My belt is to long, my hair to short and gray, I have no tattoo or body piercing. These things normally keep me away from the racks where this band is kept being more at home in Easy Listening, Jazz, Classical, Folk or Country. My CD collection has a strong Irish section. One side of my family came to America during The Great Hunger; the other came after the Easter Rebellion. Irish music and lore is part of the family and in the blood. The Clancy Brothers, The Irish Rovers, The Dubliners, The Chieftains and The Coors have all drawn on and contributed to the music of Ireland. These contributions have produced an electric lively interesting sound. Flogging Molly is building on this heritage and expanding it. These guys are good! They have a sound that is a combination of Irish music and punk rock that attracts and beguiles. My introduction was a ring tone on my son's phone but they appeal to any student of Irish music. This is a good introduction or addition to your CD collection with several strong tracks. Screaming at the Wailing Wall, Tomorrow Comes a Day too Soon and Don't Let Me Die Still Wondering are ones I liked. This is my first CD but it will not be my last.

After the harder-edged sound of DRUNKEN LULLABIES, this album returns to the softer-edged and more tuneful sound of SWAGGER. There are some tunes that drag a bit--tracks 4 and 5 are kind of blah, for instance--but track 7, "Tobacco Island," is worth the price of the CD all by itself (it may be the new "Black Friday Rule"), and "Tomorrow Comes a Day Too Soon" and "Within a Mile of Home" are impossible to sit still through. Almost as good as the first one. Flogging Molly proves they've still got it.

Alright. Now I'm a die-hard metal fan.. Opeth, Blind Guardian, Iced Earth, Megadeth and everything inbetween. But this album kicks serious ass. I'm a huge Flogging Molly fan. I've seen Flogging Molly described as punk but honestly, I dont see the resemblance... reminds me more of an Irish-washed version of The Who (their earlier stuff). If more punk was played like this, the world would be a better place. Progressivly, the band has done nothing but get better. Swagger was great and had some absolutly dynamite tracks on it. Drunken Lullabies was a massive step foreward as far as the music and feeling is concerned. Within a Mile of Home only gets better from that. From start to finish this song is nothing but a full-on romp through fiddle laiden music, complete with perfectally suiting vocals. There are a few slow songs, though that dosnt necissarily mean they are any lesser of songs. Though, keeping in a running track, the best songs are the more "Pirate" themed songs (Queen Anns Revenge, Seven Deadly Sins) IMO. For anyone reading this, pondering whether or not to buy this album I think I speak for any FM fan when I say DO IT IMMEDIATLY. Classic rock, Irish punk and a fiddle never sounded any better.

When first listening to this album, many first reactions may be to say that this isn't as good as Swagger or Drunken Lullabies. I thought the same way. But then, after going through the CD several times, I found myself coming back to this one over and over, far beyond Drunken Lullabies. Overall, the intrumentation is phenominal, far beyond the other two albums. The melodies range from soft and soothing (Wanderlust, To Youth) to drunken lullabies style awsome (Tobacco Island, Seven Deadly Sins) to haunting and emotinally chilling (Spoken Wheel, With a Wonder and a Wild Desire). Overall, an intense and amazing album.

Track by Track:

1. Screaming at the Wailing Wall - 8/10 - Not the best opening, although it has its moments. Like I said above, the medoly is very nice, and clearly shows that instrumentation in this album is spot on. I don't agree with the lyrics too much (they focus on politics) but overall, its a pretty decent opening.

2. Seven Deadly Sins - 10/10 - Amazing. Astounding. One of the best flogging molly songs ever. EVER! It got me hooked with its awsome pirate accents, crazy fiddling, and overall upbeat coolness. If you're reading this, you've probably heard this song already, so you know what I'm talking about! Awsome!

3. Factory Girls - 7/10 - The weakest song on the album, and yet it gets a 7 because its not that bad. It has a nice realxing coutnry feel to it, which is kind of different, considering we just had the crazy Seven Deadly Sins. There's a guest singer, and she's not bad, alhtough I perfer Dave King's vocals. Overall, its not a bad song, but not as memorable as some of the other ones.

4. To Youth - 9.5/10 - Another awesome song, with some nice sounding guitar, adnd a very lovely flute. Its fast paced, yet not as harsh as Seven Deadly sins or some of the Drunken Lullabies stuff, and it has a beautifuly melodic ending. "Goodbye to my love! My sweet Roisin Dubh! Goodbye now until we meet again!" To this day I don't know what the phrase roisin dubh means, but the song still is awesome.

5. Whistles the Wind - 9/10 - Generally, I don't like ballads very much, but this is so musically well done, and so brilliantly put together, that I can't give it any lower than a 9. Perhaps even 9 isn't doing it justice, but I do have a bias against slow songs, especially sad ones. Yet despite the slightly somber lyrics, the song has a beautiful feel, with the violin being extremely well played. Overall, great song, great lyrics, that depsite the somber mood, make you think.

6. The Light of a Fading Star - 9/10 - Again, another great song. Its not exactly a fast song, but its not whistles the wind either, and so its hard to classify. THe chorus is memorable, if only because of Dave's perfect voice. Dave King's voice really shines above all else here and when he bellows the chorus right in the beginning, you can tell this is a treat. Guitar dominates much of the song as well, and gives it this different adn unique feel from much of the rest of the album.

7. Tobacco Island - 10/10 - Another gem, almost as good as Seven Deadly sins. It has a great set of lyrics talking about Cromwell and how the Irish got screwed by the English. The lyrics are dripping with sinister irony, yet the song is upbeat and awesome, with a killer fiddle and an amazing instrumental at the end. One of the best on the album.

8. The Wrong Company - 8/10 - I know, I know, its barely even a song. It's kind of filler, but I love the lyrics. Its really just a vocal solo that lasts 40 seconds, but I like it better than the previous vocal solo. The lyrics are catchy, and funny. I always listen to it, simply because its there, its quick, and funny.

9. Tomorrow Comes a Day Too Soon - 10/10 - Yes, another 10, this song as a brilliant violin and accordian combination, and has a nice upbeat catchy tune with a cool chorus. There's not much to say about this song, except that its sooo cool for its optimismstic lyrics, happy tune, and overall, its a cheery listen.

10. The Queen Anne's Revenge - 8.5/10 - This one's different, and has reminders of Cruel Mistress in it. At first, the change of singer may startle you, but overall, its a good song, with a very priate feel to it, and some great instruemntals. Again, I perfer Dave King's voice, but this far exceeds Factory Girls, and has a very good chorus.

11. The Wanderlust - 9.5/10 - Similar to To Youth for its soft and gentle melody, yet still being fast paced. THe chorus is very memorable, and I always have a fondness for this songs lyrics, which talk of a couple that split up long ago, with Dave King's voice reminicing on the good times. "So Raise a cheer, to those forgotten yeaaaaaaars, back to the corner, where we went our seperate wayyyyyyyys!" Great song!

12. Within a Mile of Home - 10/10 - Yesiree, another 10. This is very similar to Tomorrow Comes a Day too Soon, and just as aweosme. A little more reflective, not as optmistic, but still, great lyrics, with a great uplifting and upbeat melody and chorus. I always find myself singing the chorus in random places, hehe. Great song.

13. The Spoken Wheel - 8/10 - The strange and sometimes hated song, its called filler a lot. The opening is haunting and beautiful, with Dave King singing a sad song about when he will die. The ending is more optimistic, with a change in pace/melody that leads brilliantly into the next song, which is almost like a continuation. However, its hte middle that kills this song. THis could have easily gotten a 9, 9.5, had it not been for the most obnoxiously horrible guest singer who sings a verse in the middle. The voice is so mindnumbingly bad, it brings in memories of William Hung from AMerican IDol. ARgH! Drives me nuts because its such a good song, but alas, ruined by the inclusion of that bad singer.

14. WIth a Wonder and a Wild Desire - 9.5/10 - This is basically a contiuation of the previous song, set to a fast (very, very fast) pace, but with similar lyrics/melodies. Its a great song, with an amazing violin solo. Very memorable, and if listened in conjunction wiht the Spoken WHeel (if you can get past that bad singer), the two make for an incredible combination.

15. DOn't let me Die Still Wondering - 9/10 - Again, ballads never appealed to me, yet this one is haunting and brilliant, with a great sound of insturments in the background, and Dave's amazing voice taking center stage with lyrics that really make you think. He talks about dying and getting old, and its really something unique. Most bands are so young, that this kind of point of view doesn't come out, yet Dave King sings this truly unique tune. Amazing, and with a very good melody line and chorus.

So there you have it. One of the best albums ever created. Superior to the other flogging MOlly albums, and clearly shows that FLogging Molly has improved and set themselves as one of the most unique and amazing bands ever formed. So "raise a cheer" to Flogging Molly, "my Roisin Dubh" who certainly will never be a "fading star."

While many comment on what a great live band Flogging Molly is, few note what great songwriters they are. This is the third album filled with instantly memorable tunes and thoughtful and moving lyrics. Though it is hard not to jump around listening to these guys, I recommend one listen while reading the lyric sheet. As others have noted, this album is a bit more varied than the first two efforts, but every cut is a winner. I don't know who can match them as musicians these days. The rhythm section is remarkably versatile. Oh, and the duet with Lucinda Williams is great. An amazing band that deserves a wider audience than I think they have.