(show photos/Irish punk & club rock) The Buddies at Empty Bottle

The Buddies filled The Empty Bottle with their guitar heavy, Irish rock, right before the holidays.   Appropriately enough, their lead singer was sporting a Shane MacGowan tee, and after their set, we had a lively discussion about The Pogues last show at The Congress.   I had the great pleasure of shooting it, but was stuck in the press pit for sooooo long waiting for them to come on, after the openers, that we were sure Shane had flipped out or passed out, and that the show was not to be.   The other photographers were joking that we should have brought board games.   Finally, the band materialized and pulled off a brilliant show!

Thankfully, The Buddies showed up on time to play their Irish punk.   Check out our prior coverage here.   The Buddies have been called a southern rock version of The Clash and they were fun to check out, live.   They have the unique distinction of having a rockin' girl on drums/accordion.   Drummers are notoriously hard to photograph and usually lurk, hidden in the shadow at the back of the stage.   The Buddies are no fools, though, and had one of the best lit drummers I've ever shot.   Play to your strengths.   Want to hear more or check out upcoming shows.   Here's their main web site.