Flogging Molly in Basel - 29 August 2018

"Paddys Lament" immediately kickstarted the exuberant crowd, with Dave King leading the vocals and seamlessly changing instruments from acoustic guitar to bodhran to spoons. The crowd loved his every move, especially as he introduced his wife Bridget Regan to the foreground, after she had played a wicked violin throughout the night. Dave graciously thanked her for being his support and backbone.

Dennis Casey seemed to supernaturally bend his guitar as he filled the room with his blissful acoustics and backing vocals. Matt Hensley pulled a few acrobatic moves himself, on a stage that was burning up with songs and heat, as the crowd amassed at the front of the stage to absorb every bit of his accordion and backing vocals. Nathen Maxwell's bass belted through the rave and his lead vocal on "The Days We've Yet to Meet" penetrated the air. Robert Schmidt pulled out all the stops with his banjo, mandolin and backing vocals, and Mike Alonso basted the drums, percussion and added backing vocals to finsh off this team effort and satisify the crowd.

Admist the "melting" comments and flying beer cups, David King raised a glass to honor his mother, his inspiration for the album title "Life Is Good", representing a great mixture of upbeat songs, pushing through and back the hard times of the past and present. It was a pleasure to be a part of this packed-to-the-gills concert. The touching "Respect" tribute for Aretha Franklin and the sweet prose of "Happy Birthday" for Della's 8th birthday were nice touches also.

Even with all the mixture of music and stormy weather, it's obvious that the band's fan base is strong, and Flogging Molly will be back - the fans won't have it any other way! Final song "Crushed/Salty Dog" made me think someone had given out pogo sticks to the audience along with some last-minute moshing; all in good fun and then the 'Jig was Up'!

- Mary Collins

Setlist:

(No More) Paddy's Lament

The Hand of John L. Sullivan

Drunken Lullabies

The Likes of You Again

Swagger

The Days We've Yet to Meet

Requiem for a Dying Song

Life in a Tenement Square

Float

Black Friday Rule

Life Is Good

Rebels of the Sacred Heart

Devil's Dance Floor

If I Ever Leave This World Alive

The Seven Deadly Sins

Encore:

Respect (Aretha Franklin tribute)

Happy Birthday

Crushed (Hostile Nations), Salty Dog

More songs and videos by Flogging Molly

Listen to our interview with Flogging Molly's Robert (Bob) Schmidt here.