Farler's Fury

"Purgatory Quebec". When I hear Quebec, I always think of French language: La Bottine Souriante with his "brass band" and foot tapping percussion playing Irish, Scottish and French influenced songs/tunes, Les Batinses singing that funny song about the parcomètre (park meter), the French band Los Carayos singing "Chicoutimi", Corrigan Fest, the sadly defunct Celtic punk band, and those comedies on TV5 International spoken on quebecois that sometimes are a little bit difficult to understand (at least for me, French is not my mother tongue).

However, Farler's Fury normally don't sing in French; even if 50% of the band are francophones, they sing in English and they play bagpipes. Is this bad? Of course not! Farler's Fury are the best Real MacKenzies influenced band that I've had ever heard! Many bands say that they are influenced by RMcK but actually they sound like Dropckick Murphys.

At the time being the band consists of 4 members (bass, guitar/mandolin, bagpipes and drums). But these four guys are able to sound better than the last RMcK albums. They also blend Scottish traditional music with Californian punk. But, maybe, they are more Canadian punk, since you can hear echoes from Sum 41 best moments in Farler's Fury songs (that AC/DC and Kiss influence).

It is not easy to pick up a couple of songs, since I feel that 7 out of 10 songs are great. Anyway, I will say that the best tracks are "Common Ground" (a Scottish traditional influenced song with some Flatfoot 56 and Sum 41 elements), "Orleans" ( my fave, excellent mandolin too) and "The Queen and the Sea" (pipes à la RMcK). The other interesting numbers are the opening track "Anchor" (better than RMcK), "A Call to Arms" (great bagpipes punk track), "Pockets" (another one that could be placed between Flatfoot 56 and Sum 41) and "Egos and Icons" (featuring a small part of the "Kesh Jig")

If you are a bagpipes punk fan, you should get this CD and file it together with Pipes and Pints, Bastards on Parade and Die Dödelsäcke.

It seems that the band would like to tour Europe. Maybe I will be lucky and they will play in the Basque Country soon.
- Celtic-Folk-Punk Blog-zine

Possessing hard-driven guitars riffs, Celtic –infused bag pipes and uproarious chants— Farler’s Fury have made a name for themselves as the Canadian Drop-Kick Murphys. Don’t be too quick to put a label on the four-piece, whose punk style and attitude could be aligned with who they are as a band.

“We’re definitely not an Irish band. No one in the band is Irish and we don’t really play that style of music.” Says lead singer and guitarist Jody. “In the beginning we were a more Celtic-influenced band as we had violin, bagpipes and we were all really into bands like Dropkick Murphys, Real McKenzies, Flogging Molly, etc. As time passed and our musical tastes began to change we found we were listening to Celtic Punk much less. Instead we were into bands like Against Me!, Street Dogs, Gaslight Anthem, Propagandhi… and folk stuff like Frank Turner, Bob Dylan, and Billy Bragg. So naturally our song writing also shifted towards more of a Rock, Punk and Folk influence, while still keeping the Celtic instruments.”

The band formed back in 2003 through friends and instantly garnered a fan base in Canada. Fans loved the band’s bounces of energy melding a punch-drunk sounding melodies, and even songs in other languages. Becoming well-known could have its draw-backs…like wanting to change your band name.

“Farler’s Fury was a song that our bagpiper wrote during his time in various pipe bands around Quebec. says Jody. “At the time it seemed like a cool name for a band as many bands in the genre had similar sounding names so we took it as our own. To this day we regret the decision.”

A decision that they wouldn’t regret is their latest album “Purgatory, Quebec.” The album was recorded in two weeks between two 40-day Canadian tours. They survived on Mr. Noodle (I guess a Canadian thing?) and coffee. All grown men, the band came to a conclusion that didn’t please everyone…they quit their jobs and reduced personal spending to live life on the road.

“Making a decision like that does not always reflect well with the people that surround you and I’m sure any independent band that has made a similar decision has had to deal with the criticism. For us giving up comfort and security to be a part of something we believe in and want to be a part of was an easy decision, but we also had to deal with constant doubt and negativity from others who used to offer us support. While I’m sure they were just looking out for our best interests and wanted us to stay home like most people do, to us home was Purgatory… and so it pushed us to work even harder. “

The band has not toured the US in some time, but plans to sometime in the future. Weirdly enough, some other external factors could be attributed to not playing to and American audience. When asked how the Canadian scene differed from the states Jody was hesitant to state everything was perfect between the neighboring countries:
“Obviously we’ve played Quebec a lot more than the US… which is unfortunate because Boston and New York are 5 to 6 hours from our doorstep. There seems to be awkwardness between our two countries that really shouldn’t exist. The media doesn’t help and neither does that 1,500 mile border that separates us. I’ve heard it’s harder for US bands to enter Canada than it is for Canadian bands to enter the US… and maybe if it wasn’t we’d see more great bands like Burning Streets and Swaggerin’ Growlers up here (to name a few east coast US bands that have managed to tour Canada recently).”

“Having said that… Quebec has a very tight scene. The support is unbelievable and it’s nice to be a part of that kind of community, rather than one that competes against itself and in the end self destructs. But that’s not to say we don’t get support when we travel… The last time we were in the US we met some of the most incredible people we’ve ever met and had some of the best times we’ve known. At this point for us it’s unrealistic to expect sold out shows when we travel to the US, but for those that do come to our shows we’ve noticed an enthusiasm for live and original music that is unmatched.”
The band plans to head out on a 25 day East Coast Canadian tour, followed by a 35 day tour of France, Germany, Belgium, Netherlands, and Czech Republic. That will take them to the end of October, at which point they are going to finish up the writing their next album to released in the summer of 2012.

Be the first to say “I saw them when..” by checking them out on July 10th out at The Court Tavern in New Brunswick, NJ, USA!
- Dany Says Zine

Any band that goes through half of the lineup changes as Farler's Fury in the space of only a few years might have packed it in, gone home and worked at McDonald's instead. However, despite the revolving-door of guitarists, drummers and singers, Farler's Fury are still going strong, and are determined to stay that way.

As band members change, musical influences of new members shifts the sound of the band as a whole. In the case of Farler's Fury, two band members with an influential Scottish heritage left the band, paving the way for a more punk-rock sound rather than their trademark Celtic-punk hybrid. That isn't to say that the Celtic influence has been replaced- the band still features the mandolin and bagpipes- but as skate-punk tendencies moved in, the Celtic ones were merely toned down a notch, notably in tracks like "Pockets" and "A Call To Arms."

While this isn't necessarily a bad thing, Farler's Fury have moved from being a Celtic punk band to being a punk rock band with bagpipes. While most bands would navigate this change awkwardly, Farler's Fury have done so with classic punk rock aplomb- that is to say, with their fists in the air.
- Examiner.com

Despite being a great band, Farler’s Fury are one of those bands that will always exist under the radar. They’ll release good records, put on solid shows but never really break into the forefront of the scene unless they get that one big break.

Having been around in one form or another since 2003, Farler’s Fury have paid their fair share of dues as they toured the country, independently released albums and had some independent backing as well; still, chances are you haven’t heard of them (I hadn’t before they reached out to me). And it’s too bad because despite their niche oriented style (or maybe in spite of), Farler’s Fury have delivered an undeniably strong album here; and one that would surely win over the hearts of many a fan if they had the chance to hear it.

The easiest description to place upon Purgatory, Quebec would be to call it Celtic Punk. It’s a safe, fair and accurate descriptor but really, they’re more of a punk band with bagpipes and a mandolin. Some tunes lean more to the punk (Dead and Gone) and some more to the Celtic side (The Queen and the Sea); but neither sees them falter in their delivery. Each style is crafted with confidence and a steady hand, ensuring a thoroughly strong track no matter which way they lean towards.

Every time, the deliver a thick, full sounding song structure that sharpens back to the best of Dropkick Murphys (with a little Al Barr-like vocal similarity too) or the new Dreadnoughts album, yet they’re able to retain a more reserved, traditional and sloppy vibe ala Real McKenzies too thanks to the masterfully played bagpipe. While yes, I know The Murphys use the pipes too, but the tone here harkens back to The McKenzies’ much more and there’s really nothing wrong about that.

There’s definitely a few stands out (Common Grounds, Egos and Icons, Pockets, etc.); however, unlike many albums there isn’t a filler in sight. Even when they throw in the polka intro to These Safe Horizons (another throwback to the new Dreadnoughts album), Farler’s Fury are able to deliver a resounding track worthy of repeated listens.

So whether you call it Celtic punk or punk with bagpipes, at the end of the day the fact is that Purgatory, Quebec deserves your attention; because for once, this is an unsigned band that truly deserves that attention.
- The Punk Site