The Indulgers at Scruffy Murphy's. Photo by Paul Edmisson
Damien McCarron came from a small town outside of Dublin to Denver in the early nineties and recorded his first CD in Colorado at The Alley in Wheatridge. The CD was produced by The Indulgers current multi instrumentalist Mike Nile and was titled 'A Matter Of Indulgence'. This became the start of The Indulgers original line-up which still remains the same today. With the release of their seventh release 'Whiskey Tonight' and numerous tours and festivals under their belt, The Indulgers are still going strong, although on their own terms. The indulgers are Damien McCarron (vocals and guitar), Renee Fine (violin), Pat Murphy Jr.(drums), Chris Murtaugh (bass) and Mike Nile on guitar, mandolin, whistle, harmonica and electric bagpipe( yes, there is such a thing).
Damien McCarron of The Indulgers. Photo by Paul Edmisson
The night they played Scruffy's was cold and windy and I wasn't sure what kind of a turn out they expected, but they assured me that by 10pm the place would be pretty crowded. Boy were they right! By 10pm the place was packed with people jumping around, dancing or just sitting in their seats watching the band. If you have ever been to Scruffy's, you know that the stage is not real big and the dance area in front of the stage is just a little bit bigger than the stage itself. The size of the stage didn't seem to matter to the band, and the size of the dance area didn't matter to the patrons, both sides had a load of fun. Even though the people on the dance floor were packed in like a bunch of sardines they still managed to find room to dance, sometimes switching partners for a second or two when they found themselves turned around and no room to maneuver back to their partner.
The Indulgers at Scruffy Murphy's. Photo by Paul Edmisson
I have never been to Ireland, but I do hope to go one day. Until then this is the closest I think I'll be. Sitting in an Irish pub like Scruffy's, drinking Smithwicks and listening to the lilting Irish accent of Damien singing to some great Celtic rock is a treat. The downfall? I have never wanted to just sit and drink beer during a show so bad in my life. When The Indulgers get on stage it's like a mini festival. There were people, boisterous people to be exact, waving pints high in the air while dancing in circles, kicking their legs high in the air and singing along to the tunes. Some had an Irish accent, some not, but at the time it didn't matter who was Irish and who wasn't because everyone was there for one reason and one reason only, to see The Indulgers. The Indulgers original songs are a cross between American rock, acoustic music and folk with a whopping dollop of Celtic rock music. To see the band and hear the songs played live is like a having a foot in both Ireland and the United States at the same time and is a very unique feeling. Even if you've never been to Ireland The Indulgers have a way of making you pine for the rolling green hills of Ireland.
The song 'Whiskey Tonight' tends to get stuck in your head and you may find yourself humming the violin part at the beginning over and over for days, but for some reason it never gets annoying like other songs can. There are also cover songs that they play, but the cover song that really stuck out for me was 'Burnin Ring of Fire' by Johnny Cash. I have heard a ton of bands cover that song, but not quite the same way The Indulgers do it, and The Indulgers do it good. In fact The Indulgers do it all good. That's what make them so fun to watch and listen to. I'll be going to Fado's Irish Pub on March 13th to see them play again, although I won't be working. Next time I am going to sit, drink my beer and listen to same great Celtic rock played by an excellent Colorado band. Why don't you come join me? I'm giving you plenty of notice, so clear you schedule and come have a drink.
You can also see The Indulgers live at Katie Mullen's Irish Pub on Feb.27th and again at Scruffy Murphy's Feb 12th.
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