The Dirty Mugs – Wildfire

Fans of the Dropkick Murphys tend to enjoy stumbling upon likeminded bands that offer up their own distinct take on the rough anthemic style.  Speaking from experience, my introduction to The Dreadnoughts’ energetic vision of polka-tinged fiddle-punk was an exciting moment.  In a similar vein, Eastern Oklahoma act The Dirty Mugs have been tearing up it up for over a decade, and those lacking prior familiarity (like myself) will be floored by what the quintet has to offer in their sixteen-track full length, Wildfire.  

Purveyors of the self-proclaimed “hardccordion wonder-punk” sound, The Dirty Mugs meld gypsy spirit with a folk-punk heart born of seaside shanties and drifting vessels.  Think a taste of Gogol Bordello along the aforementioned bands and you’d be on the right track.  A booming gravelpit baritone soars over the band’s energetic accordion and blanket of rattle-bang breakneck drumming.  Songs like “Dance With Me” and “SGAF” seldom bother slowing down for even a glance back over their shoulder upon erupting into beer-drenched pub-anthems.  Highlights like “Woodfolk” balance hearty gang-vocal choruses with accordion-led gypsy beats that evolve into skillfully manipulated pseudo-acoustic tangents that really flesh out The Dirty Mugs as much more than a one trick pony or Flatfoot 56 wannabe.

The first hint of their potential surfaces in their moody adaptation of the traditional Appalachian mountain song “O’Death.”  Serving as a conversation with the reaper itself, the band captures the country-folk nature of the original while maintaining the immediacy and high strung tempo of neighbouring songs.  The gothic chanting of the choral passage “O’Death, O’Death, spare me over to another year,” captures the haunting chills that come with any conversation with one’s mortality.  The Dirty Mugs further explore their murky folk identity with thoughtfully penned intermissions and breaks in tempo like “The Calm,” “As Close As It Gets” and the the minute long a capella interlude “We Will Not Give Up.”  When you’re dealing with a product sixteen tracks in the making, such a conscious effort to ensure appropriate pacing cannot be understated.

Wildfire’s meat and potatoes will likely remain their brash anthemic vocals and punk roots, but their overarching personality always stems from their stylistic folk nuances and subtleties.  Whether its simply peppering some selective acoustic chords throughout catchy tunes like “Airline And Junction” or feeding off of a foot stomping and traditionally singable tune like “La Di Da” or “Ruined,” The Dirty Mugs never fail to entertain in a big way.  

And on a final note, Wildfire is one of those rare albums that frames a band as one that can entertain in both intimate and large scale settings, making out these hardccordion wonder-punks as well-worth checking out in any environment, live or on disc.