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Jason Blackmore - Guitar, Vocals
"Any bastard who even dreams of making
trouble, I want him to wake up
sweating blood at what happened to the Molly Maguires."
The band derives its name from an underground group of Irish-immigrant coal miners in 1870s Pennsylvania who, prior to the rise of union labor, insured their positions by blowing up their own work sites and committing corporate assassinations. Spawning the 1970 film The Molly Maguires, starring Sean Connery and Richard Harris, the dogged attitude and zealous work ethic of these chronicled miners are distinctly present in this unrelenting Midwest band. Guitarist/vocalist Jason Blackmore, bassist Ray Jankowski,. guitarist Toby Lawrence and drummer Jason Gerken have become paragons of the heartland, especially when their inexhaustible live shows are discussed, amassing a proven history of delivering heavy music that doesn't suffocate under the weight of its own pretensions. "We're from Kansas City, Missouri. We haven't been polluted with West Coast or East Coast nonsense," says Jason Blackmore. "We're just pure rock and roll." Formed in November of'91, when heavier music was still hampered by the narrowminded baggage attached to it, Molly was at the creative forefront of a new, decidedly non-metal style. The band put out a three-song 7" EP for Lincoln, Nebraska's Caulfield Records, followed by their debut album, Sisters of.... on Chicago's Hitit! Records in the summer of 1994 with former guitarist Scott McMillian. CMJ's review stated: "Molly McGuire has become somewhat of an instant legend in the Midwest, thanks to a grueling tour schedule and some unforgettably powerful (and loud) performances ... Sisters of... finds itself careening wildly from hardcore intensity to churlish, riff-laden guitar textures, and back again--often in the course of a single song." Subsequently the band issued two split 7" singles on Hitit!, "Picture Me" (with Iron Rite Mangle) and "Exhaust" (with Shiner). Also in'94, Molly contributed the song "Chase" to Kansas City Misery, a 22-song compendium of KC's more biting bands released on Minneapolis-based Red Decibel Records. Following the departure of Scott McMillian, guitarist Toby Lawrence joined the group further solidifying the intricate and downright unusual guitar interplay between Lawrence and Blackmore. During the past two years, Molly McGuire has shared the stage with Girls Against Boys, The Jesus Lizard, Hum, Quicksand and Combine, as well as performed multiple dates with fellow Kansas Citians Season to Risk and Shiner. Molly McGuire caught the attention of Epic Records staffers with a show at The Grand Emporium on the band's home turf in November'93. The label's interest increased sharply after a particularly vivid set at South X Southwest in Austin, Texas the following year. "The furthest thing from our minds was, 'Are we gonna be discovered and be on MTV or the cover of Rolling Stone?... says Blackmore. "Molly has always done what Molly wants to do."
Jason Blackmore's lyrics have always been intriguing, and with the stellar production on the latest record they have achieved a newfound clarity. "With lyrics people always ask, 'What does this mean? Are you depressed? Are you psychotic? Are you in love? Did you lose love? Did you kill somebody? What's wrong with you?... says Blackmore. "The lyrics are a bit on the dark side. I don't necessarily want to say they are depressing, just kind of sad." As they have for the last five years, Molly McGuire will once again pile in the van and grunt and sweat their way through an oblong tour that deposits the band and their extrastrength live show within earshot of adoring masses. "The biggest secret about the band is that we get along really well," says Jankowski. "Most bands are always fistfighting on the road." "We've been together since November of '91, just bustin' our balls because we didn't know any different," adds Blackmore. "We just knew that we wanted to play music. Hope- fully we've matured some, but we're sincere about Molly McGuire and we're committed to our sound and our intensity." taken from their management's website: http://www.paminc.com
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On their Epic debut LIME, Molly McGuire
establish themselves nationally with the same abrasive impact
that has made them a cornerstone in Kansas City's blossoming aggro-rock scene.
Lime was
recorded at Chicago Recording Company and produced by Ken Andrews
the inventive singer/guitarist for Failure. The album is a testament
to Molly McGuire's haunting rock disposition, from the pulsating
cadences of "Humansville" to the hammering dual guitars
of "Coin Toss" to the turbulent three-part aria "Catfish."
But the record has an off-kilter quality fueled by tunes like
"Royal Pine Box," with its eerie flute solos (that do
not conjure up images of Jethro Tull), and the spacious piano
on "Plastic Pirates" which perfectly blends with the
thickly orchestrated guitars and hypnotic, percussive rhythms.
(LP collectors will note that the vinyl edition of Lime is available
through Hitit!)