Canadian Paddy punk pioneers the Mahones turned 20 this year and have had quite the influence on other musicians across the world.

So Finny McConnell and company decided to compile some of their favourite covers of Mahones hits  onto one CD, ‘Whiskey Devils’ A Tribute to The Mahones.”

 They gathered  an impressive variety of styles  from  Celtic punk from the Popes version of “Drunken Lazy Bastard,’ to more traditional versions like Black Friday’s version of ‘There She Goes,’ and the Peelers’ version of ‘Rise Again.’ or the Poguesish ‘London,’ from Paul -Ronny Angel out of England.

 All the way from Spain, Brutus’ Daughters deliver a fiddle powered version of Take Me Back,’ while The Real McKenzies’ Aaron Chapman  adds a hilariously, drunken bluesy version of ‘Cocktail Blue.’

 I love  Vandom Arms’ version of an older Mahones classic ‘Down The Boozer.’
 Some of them are straight ahead punk, like  The Drink Hunters’ ‘Take No Prisoners.’

Some of the versions are rough like  a love version of  Cabor Toss covering ‘Drunken Lazy Bastard.”
Another big highlight is Pladdohg’s Irish brogue heavy ‘Whiskey Devils.”

Drunken Dru adds another punkish highlight with a version of ‘Is This Bar open Tomorrow,’ while the Bloody Irish Boys add a touch of metal to ‘Shake Hands With The Devil.’
 Even Finny McConnell himself is on the CD with an early demo of ‘Girl With The Galway Eyes ’ (from the latest Mahones CD Black Irish) which he recorded with Irish musician Mark Gilligan.

 If you like the Mahones even a little bit, or if somehow you haven’t heard of them, you will be interested in hearing how all of these bands from all over the world attack Mahones classics.

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Canadian Paddy-punk pioneers the Mahones are back with their new sixth studio CD, “The Black Irish. They have been together for 20 years or so, so as expected , a lot of the CD is reflecting on their storied history.

 There are songs about getting drunk with the Pogues’ Shane MacGowan, growing  up listening to the Clash and the Who, lots of great, upbeat drinking songs. There are lots of upbeat songs in general. Which is what they do bet— play  high energy, upbeat, fun songs about whiskey drinking and carousing.

While  most of the CD is pure, upbeat, paddy punk anthems like ‘Give It All Ya Got (Or Forget About It)’ and ‘A  Great Night On the Lash,’ there are also tender moments, like “Girl With The Galway Eyes’ which frontman Finny McConnell wrote for  his wife and Mahones accordion player, Katie as well as a mournful ‘hangover song’ ‘Whiskey Under The Bridge, and even a  cover of the Replacements’ ‘Here Comes a Regular.’

 But the uptempo songs are my favourites — ‘Great Night on the Lash,’ ‘Ghost of a Whiskey Devil,’ ‘Lord of the Dirty Hordes,’ and especially, the Mahones’ highly charged political anthem ‘Blood On Your Hands.’
 They even included a new version of ‘Paint the Town Red,’ which  is called the fighter mix as it appears in the Oscar award winning movie ‘The Fighter.’
It’s typical, if not more introspective, Mahones. Black Irish shows a little growth and maturity but  retain the sense of fun  you expect from a new Mahones CD.

Twilight Hotel meld blues, jazz, French cabaret music, psychedelia, horns and accordions into a mesmerizing sound that is all their own, especially on their brand new third CD “When The Wolves Go Blind.
They start off with the hypnotic, psychedelic title track.
 They keep the psychedelic , laid back feel going throughout the CD and to add a little variety, Dave Quanbury and  Brandy Zdan trade off lead vocals.
 Though pretty mellow,  Mahogany Veneer really does have a memorable melody.

 And for something a little different,  “The Master” has a spaghetti western feel to it. They also have a crack rhythm section who often play with Mavis Staples. Drummer/ percussionist  Stephen  Hodges and  bassist/ banjo player/ saxophonist  Jeff Turmes add a variety of subdued colours to Twilight Hotel’s intricately woven  music tapestry, but they stay in the background.

 They pick up the tempo on “Ham Radio Blues, which  has a strong rockabilly influence. Throughout, Quanbury and Zdan’s haunting vocal harmonies, tasteful guitar pieces and subdued steel guitar give Twilight Hotel  their own inimitable style.
 It is an enjoyably haunting yet very laid back work with a cornucopia of styles and sounds.