Flogging Molly "Alive Behind The Green Door" , unsigned LIVE album,review by Clite2
Lineup:
Dave King: vocals/acoustic guitar
Ted Hutt: electric guitar
Toby McCallum: mandolin
Jeff Peters: bass
Bridget Regan: Fiddle
George Schwindt: Drums
Intro:
Recorded live at their birthplace in Molly Malones, an Irish pub located in Los Angeles, California. Flogging Molly marks a true rock story where one starts small and rises unpredictably. This live album marks the beginning, even though the band lineup has changed. Dave states that this album acted as a fund raiser in order to raise money for a recording. Many of these songs were later recorded in their later albums and still played live to this day.
Flogging Molly is inarguably better when playing live rather then listening to a recording, however, this album does not fully give off the energetic vibe that the current Flogging Molly lineup would give. The current electric guitar player, Dennis Casey, has a more roaring and daring approach that may be responsible for most of the differences, you can hear Dennis play live in the “Whiskey on a Sunday” CD.
***This review will frequently compare the older version with the newer live version that Flogging Molly currently plays, so it will be based on Instrumentation***
Content:
1. Swagger: The opening tracks starts off with a slow rhythmic electric guitar pace which is the same beat for the rest of the song, only much faster. Unfortunately for this live album, the beginning of this track is pretty much the only time when you would clearly hear the mandolin playing. For the current line-up, the live version plays much faster and starts off with a pulse pounding drum intro, but both versions are much, much better then the recorded version found on their “Drunken Lullabies.”
2. Every Dog Has It's Day: This song features a heart throbbing bass line that makes this song sound 3-D, and a rhythm keeping drum work keeps pace. The bright fiddle playing is one of Bridget's best. Fiddle playing in this song is highly improvised. However the electric guitar is far overshadowed by the bass. “With the wind on Bridget's Crack!”
3. Selfish Man: Features Bridget's famous crying fiddle riff in the first few seconds on the song. Another song with an excellent bass line that effectively counters the rhythm. The electric guitar duo's with the fiddle to handle the high notes while the bass dominates the pounding low notes.
4. Never Met A Girl Like You Before: Features one of Dave's best vocal work. This song is clearly a Drum&Bass type of song, a definite head-bobber. Occasionally the electric guitar supports the fiddle. And i think we got to hear the Mandolin in the beginning another time!
5. Laura: This song is a definite fan favorite to be recorded in the new “Whiskey on a Sunday” album. The electric guitar played some mind melting riffs in the beginning with the vocals with the fiddle carrying most of the song towards the end. This is a song that would definitely grow on you.
6. If I Ever Leave This World Alive: This song tend to be many fan's absolute favorite song from Flogging Molly. The acoustic guitar by Dave is obvious in this song, with the emotional fiddle trailing the vocals. This song means a lot to Dave King, as in his friends , as said in the new documentary. Also features one of Flogging Molly's best electric guitar solos. “In a word don't shed a tear, I'll be here when it all gets weird.”
7. Black Friday Rule: Flogging Molly's epic tale told live. This song has the electric guitar playing with the fiddle for most of the time. This song, however, sounds much better played by the current lineup, where Bridget would speed up her fiddle playing by double, with Dave doing a stand-up act in the middle of the song while Dennis Casey (current electric guitar player) would shred the stage with his explosive guitar solo.
8. What Made Milwaukee Famous: Great drum rhythm with a catchy fiddle tune which follows the vocals. Fiddle playing in this song is also extremely folk/celtic like compared to the other songs. The bass sounds somewhat of a piano playing low notes, it works very well. This song is very catchy while listening to and you'll be singing along only after a few listens.
9. Between A Man And A Woman: Instrumentally this song sounds very similar to that of the last track. Very emotional fiddle playing countering and dueling the vocals this time, and leads to a very powerful fiddle solo near the end, followed by mind blowing high notes. This song is one of the most intense songs by Flogging Molly, and leads very well towards their next song.
10. Delilah: This is easily one of Flogging Molly's greatest songs. This song bleeds life with a mean, vengeful vocals and mean fiddling. Dave also does some fantastic vocal work that reminds me of Elvis! During live shows, people reach the edge of intensity during this song and they all chant: “Why Why WHY, Delilah.” with the song. This song truly cannot be described in words and must be listened to entirely.
(+'s)
Flogging Molly's first work ought to have a listen to.
Contains some of the dripping live energy that all Flogging Molly fans search for.
Delilah may change your life.
(-'s)
Does not contain all the energy that the current Flogging Molly lineup may offer.
The mandolin is almost completely shunt.
Black Friday Rule seems watered down compared to a more recent live version.
Notes:
This album has been released twice, first starting as their fund raiser. And then it was re-released and mass produced when Flogging Molly gained immense popularity worldwide. The two different versions have content that are identical, the only difference is the printing font on the new version is easier to read, while the old one features a type-writer font.
Also some people claim the title “Alive Behind the Green Door” came from a naughty film called “Behind a Green Door” however, the green door might have meant the green door which is the back door to the Molly Malones pub.
4/5
Thanks for reading.
