The Mahones are not strictly speaking an Irish band, as they're based in Canada. Furthermore, they don't play traditional Irish music. They're nevertheless forever connected to St. Patrick's Day for me, as that's when I first saw them play: March 17, 2010 at O’Ceallaigh's pub in Groningen, followed by a performance at the Queen's Day Festival a few days later. They made a great noise and led us into a night of fun and drunken singalongs. I left the pub exhilarated and holding this CD, a compilation that the band was selling at their gigs at the time. Apparently St. Patrick's Day (1990) also marks the band's birthday, an initially one-off collaboration that has been going on for nigh on 30 years. This makes them one of the progenitors of Celtic Punk, obviously following on the footsteps of The Pogues but a few years older than the genre's most famous bands like Dropkick Murphys and Flogging Molly. The label Celtic Punk somehow sums their sound up: Irish folk played very loud, with punk rock speed and attitude. Sloppy punk versions of folk evergreens "The Irish Rover" and "Whiskey In The Jar" are mixed with original band material. The instrumentation comes from both worlds, but it's when the accordion and tin whistle take the upper hand that they channel the spirit of The Pogues ("Paint the Town Red", "Down the Boozer", "Celtic Pride", ballads "Streets of New York" and "London"). These songs are among my favorites, while the noisier punk tunes are either hit ("Drunken Lazy Bastard", "Shake Hands with the Devil", "Is This Bar Open Til' Tomorrow") or miss ("Going Back to Dublin"). As a whole this CD makes for a fine celebration of Irish Punk, but it doesn't even come close to the live experience.
**** for Drunken Lazy Bastard, Paint the Town Red, Across the U.S.A., Shake Hands with the Devil, Down the Boozer
*** for Queen and Tequila, Whiskey Devil, A Drunken Night in Dublin, Streets of New York, Celtic Pride, London, Is This Bar Open Til' Tomorrow, Drunken Lazy Bastard (Live Version)
** for The Amsterdam Song, The Irish Rover, Going Back to Dublin, Whiskey in the Jar
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