If you go
Who: Men of the House
When: 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. Aug. 21 and 22
Where: Paddy Cassidy’s Irish Pub in Cocoa Beach
Admission: No cover
Information: 321-783-0810
On the Web: www.menofthehouse.com
There is a lot more to Irish music than U2, the Cranberries or the Celtic-inspired Enya. One of the area’s finest Irish-inspired bands, Men of the House, will give a series of shows this weekend that will showcase their diversity. The band includes Michael Granatosky, 20, on lead vocals, violin, mandolin, bouzouki and banjo; Coty Granatosky, 18, violin and backup vocals; their father, Mike Granatosky, on guitar; Scotty Cockerham, 16, on saxophone, flute and penny whistle; and Jacob Fjeldheim, 16, on cello and box drum.
I spoke with Michael Granatosky about the band’s style, its music and his plans for the future. So let’s Shake, Rattle & Know: Men of the House.
SRK: Is there a large demand for your style of music?
Granatosky: Not really. It’s a very specialized music and usually only the true purists or traditionalists enjoy it at first and understand what it’s all about. The music is fun and upbeat, so after people hear it for the first time, they find it enjoyable and have a great experience. You really have to go into it with an open mind, and people who do usually come to see us again and again. We play an Irish place called Nolan’s (in Cocoa Beach), and we have a regular following that come to see us every time we play there. It’s a good feeling when people are dedicated like that.
SRK: Whose idea was it to put a band together?
Granatosky: My brother and I started playing violin at 4 and 5 years old. We used to play as part of a large group that had maybe 50 kids in it that would all fiddle and play both U.S. and Irish music. When we came here to Brevard, it was just me and my brother, so we had to play together more as a group. In 2002, my dad picked up the guitar and started playing with us. We have added members since that have allowed us to have a really unique sound and style.
SRK: Where did your love of Irish music first begin?
Granatosky: Not only is the music very upbeat, but it provides a real challenge as a musician to play. It’s not an easy form of music to master. My brother and I were both classically trained, but we found that music to be dry. This is more loose and allows us to improvise and create our own style within the music.
SRK: Are people often surprised by the style of music you have chosen, given your ages?
Granatosky: Absolutely. Whenever we play shows with people, the average age of the musician is probably 50-plus. For our age, we are good at what we do, so it surprises people. People expect us to play rock or punk or something else when they come to see us play. Even our friends don’t realize this is the style of music we play, but they enjoy it once they hear.
SRK: Do you perform original songs, or are they traditional Irish songs?
Granatosky: We play traditional songs, but we add new sounds and instrumentation that gives it a different sound. We don’t really do cover songs, because we do this for fun.
If you have an artist/band you’d like to recommend for review, contact Nunez at www.myspace.com/shakerattleandknow or fantasyforecaster2005@yahoo.
