CD Review: Ceann Na Caca's Almost Irish

If you like Celtic inspired rock music with a humorous and self-deprecating twist, you'll love Ceann na Caca's CD, Almost Irish. And no, I don't know how to pronounce it either.

These Pittsburgh boys pull no punches with their catchy riffs and funny, sometimes downright strange, and often off color lyrics. From the silly The Worst Pirate Song to the heavier, but still silly, The Need for Mead , Ceann will have you slapping your rump (no, really. They illustrate the dance for The Worst Pirate Song on the lyric sheet), and singing along from the first time they say "Monongahela". Just so you know, that's about thirteen lines into the first song.

Ceann describes themselves as "Yankee-Irish Drinking Music" which I would love to say is a tribute to both sides of their heritage. Well, technically it is, but more in the way of ending an argument over whether they're Irish-American, or American-Irish. Many of their songs reflect this. From 31 (for Pittsburgh I am Bound), the title track Almost Irish, and Schuylkill Fruit (which I can only assume is a drunken tribute to the Beach Boys' California Girls) there are several mentions of where they call home.

Traditionalists beware. This isn't your typical Irish band. Green Beer hilariously pokes fun at St. Patrick's Day celebrations with phrases such as "it looks like a leprechaun took a dump, right inside my beer" and "Green beer makes your wiener shrink, that's why it's almost free". And it gets worse from here. In Whiskey Hurts My Tummy, the band follows the adventures of three children and their first forays into the world of whiskey drinking. And they proclaim proudly that they could get the girls if they just replaced themselves "with three better looking guys" in We Could Get The Girls. I find that particularly interesting since there are six guys in the band.

Not all of the songs are completely ridiculous, but they do have an element of fun. In The Need for Mead they may need "something old and dark and beastly", but claiming "Stonehenge was the first saloon" could get you into trouble. In Music of Our Fathers the band takes shots at venues that blindly book Irish bands without finding out just what kind of Irish band they're booking first, and Pabst Blue Ribbon takes shots at both big label beers and the people who drink them.

If you have a sense of humor and an appreciation for the ridiculous, give this CD a try. Seriously. For a little under $13 plus shipping you'll have a mood booster for life.