JiggyJay's Full Review: Within a Mile of Home [Digipak] by Flogging Molly
The wait is finally over. It’s been two years since Flogging Molly released their phenomenal “Drunken Lullabies” record, so it was about time that they published another disc, but does “Within A Mile of Home” live up to the swagger of “Swagger” or the intensity of “Drunken Lullabies”?
Hailing from Southern California, Flogging Molly have been a popular sensation these last couple of years on college radio stations and are rumored to offer the best live show on the face of the Earth. But all of that aside, these guys can really rock out. Similar to such bands as Stiff Little Fingers, the Undertones, and Dropkick Murphys, they offer a unique sound that is their signature noise. Mixing a traditional Irish theme with a fast paced punk backdrop, they have an inimitable sound that is unmatched.
Before you get the image of the drunken Pogues in your head, let it be known that Flogging Molly puts forth music that everyone will be able to like and isn’t for just an acquired taste.
Dublin-born, Dave King is definitely one of the best musicians out there. Getting his start in the industry as a member of Fastway (along with Motorhead guitarist, Eddie Clarke), he truly met his calling with Flogging Molly. Resorting back to his Irish roots and supplying some really good music, King created FM with six of his buddies and named the band after a bar. Not only does King have a real Irish accent, but he’s extremely talented with his guitar offering notes (as well as lyrics) that are clearly inspired by the late Johnny Cash and Joe Strummer (of the Clash).
Imagine: Pure Irish music with a feverish punk milieu. That’s pretty much how you sum up Flogging Molly’s music. There are seven members of the group including Bridget Regan pushing her talents as a skilled fiddler and tin whistle player. You also are exposed to Matt Hensley on accordion, whose expertise really adds the final ingredient to the mix to make it superior. While you may be thinking that I’m crazy for commending these instruments, envision them alongside a ripping guitar playing maniac and a frenzy-inducing mandolin/banjo player. All of these instruments connect and make very good rhythm and songs.
So the question is: Are Flogging Molly still as good as they were back in 2000? The answer is yes, but the band is even greater than they were then. The songs have more depth and aren’t just Irish drinking songs. Believe or not, the band shimmied in some political messages into their music, which is a first for the group. Songs like “Screaming at the Wailing Wall” and “Tobacco Island” are songs of protest against our current commander-in-chief and the latter is a blunt telling of the ancient slavery of the Irish. So there are some serious themes that they incorporate into their music besides just songs about having fun.
Flogging Molly explores some different ideas in “Within a Mile of Home” and while some work (like the bassist, Nathen Maxwell, singing on “Queen Anne’s Revenge” instead of Dave King) others are a step in the wrong direction, like the only awful song on the album called “The Spoken Wheel”, which changes the atmosphere of the record too dramatically.
Songs that really demonstrate Flogging Molly’s talents (and King’s Irish brogue) are songs like “Seven Deadly Sins”, which gives you the old school FM full of spoons, George Schwidt’s distinctive and frantic drumming, and fast paced lyrics, which are spat with surprisingly nice melody.
While the CD integrates some new concepts the band has never explored before, a large chunk of the music in “Within a Mile of Home” is same old, same old. Flogging Molly really rely on “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” so a lot of the music that you listen to in the album will be relevant if you’re familiar with their older work.
You can spot some new types of instrumentation and the band even gives forth an experimental vibe. I nod to the song, “Factory Girls”, which is one of the slower paced songs on the record. As a duet featuring singer/songwriter Lucinda Williams, it slows the tempo a lot and has a steady country-music-sounding theme to it. Another song that really slows down the ferociousness of the CD is the ending track titled, “Don’t Let Me Die Still Wondering”, which is one of the more Cash-influenced sequences and if truth be believed was written the day cash died (as quoted by King).
One of the many things that I enjoy about “Within a Mile of Home” is the assortment of music, which really lets each instrument into the spotlight. In my opinion, the other albums were a bit too one-sided with the guitar. Now you can hear songs that are accordion and mandolin driven like “Tomorrow Comes a Day Too Soon” or “Wanderlust”, which has superior bass mechanics. The core of “Within a Mile of Home” is the lyrics, which are much more three-dimensional and are a whole lot more personal. This is a huge plus for me, and I’m sure fans and new-comers alike will enjoy this factor.
When all is said and done, Flogging Molly has done the unthinkable: they have created a disc that surpasses their entire discography. While this won’t sell millions of copies and make major money, it sure has set the motion for what you can expect from this extraordinary band. This is a perfect product of what a band can achieve in two years of exploring themselves.
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