When you tour as hard as the soulfully, raucous Irish-American rock band Flogging Molly does, down time is rare and brief. Suitcases never have long to collect dust in the closet.
What would you expect from the seven-member band known for its marathon tours?
Flogging Molly has played close to 100 shows a year since 2000. In between headline shows and supporting gigs, the band has been a headliner at such well-known festivals and on the popular stages at: Coachella, Vans Warped, SXSW, Lollapalooza, Bumbershoot and Austin City Limits, in the US; Wiesen in Austria, Roskildes Festival in Denmark, Pukkelpop in Belgium, Hultsfred in Sweden, Open Air Gampel in Switzerland, The Reading Festival in the UK, Pink Pop in the Netherlands, , Highfield in Germany, Fete du Bruit in France, Rockwave in Greece, B’estfest in Romania, Prague City in the Czech Republic, Rockin IDRho in Italy, T-Mobile In Music in Croatia and Azhagar Jam in Japan.
And that’s just the past two years.
For Flogging Molly members, life on the tour road, as it is for many bands, is rigorous and tiring with a lot of down time traveling. And yet the feeling is exhilarating when its members hit the countless stages across the globe, feeling the rush of cheers and instant adulation of teaming masses which spans all ages.
The point is this that this is one rolling stone that gathers no moss no matter how Irish green it appears. Where the road has withered away many a strong band, FM’s close-knit septet has persevered for close to 15 years and is still thriving as its fan base grows.
The band is now beginning its eighth annual Green 17 Tour which celebrates what else but the greenest of all holidays, St. Paddy’s Day. While the band played at Nautica last summer, its new tour makes its NE Ohio stop at Cleveland’s House of Blues this Sunday, where it played two years ago.
On the rare moments of rest and reflection, the band members recuperate, but are never far from planning the next tour. Such was the case for FM bassist Nathen Maxwell prior to the new tour start.
“We have toured really hard for a long time, for over a decade. It is nice this year that we won’t have to kill ourselves as hard,” he admits, but quickly adds about the Green 17, “It is nice to have a scheduled tour you can count on every year, though.
“The hardest part of the job is being apart from family. I have been home for nearly two months which is unheard of, and it is nice to have some time off.”
In past years, the West Coast has been the frequent rallying point prior to venturing out into the tour world. The band now will meet just prior to hitting the road in Detroit, close to the home of founder, singer and ring leader Dave King and his wife, fiddle player Bridgette Regan.
Maybe one of the links to their congeniality and cohesiveness is the band members do live far apart.
When not in Detroit, King and Regan make their European home in County Wexford, Ireland, near King’s hometown of Beggar’s Bush in Dublin. Guitarist Dennis Casey lives in Long Island, NY, Drummer George Schwindt lives in Columbus OH, accordion player Matt Hensley lives in San Diego, Banjo/Guitarist Bob Schmidt lives in Boulder, CO and Maxwell lives in Denver CO.
Maxwell claims that while living apart does allow for some healthy distance after long tours together, it really is about more than a balance of time together and apart that makes this band tick.
“It’s definitely the chemistry, and that chemistry starts with Dave King who had a vision from the beginning to be the best band in the world,” the Southern California native credits. “I think in the beginning he envisioned us playing in front of vast crowds.”
When it is time to get back on the road in front of those sold out crowds, Flogging Molly has the seemingly unique problem of trying to fit its seven members on stages where there is room enough for everyone to let loose and play by emotion and King’s grand plan of making no two shows the same.
For Maxwell that is not a problem necessarily.
“I do my own thing,” he acknowledges. “I consider my playing pretty simply. There are so many high-end instruments, and I’ve got my own range there. When we are on stage, I can stomp around with my eyes close and I might step on toes anyways.”
That is the magic of Flogging Molly, we never really had to think about it, or arrange it. When we got in a room, it just kind of happened, just intuitively knew what to play.”
And while the band looks to play a balance of songs from its five studio albums, on this 22-stop tour Speed of Darkness will probably get a fair amount of playing time, as is the latest effort coming out in 2011.
The album which reached #9 on the Billboard Album chart and #3 on its Alt Rock chart, took the band in a slightly more serious direction, than the frolicking tracks found on early efforts, discussion of the recessionary and state of the union. When bands like The Clash and U2 covered similar scenarios in the UK and Ireland, some critics complained they were becoming preachy. Is Flogging Molly feeling they are seen this way?
“In life you go through phases, and our music reflects that,” states Maxwell. “We’ve always been the same people with the same outlook, and I hear it in all the albums. The same social believes and leanings. And yeah, Speed of Darkness, it did seem to be a little bit more obvious. We just have to be honest at that moment and at the time, that was what we were feeling and that is what we were seeing and going through.”
As for the band’s growing success with fans and rankings on the charts, Maxwell feels accomplished but cautious.
“Once you get a taste of it. … Float did really well, and it went to Number four on the Billboard album charts (Speed of Darkness was peaked at Number nine and within a Mile of Home 20). It is cool, but that can’t be your motivation. If you look at the music on the charts, it’s a complete different thing.
“It’s not what we’re really doing. Sometimes the cream definitely rises to the top. But you have to be into music for yourself, first. And then if other people dig it, that’s great.”
And Maxwell is into the music – Flogging Molly’s and his own.
One of the other evolving components of Maxwell‘s musical career has been a side project. For the past 10 years, he has been developing and writing songs for his creation. Where Maxwell brings punk sensibilities to FM, The Original Bunny Gang, speaks more to his ska and reggae influences. And from the very beginning Maxwell was given the endorsement of King to speak his own voice through OBG when FM was not active.
“It felt really good,” Maxwell recalled of this show of support. “That’s the way it should be. To know my dear friend, someone I respect, who felt it was a good idea – it felt tremendous. You agree with someone on something that’s crucial. Dave’s my brother and he been nothing but supportive of the Bunny Gang. I feel a total sense of freedom.”
The Original Bunny Gang consist of Maxwell on rhythm guitar, Mike Perlata on bass, newcomer Nat Nelson on guitar and Maxwell Vision, Maxwell’s father on drums. It was Vision who first introduced his at the time 17-year-old son to the fledgling band that would become FM back in 1997.
“It is a unique thing; it’s great. I feel a connection with him pretty naturally. I tell him he’s in the band, not because he is my father, but because he’s a fantastic drummer.”
So committed to this band are the OBG members, which has performed together for four years on long weekend off from FM, they have all moved to Maxwell’s new hometown of Denver.
It was during studio time on the critically and fan acclaimed Float King first heard some of the collection of Maxwell songs that would eventually become White Rabbit, the band’s first studio effort released in 2009 on FM’s longtime business partners at Side One Dummy. Even FM’s Hensley laid down concertina sounds for the studio recordings.
Maxwell translates songs like “Working for the Man” and “By Your Side” that have a clean reggae sound and lyrical simplicity, more reminiscent of Bob Marley. Maxwell has a voice that is somewhat like that of Jack Johnson only more natural sounding and not forced, and more from the heart.
In FM circles, fans and press, Maxwell announced” All I’ve got is music; I’ve got no plan B no wealthy family members and no savings, but, I have these songs and this music I have been wanting to do for a decade.”
And so now OBG is more than a hobby for Maxwell. And the band recorded demos recently at Silo sound Studio, owned by John Macy of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band.
Once the first leg of this year’s FM tour is in the books, the OBG will record again, using Ted Hutt former FM member and longtime FM producer with Side One Dummy, FM’s longtime label until creating its own label, Borstal Records for Speed of Sound.
Back to Flogging Molly, the band has even gained its first label mate, longtime opening act The Drowning Men from San Deigo. “We’re excited about that release upcoming the soonest.”
With FM hitting the trails of America, and OBG in the flanks, Maxwell has a full plate. With a wife and three daughters, he is living the American dream, his way and on his terms as are the other half-dozen members of the band. At the end of the day this is what Maxwell wants his legacy to be.
“That I stuck to my guns, and that I dedicated my life to something I believed in, and made it work, even though it was a big sacrifice being gone a lot, missing birthdays and holidays. I hope that they can appreciate why I did it and that it inspires them to live their lives to the fullest.”
Flogging Molly is performing at the House of Blues on February 19.
