CHRIS WALKER VS. BANDS AND BOOZE, THE SECOND ROUND: DARBY O’GILL AND THE LITTLE PEOPLE

There’s a wee bit o’ history between Darby O’Gill and I.

A minute amount of history, but an amount nonetheless. Darby was supposed to partake in the first round of Bands and Booze but due to the unreliable nature of the internet our lines of communication got fucked. After Bands and Booze I wrote Darby a big “fuck you” on the site; Darby replied, showing he actually did try to contact me; now I’m an asshole and owe Darby a drink. Darby, if you’re reading this I’m coming to Vegas within the next two months. I’ll make sure you collect.

Darby O'Gill and the Little People are currently Darby O'Gill (lead vocals, guitar), Nancy Whiskey (fiddle, vocals), Ringo Malarky (accordion, vocals), Patty O'Furnitue (drums, vocals), and Phil McCrackin' (bass, vocals). They’re a staple of the Las Vegas Irish Pub scene (if there is such a thing) and play some of the most kick ass music ever. Sure, they play traditional Irish drinking songs but they also take hip hop (Snoop Dogg’s “Gin and Juice”, for example) hits and turn them into Irish drinking songs, as well. Hard to imagine? Makes perfect sense when you see it live. They also play other covers, some original material, and a lot of songs that call for audience participate – and by participation I mean middle fingers and curse words (i.e. delightfully excessive use of the word ‘fuck’).

If you’re ever in Vegas there is no reason you should miss Darby O’Gill and the Little People. You have to go. That is, unless you’re a pussy and think drinking mass amounts of Guinness and getting your balls rocked off is stupid. In that case, don’t come; we wouldn’t like you anyway.

Without further delay, here is the Darby O’Gill interview for your inebriated reading pleasure:

So, the studio record and live record are both great but I think people really need to see you live to understand just how awesome your band is. What does your weekly line-up look like, currently, so everyone knows where and when to catch you play?

Darby O’Gill: Our weekly line up is as follows: Wednesday Night at 10 at McMullan’s, Thursday night at 8 at the Auld Dubliner in Lake Las Vegas, and Friday and Saturday night at 10 at Fado in the Green Valley Ranch.

I could probably correctly guess the answer to this question but what’s your favorite alcoholic beverage?

DOG: Guinness. I also am a tad partial to Jameson’s Irish Whiskey. I used to drink black and tans but they got me just a little too fucked up so I switched back to Guinness.

What do you think is the best bar in Las Vegas?

DOG: This is a hard question. I am biased because I love all the bars that we play in. I think Irish pubs are the most comfortable environments to drink and relax in. There is no pressure to look your best or act a certain way. You just go in there to drink and fuck everything else off. That’s how every bar should feel. So, to answer your question, Irish pubs are my favorite. All of ‘em.

I know the crowd can get a bit rowdy at your shows, what’s the craziest thing you’ve ever seen someone do?

DOG: Lots of girls show their tits, which we accept as tip jar currency. And when girls won’t show their tits I sometimes have guys pull their balls out on stage to get things rolling but, it never works. Not even chicks like to look at a set of nuts. But the craziest thing I ever saw a guy do was at McMullan’s when he requested a song and didn't have any money to tip us, so he said he would snort a line of salt and squirt a lime into his eye if we would play his song. And he fuckin’ did it and it looked painful as all hell but the crowd ate it up and we played his song plus another for him. It was cool.

Speaking of the tip jar, what is the strangest thing you’ve ever gotten in there?

DOG: I always like seeing a couple of singles with a hundred in the middle, because I know some poor, drunk guy fucked up. Requests for songs to play for people’s death is always a real bummer that you can’t ignore because of you did you’d look like an asshole. No underwear ever, but that would be cool.

I always laughed when I would see this happen to you, how many times a night do you get approached by guys who want to tell you how awesome you are in the men’s room?

DOG: All the time. I don’t have any stand out stories about it but I hate talking to anyone while I’m pissing. Sometimes I’ll piss in the stalls to avoid it. I always worry that some asshole is going to try and see how big Darby’s cock is and I’ll have to beat him up or get beat up by him when he takes a look.

Do you play better with a couple drinks in you or sober?

DOG: This is a good question. I always thought people who said they play better when they were drunk were asswipe alcoholics trying to rationalize their addiction. But when you are playing with an Irish Drinking Band it actually sounds a little more right when I have a few beers and whiskey in me. There have been times when I laid off the booze because I had a particularly drunk ass night the night before and I forgot words and sounded a little to slick. It needs to be a tad rough around the edges.

How many drinks would you say you drink though the course of a show?

DOG: I don't really keep track. I buy very little booze for myself and people buy me a lot of booze. I drink what the people want me to drink, it’s very democratic.

Being the avid drinker you are what’s your most trusted hangover remedy?

DOG: One Aleve and lots of sleep.

There are many standout, quality, Irish drinking songs but which, in your opinion, is the best traditional Irish drinking song ever?

DOG: I really like “The Wild Rover”. The audience participation and the dirty lyrics really make this a wonderful tune.

Okay, three part question: you perform a lot of unexpected covers at your shows like Snoop Dogg’s “Gin and Juice” and Outkast’s “The Whole World”; which cover is your favorite to perform? On top of that, which song gets the most response from the crowd? Guessing it’s probably “Bugger Off” do you have any interesting stories to go with playing that song?

DOG: My favorite covers we perform are the new ones. “7 Nation Army” by The White Stripes and “Under Pressure” by Queen and Bowie are both really fun. Our hip-hop medleys get a great reaction. That’s “P.I.M.P”, “Drop it Like It’s Hot”, and “Gin and Juice”. As far as “Bugger Off”, I only have one semi-interesting story to go along with that. There was a woman from China who would come in during the first set and request that song. We told her that it’s a closing song that we save for the end of the night, but she really liked shouting “fuck you” so she tipped us around 200 bucks to play it. So, every time she came we’d play that fuckin’ song in the first set. I know, we’re whores. But integrity was never my strong suit.

How many waitresses have you banged at McMullen’s and Fado’s, respectively?

DOG: Well, I have never banged any. I almost banged a very hot bartender from one of pubs in the bathroom of Cactus Jacks but she was in line to become a manager and I thought it might be a conflict of interest. Paddy’s had a few, London Bridges partook in some hot girl on waitress action, who knows what kinda crazy bitches Ringo’s fucked.

All right, well that about does it. Are there any other crazy, wild, drunken antics or otherwise crazy outings you’d like to share?

DOG: Despite popular opinion, no member of the D.O.G has ever puked on stage. This fact blows my mind, I figured one of us would have done that by now, but I think this says something about true professionalism.

And finally, which is better: a ninja, a pirate, or Vikings?

DOG: A pirate, he has rum, the others don't really have a particular alcohol that goes along with them.

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Catch Darby O’Gill and the Little People tonight at Fado’s Irish Pub in the Green Valley Station in Las Vegas tonight for their annual Halloween performance.

To stream music, buy CDs, and generally learn more than you ever wanted to know about Darby O’Gill and the Little People – much like a leprechaun – follow the links:

Darby O’Gill Official Site.

Darby O’Gill at MySpace.