If you know me you probably know that my music interests vary greatly.  If you know me well you probably know that Irish folk/punk makes up a great deal of the music I love.  As a result, one of my favorite bands is known as Flogging Molly - an LA-based Irish “punk” band fronted by Dublin-native Dave King.  Well, they recently released a live album called “Flogging Molly: Live at the Greek Theatre,” and I must admit it’s an amazing accomplishment.

If you purchase the “Live at the Greek” box set you get 2 CD’s including the entire performance as well as a DVD with the video from the concert, including some bonus material.  All this can be had for only $13.  Because I’m a fan of theirs and tend to check their website every now-and-then I was able to get in early with a pre-order which included a Flogging Molly t-shirt.  So I got a shirt, a DVD and a whole live album for only $13.  Not a bad deal in my opinion!

That’s only the start though.  Their performance is a great mix of new and old material played to a loyal crowd of Flogging Molly fans, and if you’re a fan you’d love it.  However, in the same week as I received my copy, two Flogging Molly songs became available on the new “Rock Band Network” initiative for the Rock Band game platform.  The songs are “Requiem for a Dying Song” from Flogging Molly’s latest album titled “Float,” and a live performance of “Drunken Lullabies” taken from the “Live at the Greek Theatre” performance itself.  If you’re a fan of the Rock Band games and especially if you’re a fan of Flogging Molly or Irish music in general, you MUST purchase these songs.

I’ve been playing Rock Band for some time and I always somewhat joked about there being a “Folk Band” or “Folk Hero” game which included some of my favorite Irish songs.  Sure, there has been the occasional foray into the genre previously with music from the likes of Dropkick Murphys and Bob Dylan, but I’d love to get a full game dedicated to one of my favorite musical styles.  That may be a pipe-dream, but I’m hoping that if Flogging Molly gets enough love via Rock Band Network they’ll release more songs in the future, and possibly other folk acts will see a potential in the medium.

So please, if only to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, pick up the two Flogging Molly songs on Rock Band Network and have fun with them!  They’re both a good time and you’ll be supporting a worthy cause. :)