Boisterous Celtic punk band Flogging Molly has been getting audiences drunkenly dancing with their unique blend of traditional Irish music and punk rock since 1997! Socially and politically charged, but with fun at the helm of every show, the band is energetic and disarming live, bringing chaos and joy to the stage!
Catch them on tour at a venue near you! Click through the links for tickets!
Irish-American seven-piece Celtic punk band Flogging Molly formed in Los Angeles in 1997. In the early to mid-1980s, Dublin-born frontman Dave King was the vocalist for the band Fastway, alongside guitarist "Fast" Eddie Clarke of Motörhead and bassist Pete Way of UFO. He then went on to front Kathmandu, which featured Mandy Meyer of Krokus on guitars.
Still signed to Epic Records, King began working on a solo record with the intention of incorporating a traditional Irish sound. After leaving the label, he met guitarist Ted Hutt, bassist Jeff Peters, drummer Paul Crowder and violin player Bridget Regan in 1993. They formed a band and began to play a mix of Irish traditional music and rock, performing weekly at a bar called Molly Malone’s. Hutt and Peters left due to their other band receiving a record deal and other members joined, forming Flogging Molly.
1997-2009: First albums
Flogging Molly made its recording debut in 1997 with the live album Alive Behind the Green Door, released on 26f Records. Their debut studio album, Swagger, charted on the Billboard 200 and was described by AllMusic as a combination of the "folk of the Pogues with an Oi! blast by way of the Dropkick Murphys".
The band’s 2002 album Drunken Lullabies also hit the Billboard 200 and has been certified gold by the RIAA. It also reached number eight on the Billboard Independent Albums chart.
Within a Mile of Home, the band’s third studio album, was released in September 2004 and reached number 20 on the Billboard 200, as well as topping the Independent Albums chart. In addition, it charted in both Belgium and Holland.
In March 2007, Flogging Molly released an exclusive EP through iTunes entitled Complete Control Sessions, featuring two new tracks, as well as acoustic versions of previously released songs. They followed in 2008 with Float, which was named as "one of the most important CDs of the year, if not the decade" by Alternative Press. The album reached number four on the Billboard 200, number one on the Independent Albums Chart, and number two on the Top Alternative Albums and Top Rock Albums charts. It launched the band’s first two charting singles: "Requiem for a Dying Song", which hit number 35 on the Billboard Modern Rock charts, and the album’s title track, which hit number 40.
A live DVD/CD set called Live at the Greek Theater was released in March 2010, capturing Flogging Molly's performance at the Greek Theatre on September 12, 2009.
2015-present: Salty Dog Cruises
From March 13 to 16, 2015, Flogging Molly began hosting a yearly Caribbean cruise, named the Salty Dog Cruise. The inaugural event featured shows by the band and many others, over three days leaving from Miami to Nassau and Great Stirrup Cay on the Norwegian Sky.
On March 10, 2016, the band released their first new material in five years, a single titled "The Hand of John L. Sullivan", which honors the Irish-American boxer of the same name. They embarked on their second Salty Dog Cruise from March 18 to 21 with Rancid, Fishbone, Frank Turner, Street Dogs, and The Tossers performing, among others.
The following year, the Enchantment of the Seas hosted the third annual cruise, leaving on March 10 to Coco Cay and Nassau, and coming back to Miami on March 13. NOFX, DeVotchKa, Less Than Jake, The English Beat, The Skatalites, The Bouncing Souls, Dylan Walshe, and many others joined them for the stint. Life Is Good, the sixth studio album by Flogging Molly, was released on June 2, 2017.
The line-up for the band’s 2018 cruise includes The Offspring, Buzzcocks, The Vandals, Lagwagon, and Mad Caddies, among others.