Texas prides itself on its bigger-than-big lifestyle, and as such, it takes a lot to impress a Texan.
But when the musicians of Cutthroat Shamrock came down on an Austin bar with the full fury of their East Tennessee-influenced Celtic punk experience, even the Lone Star’s high bar was exceeded, said founder/co-lead vocalist Ben Whitehead.
“Everything is bigger in Texas, and Texas is a really proud state,” he said. “When five Tennessee boys showed up and drank them out of whiskey, the whole place went nuts.”
Over time, bass, percussion and drums joined the Cutthroat Shamrock lineup, but the core of the band has always been Whitehead and Derek McRotten, whose pumped-up ballads and rousing drinking songs call to mind contemporary Irish rockers like Flogging Molly and The Pogues.
For the last seven years, they’ve been taking stages night after night to prove to bars from Johnson City to San Francisco that March 17 isn’t the only night to fill a venue with energetic Celtic rock.
“Just about any place we’ve played in the past, it doesn’t matter if it’s St. Patrick’s Day or a Monday night or a Wednesday night or whatever,” Whitehead said. “They know that when we come knocking at the door, we bring the party with us, so they let us in.”
Last year, Shamrock took to the road for 110 dates from the West Coast to the Northeast. This year, the band is focusing its touring to strengthen its presence in its home region, Whitehead said.
Sunday, the bandmates will take the stage at JJ’s Bohemia alongside New Orleans-based Cajun folk/punk band The Zydepunks.
Even if St. Patrick’s Day has come and gone, sometimes, a good name is enough to get people in the door, Whitehead said.
“We’ve drawn some crowds just because of (that),” he said. “When they get in and hear the music, they stick around. It’s like giving a book a good title.”
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* Read reviews of recently released CDs.
RELATED LINKS
http://www.myspace.com/cutthroatshamrock
Contributed Photo
Cutthroat Shamrock are, from left, Derek McRotten (vocals/plectrum instruments), Johnny Hyena (percussion), Guido (vocals/standup bass), Ben Whitehead (vocals/plectrum instruments) and Suavo (drums).
IF YOU GO
* What: Cutthroat Shamrock and Zydepunks.
* When: 10 p.m. Sunday.
* Where: JJ’s Bohemia, 231 M.L. King Blvd.
* Admission: $5.
* Phone: 266-1400.
* Venue Web site: www.myspace.com/jjsbohemia.
* Related links at fyi.timesfreepress.com.
DISCOGRAPHY
* 2006: “Cutthroat Shamrock”
* 2007: “The Wake”
* 2009: “Blood, Rust, Whiskey”
WHAT’S NEXT
Cutthroat Shamrock co-lead vocalist Ben Whitehead said the band has been working on its fourth album since the winter. “Hope Chest,” which should be out by early summer, is an acoustic project featuring a combination of new songs and acoustic versions of older material.