Went to the American Fleadh (pronounced "Flah", it's loosely translated from Gaelic as "gathering for music") this past weekend.
It was Black 47, The Saw Doctors, Eileen Ivers and the Immigrant Soul, The Hothouse Flowers, The Prodigals and Flogging Molly.
Larry Kirwin (the lead singer of Black 47) statements about the tour.
It was an outdoor venue and the sound was pretty good. The weather didn't cooperate for long. It was cloudy and overcast when we got there and later on, it started pouring rain. Other than the weather, the show was great.
The Prodigals played first and they sounded good. I wasn't familiar with them but they sounded good. After that was Eileen Ivers who played fantastic. She's a Celtic fiddler who plays a mixture of traditional Irish and contemporary rock 'n roll. I'm not too familiar with her stuff after Paddy-a-go-go, but they were great too. The Hothouse Flowers were up next and they were okay. Nothing superior but they were enjoyable.Then Black 47 played. They were the band we'd come to see and they were phenomenal. Unfortunately, it was a festival so they only played 7 or 8 songs but the ones they did play were fantastic. Then came the Saw Doctors who were also fantastic. They sounded great and belted out about 10 songs. I really enjoyed their set. Flogging Molly played last. I've heard them before but I'm not a huge fan. They are good and all but I'm just not into them. If it were up to me, Black 47 or the Saw Doctors would have played the headlining gig but it worked out fine.
The sound was fantastic and the bands were great. It was a VERY enjoyable night of Irish rock 'n roll. I expected short sets since there were so many bands playing but they did the best they could with the time they had. I had a great time.
I spoke with Larry Kirwin after his set. He was very excited about this tour. Once they are finished with the American Fleadh, they are going back out. They will be at The Beachcomber in Quincy MA on July 25th. I made him promise to play a song for me that night, since it's my birthday.
The tour continues through July 3rd, so if you're in the area it's well worth the money. See here for dates times and ticket info.
Article comments
1 - Sean Hackbarth
The tour will be at Milwaukee's Summerfest on June 30.