In the 1990s, a group of local musicians decided to add a rock beat to traditional Irish music for St. Patrick’s Day. The experiment became one of the Lansing area’s most popular bands of that era.
Rob Klajda and Mike Lynch formed The Lash, a band that took local bars by storm and earned a national reputation.
They did a farewell show in 2015, but the group still pops up from time to time, including for a show this weekend at the Fishstock Americana Festival in Lansing.
Mike Lynch says the band started with a simple idea.
He says he, Rob Klajda and some friends at the Elderly Instruments music store wanted to have some St. Patrick’s Day fun.
“We were gonna run all over town, not even get paid, just show up, play, move on, and we did it,” he explained. “People went nuts over it. So, next thing I know, we were all quitting our other bands, and we just took off and did it, you know, for the next 15 years.”
The group going by The Lash boldly described their music as “Celtic mayhem,” and the Irish band The Pogues were hugely inspirational.
Lynch says The Lash covered lots of Pogues music.
“They were taking traditional music and then just, you know, rocking it out, more on the punk side than we were, you know, because of where they came from," he said. "But we definitely wanted that energy, and so we did, we did pattern ourselves after that band.”
Their respect for Shane MacGowan’s band was such that they took their name from a Pogues album title.
At their peak, Lynch says The Lash got a lot of work, and not just covering Pogues songs, they also covered for The Pogues.
“We played Chicago, and we were supposed to be the opening band, and suddenly I was negotiating for the whole amount because Shane wouldn’t fly, and he would only take trains and buses, and they would just lose him back then, before phones and internet and all that stuff, you know? They didn’t know where he was.”
The only album recorded by the Lash, “Every Direction,” came out in 2001.
In 2012, the band had an appearance on the WKAR-TV show “Backstage Pass,” playing songs like “Don’t Blame It On The Whiskey” and “Bad Tattoo”.
By 2015, as many as 50 people had played with The Lash at one time or another.
Lynch had gone on to join the band of blues guitarist Larry McCray, and Klajda was working on solo projects, and so The Lash did what they intended to be a farewell show at The Avenue in Lansing.
Lynch says he and Klajda had been prepping some new songs, too.
“We came back together and we wrote new material. We wanted to do a record but we wanted it to be a new thing, and so it was kind of logical to put that one away to start the new thing, and just to celebrate all the people that had been a part of that band," Lynch said.
“We figured if everybody showed up that played in that band, it would be a full house, and it was!”
Klajda passed away unexpectedly in 2017 at the age of 56. To this day, Lynch considers Klajda to be “the most talented, prolific songwriter” he ever worked with.
That would seem to be the end of The Lash, but the band still pops up occasionally. That includes on Friday at Lansing’s Fishstock Americana Festival. Lynch says the current lead singer is another local favorite, Tommy Foster.
“He just always has the crowd eating out of your hand, and he’s an incredible musician, singer. So, he was the logical guy for it.”
The two-day festival is like a time machine of popular local acts. On Friday, the lineup includes Steppin’ In It, and Saturday’s schedule features Jen Sygit, and the Rachael Davis Band.
The music will start at 6 p.m. both nights at the Fish Ladder Music Park in Lansing. The Lash will play at 7:30 on Friday. It’s a ticketed event.
UPCOMING ARTS EVENTS
The Preston Fox Quartet plays the music of Detroit jazz Thursday, August 20 at Urban Beat in Old Town Lansing. Doors open at 5 p.m. for this 6:30 show.
The U.S. Navy Band will be at the Williamston Summer Concert Series Thursday, August 20 at the McCormick Park bandshell, starting at 7 p.m.
Riverwalk Theatre presents a one-night-only mini-musical Friday, August 21 at 6 p.m. with local acting standout Jane Zussman, with stories from her many projects and Riverwalk’s origins. It’s called “Hags, Hussies, and History.”
TRANSCRIPT
Scott Pohl: With Inside the Arts, I'm Scott Pohl. In the 1990s, a group of local musicians decided to add a rock beat to traditional Irish music for St. Patrick’s Day. The experiment became one of the Lansing area’s most popular bands of that era.
Rob Klajda and Mike Lynch formed The Lash, a band that took local bars by storm and earned a national reputation. They did a farewell show in 2015, but the group still pops up from time to time, including for a show this weekend.
For Inside the Arts this week, I talked with Lynch about the latest version of The Lash ahead of the Fishstock Americana Festival in Lansing.
It was a simple idea. Mike Lynch says he, Rob Klajda and some friends at the Elderly Instruments music store wanted to have some St. Patrick’s Day fun.
Mike Lynch: We were gonna run all over town, not even get paid, just show up, play, move on, and we did it. People went nuts over it. So, next thing I know, we were all quitting our other bands, and we just took off and did it, you know, for the next 15 years.
Pohl: The group going by The Lash boldly described their music as “Celtic mayhem,” and the Irish band The Pogues were hugely inspirational.
(Soundbite of song, "Sally MacLennane")
The Pogues: (Singing) I'm sad to say I must be on my way
So buy me beer or whiskey, 'cause I'm going far away (Far away!)
Pohl: Lynch says The Lash covered lots of Pogues music.
Lynch: They were taking traditional music and then just, you know, rocking it out, more on the punk side than we were, you know, because of where they came from, but we definitely wanted that energy, and so we did, we did pattern ourselves after that band.
Pohl: Their respect for Shane MacGowan’s band was such that they took their name from a Pogues album title. At their peak, Lynch says The Lash got a lot of work, and not just covering Pogues songs, they also covered for The Pogues.
Lynch: We played Chicago, and we were supposed to be the opening band, and suddenly I was negotiating for the whole amount because Shane wouldn’t fly, and he would only take trains and buses, and they would just lose him back then, before phones and internet and all that stuff, you know? They didn’t know where he was.
Pohl: The only album recorded by the Lash, “Every Direction,” came out in 2001.
In 2012, the band had an appearance on the WKAR-TV show “Backstage Pass,” playing songs like “Don’t Blame It On The Whiskey.”
(Soundbite of song, "Don't Blame It on the Whiskey")
The Lash: (Singing) Don't blame it on the whiskey. Don't blame it on the whiskey. Well, I know it's been a burden for many other men, but don't blame it on the whiskey 'cause the whiskey's still my friend.
Pohl: The program also featured their song “Bad Tattoo."
(Soundbite of song, "Bad Tattoo")
The Lash: (Singing) I'm going to stick to you like a bad tattoo and haunt you 'till you die. I'll be the pain that needs your Novocaine a glimmer in your eye.
Pohl: By 2015, as many as 50 people had played with The Lash at one time or another. Lynch had gone on to join the band of blues guitarist Larry McCray, and Klajda was working on solo projects, and so The Lash did what they intended to be a farewell show at The Avenue in Lansing. Lynch says he and Klajda had been prepping some new songs, too.
Lynch: We came back together and we wrote new material. We wanted to do a record but we wanted it to be a new thing, and so it was kind of logical to put that one away to start the new thing, and just to celebrate all the people that had been a part of that band. We figured if everybody showed up that played in that band, it would be a full house, and it was!
Pohl: Klajda passed away unexpectedly in 2017 at the age of 56. To this day, Lynch considers Klajda to be “the most talented, prolific songwriter” he ever worked with.
That would seem to be the end of The Lash, but the band still pops up occasionally. That includes on Friday at Lansing’s Fishstock Americana Festival. Lynch says the current lead singer is another local favorite, Tommy Foster.
Lynch: He just always has the crowd eating out of your hand, and he’s an incredible musician, singer. So, he was the logical guy for it.
Pohl: The two-day festival is like a time machine of popular local acts. On Friday, the lineup includes Steppin’ In It, and Saturday’s schedule features Jen Sygit, and the Rachael Davis Band. The music will start at 6 p.m. both nights at the Fish Ladder Music Park in Lansing. The Lash will play at 7:30 on Friday. It’s a ticketed event.
With Inside The Arts, I’m Scott Pohl.
