In The Same Old Mess Singing Drunken Lullabies

Guinness Presents the Green 17 Tour: 17 cities celebrating the revelry of St. Patrick's Day, featuring Flogging Molly.
The Rolling Blackouts/Scotch Greens/Flogging Molly//Nokia Theatre//2/16/06

When I found out that advance tix were going onsale, I emailed: Are we there? only because I was hoping to hear a no. But no. The adv tix are thru Musictoday, as they were last year, so diehard fans could get first shot at 'em. Diehard fan? Well, that's me. Of course there was only 1 shipping option, 2-Day FedEx or something and it cost $11.50 to ship. For Spirit, which never sold out in advance, thereby wasting my $11.50. This time around it was $9.50 for shipping, a flat rate even if we bought 2 tix at once, so that sorta offset the shipping charges. Still, spending $25 on a ticket is it for me this year. No Dropkick Murphys, if they come around. Well, depending on who the opening act are and where it is. But most likely no.

I was getting antsy wondering who the opening acts were, because hopefully that'll make it all worthwhile. The Dropkicks are also playing the Nokia, with Sick Of It All, Horrorpops, and The Tossers. I'm not spending $25 for Horrorpops and The Tossers, meh. And I don't have the money to stand in the balcony at a show. Every day I was on Flogging Molly's site, hoping the opening acts would be posted so I'd know what I'm getting myself into. Then I thought that it'll be on their Myspace page. The Briggs are playing the A/A Black 17 show in Jersey. Thank God, because I didn't like them. All we need is another pirate-theme punk band. And playing a gig w/Flogging Molly. Yay. So I lucked out there. Re: the guy whose profile pic shows him dressed in a green T-shirt, posing with a can of Guinness in one hand and a box of Lucky Charms: I guess Oregon is a very sarcastic place. I didn't think it would be. Good thing I don't live there b/c I'd never be able to attain/maintain that level of sarcasm.

When I saw The Scotch Greens listed, I could pretty much guess what they sound like. I looked the album up on Innerpunk. They cover If I Should Fall From Grace. The Onion had this to say re: the album: Scotch Greens carries on the recent tradition of high-energy rock bands adding trad strains for the sake of bewitching teenyboppers who've never heard a mandolin sound cool before....lacks The Pogues' authentic swagger and subtlety.... But the review also said such things like "delightfully disreputable" and "tacky in the best possible way" so there is hope. I hope.

But when I checked FM's website that Monday, they have an eCard posted. When you play it, this is what it says: St. Patrick's Day may be a couple of months away, but for Flogging Molly the festivities start February 4th.... It's nice that they posted it once the tour started, a couple of weeks before St. Pat's. This is what the last screen said: The unique "two tours in one" approach allows Flogging Molly to take care of their Warped Tour-bred punk rock fans via the a/a Black 17 tour, and their more mature and Irish fans with the Guinness sponsored, 21+ Green 17 tour. What the fuck. That just really pisses me off. I'm an immature, 21+ Jewish punk rock fan, so where does that leave me? It's like they're saying punk rockers can't be "mature" or Irish. Or 21+. Or maturity (read: drinking age)=Irish. I was over 21 when I went to the Warped Tour. And I know a lot of Irish people older than me who are very immature. And of course the Irish fans would only be interested in the Guinness-sponsored show. More mature and Irish. What if there are Irish people over 21 who can't get from Sayerville, NJ to NYC? From NYC to NJ? Going to both? More mature fans, my ass. I didn't want to go after I saw that. And then I worried that Rolling Blackouts would also be drunk rock. (I forget which Irish band's slogan actually is Drunk Rock.) Believe it or not, even tho I'm one of Flogging Molly's more mature fans I want to hear some punk rock. The other band on the Jersey show is The Dead Pets. Which, like Dogs Die In Hot Cars, is not an acceptable band name. So at least I lucked out there. Wait, that's not very mature of me. I'm sorry.

But I like the line from the review in the Voice: Don't worry if you forget the lyrics because the fans are there in full force, shouting along. Something like that. The Onion: One of few groups to find a true fusion betw punk energy and Irish drinking music...FM struck the balance almost perfectly w/2002's Drunken Lullabies.... Actually, I thought they struck it almost perfectly w/2000's Swagger and 2002's DL was more of the same, but if it ain't broke don't fix it. But what the hell do I know? I was, after all, not hired as a freelance music writer. Oh, right. More mature. Sorry. They do say that the tour is sponsored by a certain Irish beer that tastes like breakfast.

Still.

Still, there is probably no way to put into words the feeling I got when I was at Spirit, standing on the base of that pillar and looking at all those heads jumping up and down all through the show. It's just incredible. And as I got to the line, I worried if a 21+ show meant that there'd be big guys landing on my head instead of light teenagers. I was #4 in line, with a girl in an Alkaline Trio zipper hoodie at the head and right after I got on line, a guy in a Warped Tour hoodie got in line behind me. I thought this was supposed to be the more mature crowd. Dennis and Bridget came out to look at the marquee and take pix. As if they've never seen a marquee that said Flogging Molly before. Then George came out to join them and they started gawking again. It was a boring wait, even though the doors were at 6. I wanted to bring a book but was afraid I'd get separated from it. The guy in front of me went to the show in Philly but couldn't remember anything about the opening bands. Didn't even know which show that was, the A/A bands or this one, that he couldn't remember.

Inside, it's an honest-to-God venue and I was afraid to buy pins before staking out a claim to the front because people were coming in. But I did because I didn't want to stand around later after the show. Shane was playing when I left and when I got back, I saw the mezzanine level had a railing and then the seated area started, like different tiers in Shea. From the mezzanine you can still see everything but there'd be no bodies on your head. It's a nice place, but kinda renders Roseland and Hammerstein obsolete. I considered moving my coat back to the mezzanine and even tried out my zoom, but figured the pix would come out all grainy and besides, it's just Flogging Molly. What could go wrong? I've stood in the pit before. But just think! This would be great for the Dropkicks! On second thought, maybe I'll go.

Back up front, the girl in the Alkaline Trio hoodie and the man who was in front of me have struck up a conversation since they've seen each other @ FM shows before. She complained of all the $ she dropped that day, commuting in from CT, buying merch for her boyfriend's bday, and DKM tix. And the guy peels off a 50 and hands it to her. I love old men. They talk to each other primarily but I'm kinda included in the convo, since we're all there and bored and fans of the same band so why not. Except he's mainly talking to the other girl and it's so obvious that I'm giving off the over 25 stinkvibes. Funny, I used to hate it when weird old married guys would start up w/me @ shows and now that they won't...it's not that I hate it or miss it, but it's a funny phenomenon. So as we waited for the show and the crowd to come and the place to fill up I heard all about how Dierdre's a kinky 22-yr-old preschool teacher and her 19-yr-old boyfriend's afraid of her, John went to Iona and all the nuns were out & out lesbians, and we're lined up against the front barricade and there are people lined up against the mezzanine railing like a firing squad and who's the shooter and who's being shot? They go out to get drinks but John says they're giving him a hard time at the bar and would I get drinks for them? I don't want to be rude, since he did promise me $$$ for my pix, but I did not stand on line all this time just to be their waitress. Stupid me, get the money upfront. I'll never learn. He said he'd give me triple what it costs (nothing like pressure) and we had to ask just about everyone up front for a pen. And then I realize that I left the new camera battery home. I just cannot win. So to be nice I begrudgingly agree. I thought it was pretty obvious that I didn't want to go and since he's spending all his time talking to the other girl I didn't really want to go. But he gives their drink order and then said, "Oh, did you want something, too?" Yeah, thanx for asking. I really want to stand in a mosh pit and feel my bladder about to burst. As far as I could tell, there was only 1 Black 47 shirt there. The couple to my left were at an A/A show and said they were being kicked in the head all nite long. Yeah, light people crowd surfing will do that to ya. That one was sold out, as is/was the Jersey show, all parents and kids. If this show were A/A, it probably would've sold out as well.

Rolling Blackouts probably got on the bill due to their name alone. 70s rock from Cali that wishes it was from Ludlow. Boring. Mustaches, chest hair, chains, and sneakers. The Scotch Greens? Just swap out FM's Irish riffs for shitkicker riffs and there you go. They covered Janie Jones and although they sped it up a bit, it kinda lost something along the way. They didn't sound like The Pogues at all--not that that's good or bad, I'm just sayin'. But the mandolin did sound pretty cool when it was used to play a guitar.

The stage is huge and the lighting great during the set change. Actual rafters and girders and stuff hanging from the ceiling and I felt like I was right up front at like MSG or something. I was hoping the lighting would stay that way for FM, because all of them always wear black and it's hard to take pix. And sometimes they end up in the dark spots off to the side. This is the problem with a 7-member band, I guess. John was giving me a hard time about my coat all nite, telling me to check it because it's going to get messed up. I tried to put it behind the barricade but then he said that they put the surfers down right where I put it. So I put it at my feet again and he picked it up. Look, I'm not losing my spot or waiting on that line after the show. And if I really did care, I'd've checked it. So big deal, I have to take it to the cleaners in the spring, anyway. Then I started getting hungry.

For someone who wanted copies of the pix, John was fucking jumping up and down like crazy and I couldn't take pix at first with the floor shaking. I moved to my left and the crowd held me steady. A girl behind me started yelling that she was getting hurt. Well, who told you to move up? I got hit with a blast of hot air that the crowd created. Every time a bouncer jockeyed into position in front of me, I ducked. Yeah, that probably makes me a wuss but I don't care. John was behind Dierdre, protecting her, (yeah, right), hands on either side. Then I had a guy behind me. It was kind of weird, but he maintained his distance, even tho his hands were on either side of me, and if he wants to have a crowd pounding his ass, let him. I have a bad back. At one point he started saying something to me but I couldn't hear him and all I could do was smile & nod. Or maybe he was just singing along. Usually the slow songs are the ones where you change film, but of course there was someone overhead during even the tin whistle-heavy ballad. I'm sorry, but you have to be a really big pussy to crowd surf to a ballad. It was really hard to scream on an empty stomach. Oh, yeah, and Flogging Molly played some songs and we screamed along. Then some other girl behind me kept apologizing for bumping into me. I was like, shut up already. Sorry, sorry, sorry, every other minute. Then she tells me her name and says she feels like she knows me since she's been humping me all nite. Y'know, there is something to standing up front--you can't get pushed into anyone else. No real getting kicked in the head b/c the bouncers were fishing out the heavy people before they really got over me, and I kept ducking. They encored with The Wrong Company and Delilah ("You bitch! You slut! You whore!"), complete with trumpet solo.

A setlist came my way but the guy who was behind me grabbed it. I grabbed him by the collar, but he got loose. Which is probably a good thing, b/c then I'd have to wait around to get it signed and I think I'm getting to old for that stuff. On the escalator up (yes, there's actually an escalator in this place) I turn around and start walking down because there's Xris. I keep seeing him at all these unpunk shows, like this one and the Donnas. Streetside, we start talking and I tell him that I'm considering going to the Dropkicks. He says he wants to go, too, and I'm cursing myself because I didn't want to go in the 1st place. Shut up! That's $25! And you didn't like Warrior's Code anyway. So now I hafta go because I don't want to let him down! Then I find myself saying stupid things about how I'm going to get tix on Saturday. So that's $50 I have to lay out! He said the show made him think of The Spunk Lads. So I reminded him that he still owes me a DVD of their Manitoba's show. Which he said would be easier to get to me since he didn't have to wait for some editor to work on it, as he had to w/Cracktober Riot. Yeah, if it's that easy to make how come I've been reminding him about it for the past 3 1/2 years?

The street team outside was giving out Tossers samplers. ...influenced by The Pogues in more than a few ways, but The Tossers play their own brand of Irish music loaded with attitude and alcohol. See, I was right: all The Devil's Advocates really needed to make it big were 3 more guys in the band, drinking songs, and a song about how much it sucks once the booze runs out. The street team had a Stackers CD in their box as well. After that I had to get something to eat. I planned on spending way too much $ at whatever salad bar deli I passed 1st, instead I passed that Europa Cafe 1st and spent way too much $ on a sandwich. It tasted like money, let me tell you. And of course, lest we think that something actually works out in my life or that people are nice about pix, that a-hole hasn't even responded about the $ he owes me. And I sent a batch of pix to the website but it got bounced back--permanent fatal errors. Oh, yeah. And Bridget totally drinks Starbucks.