lot of time with our families, and this is just the way I looked at it. We all did. I got four kids. I was gone most of their lives, to be able to stay home that long was what’s so beautiful for me.”

In addition to the time spent with family, members of the band also extended a life line of sorts. King and Regan streamed songs from in front of the fireplace of their home in

Fontaines D.C.

This Dublin, Ireland band started in 2017. Their lyrics alone are well worth a glance, but coupled with their incredibly catchy post-punk style melodies, they will likely become a favorite of anyone who listens.

Idles

Hailing from Bristol, England, Idles are intense and driven. With their raw, often frenzied lyrics, propelled forward by breakneck rhythms, Idles are a force of nature. Amidst the chaos of each song, however, they manage to maintain a cadence that draws you along as only a great band can do.

Ireland, and Casey posted a series of guitar lessons on the band’s YouTube channel. Whether they were aware of it or not, they provided a much welcomed continuity at a time of uncertainty for many fans of live music.

Salty Dog

With the lockdowns and restrictions behind us, hopefully for good, one of the most unique aspects of their touring is back up and running. Salty Dog Cruises is a multiday Caribbean cruise started by Flogging Molly nearly 10 years ago. The cruise features multiple bands, tattooing, a half pipe, even music lessons with Flogging Molly. Casey put it this way: “I was really skeptical in the beginning when the idea came up. I remember I got on the boat and the first two people I met were from Belgium and I was like …this could be pretty good. It’s just it’s a big party. There’s the vibe that people are just there to have a great time.” If there’s one down side to Salty Dog cruises, it’s that those considering booking a ticket don’t have much time to ponder the decision. The cruise usually sells out within weeks.

Flogging Molly’s latest album Anthem was released this past September. For more information, see www.floggingmolly.com.

NO TO CASINO AT COLISEUM SITE!

The proposed construction of a casino at the site of Nassau Veterans Coliseum in the predominantly Black and Brown community of Uniondale, New York, would be a destructive decision that could negatively impact neighboring Hofstra University, Nassau Community College, and

Bracing For Impact

The news that local leaders in Garden City voted to officially stand against the proposed Nassau County casino floated by Las Vegas Sands Corporation is music to the ears to those of us who have been saying NO all along. This is the third attempt by developers to bring a casino to this part of the county and although the pushbacks by community members have been sustained and tremendous, developers keep coming with different versions of the same thing.

Although the action by Garden City leaders is encouraging, the final decision rests with the county Legislature, and if we are to take a cue from Legislator Siela Bynoe’s (D- Westbury) letter to the Chief Executive Officer of Las

Letters To The Editor

the Sloan Kettering Cancer Center Nassau. Casinos have long-term colleagues such as gambling addiction, crime, and prostitution, that are not in the best interest of the residents of Nassau County, the students at Hofstra University, and Nassau Community College. As well as the struggling cancer

Vegas Sands Corp., published in the Nassau Illustrated News, the decision could go either way based on his response. Bynoe posed the following pointed questions to the CEO:

“Provide my office with data specifically outlining the number and nature of employment that were created in similarly positioned host communities; the salary and benefits associated with each; professional development and advancement opportunities that are offered to recruits; the average duration of employment in each of these specific job titles; and the number of union employment opportunities that were created through these endeavors; identify local hiring plans that were implemented; the extent to which patients at Sloan Kettering Cancer Center Nassau. This effort could rob, rape, and ruin the lives of many broken, battered, and bruised Nassau County residents, students from home and abroad, and cancer patients, fighting the forward fight to survive.

Efforts to weaken the Black and these goals were achieved; steps that were taken by your organization to achieve those targets.”

Bynoe asked other questions similarly along the lines of employment and employment opportunities, including opportunities for minority and women-owned business enterprises (MWBE) and disadvantaged business enterprises. (DBE)

I will not be surprised if this is the way most politicians will decide to go: seek assurance for jobs and employment opportunities from these business people, especially since urban casinos are on the rise in the northeast. According to the data, three major urban cities – New York (NYC), Philadelphia and Baltimore/ Washington, D.C., collectively

Brown vote through redistricting in America’s largest township, the Town of Hempstead, and one of America’s richest counties, Nassau County, literally adds insult to injury. The corrupt trinity of environmental racism, classism, and sexism, baptized in pure greed, wants possession of the very soul of opened seven casinos from 2004 to 2012. The promise of jobs and employment opportunities seems to be the lure, but critics and opposers argue that there is a symbiotic relationship between casinos and local neighboring communities that could potentially increase problem gambling and have severe economic consequences such as economic distress, homelessness, mental disorders, and domestic violence. Detractors also make the association between the proliferation of undesirable businesses such as pawn shops, pay day loans, and check cashing stores- not exactly what some see as economic development. I will also not be surprised if Legislator Bynoe receives glowing reports to her many questions our beloved township and county. The concerned residents of the Town of Hempstead and Nassau County must stand up, speak up, and seriously fight the forward fight for our future and survival.

Pastor Arthur L. Mackey Jr., Senior Pastor, Mount Sinai Baptist Church Cathedral

which will help her to make a decision, especially since they are in a business in which the “house” never loses. They might even throw in a few “sweeteners” as sales people often do with hard to sell products. I am under no illusion that this fight will result in the same outcome as the previous two, since there are so many heavy hitters involved; the public relations officer is former governor David Patterson, County Executive Bruce Blakeman is a major backer and chief cheerleader and I believe so is Governor Kathy Hochul. It might be akin to a David vs Goliath battle, but like David, we are not deterred and are bracing for impact but prepared for a soft landing.