For nearly a decade, The Fisticuffs have been proving themselves as a band to be reckoned with. Their songs are fast paced, complex in nature and direct in delivery. While many bands in the Celtic punk genre lean heavily on played out and sped up traditional pub melodies accompanied by lyrics that are heavy on shtick but low on substance, The Fisticuffs make every effort to steer clear of these pitfalls. According to singer Bobby Baldwin, “If you want that leprechaun b.s. don’t buy a Fisticuffs record, go eat at a Bennigans.” The earth pounding drums and bass of Tony Dellorto and Neal Farrell meet head on with the thrashing guitar work of Sean Moriarty. On top of this mix Dave Beneventi’s mandolin and Arcadia Kust’s fiddle unleash melodies that, depending on the song, can dampen your eyes or clench your fists. Through it all are Baldwin’s growling lyrics about family, hard work, a great many sins, and life on the South Side of Chicago. The band are known for their raucous live shows that can be described as equal parts Irish wake and soccer riot. These kinds of heart racing performances are achieved by the groups love and respect for their music, fans and from the experience gained from years of playing all over Chicago and the eastern United States. In a musical landscape where the term Celtic punk is often synonymous with watered down punk rock, The Fisticuffs are hell bent on standing out. They’re all whiskey, no water.

Emerging from the local cut-throat and highly competitive music scene of Austin, comes Black Irish Texas. And out of the proclaimed live music capital of the world they have exploded on the scene like a whiskey drenched force to be reckoned with. They have shared the stage with such International acts as Dropkick Murphys, Flogging Molly, Social Distortion, and the Street Dogs just to name a few, as well as local Austin legends such as the Dicks and the Flametrick Subs.

The band started in 2004 after a few lineup changes and many tribulations, they have managed to keep their anything-but-common spaghetti western/Americana/punk infused Irish American act together just long enough to finally release their debut album “To Hell with the King.”

With backing from Jameson Irish whiskey and support from legions of local and regional fans they released their first full length album and have been running all over the country throwing their no holds barred Irish American party gaining devout followers everywhere they play.

Black Irish boast members of Austin favorite’s such as Mr. Lewis and the Funeral Five, Flatcar Rattlers, Los Hispanos,UK, The Bulemics, and Hipsterectomy just to name a few. With members from each of those bands bringing to the table their own particular styles and influences, your current line-up of James Fitzsimmons on guitar and vocal duties, Mark Maughmer II on fiddle, James Sheeron on drums, Shannon McMillan on upright bass and Bil David Zarate on banjo, you are basically looking at a powder keg lit by a few shots of Jameson. And what a site it is.

Do not, I repeat, do NOT try and pigeonhole these guys as an Irish pub drinking band, regurgitating overheard covers of “danny boy” and “whiskey in the jar” . In high demand at every venue from Stubb’s and Emo’s Austin to the Abbey pub in Chicago, Black Irish Texas is a coming to a venue near you. See what they’re doing at their website. www.blackirishtexas.com, and be on the look out for new releases roomered to release by the end of 2014..