Cutthroat Shamrock

These five Gatlinburg Celtic folk-punkers have come a long way since their roots as a couple kids “in the mountains, drunk and homeless.” Now, they’re something of a regional phenomenon, especially when it comes time for the calendar’s drunkest religious holiday. They’ve got two self-released albums, including 2007’s The Wake (a nod to Finnegan?) which could match doomed Irishness with nearly anything this side of Rum Sodomy & the Lash.
Listen for tales of waking up by the tracks hungover, homeless, and heartbroken—and some serious mandolin chops on “Hell’s Shovel,” “Devil’s Tail” and “Flesh and Blood.” Oh, and these guys only go by their pirate names: Derek McRotten, Guido, Johnny Hyena, Suavo, and Benjamin. (Charles Maldonado)