The Mary Wallopers – The Big Mixer
Today, Irish folk rock band The Mary Wallopers share the “The Big Mixer,” an anthem to all of the workers who keep the machine going, whatever the circumstances, whatever the weather, whatever the pay.
Produced by James Skelly (The Coral), the track is the Wallopers at their very best: a celebration of the working classes, set to the kind of rollicking track that’s almost guaranteed to get the listener up and shouting along. “The Big Mixer” is the latest single from their forthcoming third album Paddywhackery, out September 18 via BC Records.
“This is a song for all the labourers, the nurses, the shelf fillers, the train drivers, the truck drivers, the Deliveroo drivers, the SNAs, the miners, the factory workers… all the people doing a hard day’s work and forced back to the Big Mixer to make profits for someone else,” note The Mary Wallopers. They add, “When the ganger man Concrete Bob (aka Robert McAlpine, whose construction company once employed 200,000 Irish men) was on his deathbed, he responded to the suggestions that work on site should halted as a mark of respect when he passed with ‘No – keep the Big Mixer going, and keep Paddy behind it.’”
Paddywhackery follows 2023’s acclaimed Irish Rock’n’Roll, the first album to feature original songs written by The Mary Wallopers. The new record marks a major leap forward, capturing a band operating with a confidence, chemistry, and raw power that sets them apart from virtually anyone else making music today. The album’s previous singles include “Crowns Of England” – described by The Guardian as “sure to have Nigel Farage spitting his bitter out”; the band’s pure and simple anti-gentrification anthem “Landlord’s Demise”; and “Kit Kat Club” which tells the tale of a drinking mission that “sent them down to Hell” and sees the writer can proudly declare their own status as a socialist.
Recorded over an intense two-week session in Liverpool with Skelly and engineer Chris Taylor, Paddywhackery harnesses the band’s exhilarating live energy without sacrificing nuance or precision. The result is an album that bursts from the speakers with infectious verve, heart, and swagger – one that practically demands to be played again, and again, and again.
The Mary Wallopers – Charles Hendy, Andrew Hendy, Ken Mooney, Róisín Barrett, Finnian O Connor and Catriona Gribben – recently announced their 2027 North American headline tour. The tour kicks off March 4th in Philadelphia and includes two nights at New York’s Irving Plaza before wrapping in Los Angeles on April 2.
THE MARY WALLOPERS TOUR DATES
2026 TOUR DATES
August 8 – Katowice, Poland – OFF Festival
August 29 – Laois, Ireland – Electric Picnic
October 13 – Edinburgh, Scotland – Edinburgh Corn Exchange
October 14 – Newcastle, England – Newcastle O2 City Hall
October 16 – Cardiff, Wales – Cardiff University
October 17 – Brighton, England – Brighton Centre
October 19 – Sheffield, England – Sheffield Octagon Centre
October 20 – Cambridge, England – Cambridge Corn Exchange
October 22 – Liverpool, England – Liverpool Olympia
October 23 – Manchester, England – Manchester O2 Victoria Warehouse
October 26 – Nottingham, England – Nottingham Rock City
October 27 – Leeds, England – Leeds O2 Academy
October 29 – Birmingham, England – Birmingham O2 Academy
October 30 – London, England – London O2 Academy Brixton
December 10 – Dublin, Ireland – Dublin 3Arena
December 19 – Glasgow, Scotland – Glasgow OVO Hydro
2027 TOUR DATES
March 4 – Philadelphia, PA – Theatre of the Living Arts
March 5 – Asbury Park, NJ – The Stone Pony
March 6 – Boston, MA – Citizens House of Blues
March 9 – Montréal, QC – Club Soda
March 10 – Ottawa, ON – The Bronson
March 12 – Toronto, ON – HISTORY
March 13 – Chicago, IL – Riviera Theatre
March 14 – Cleveland, OH – House of Blues
March 16 – New York, NY – Irving Plaza
March 17 – New York, NY – Irving Plaza
March 19 – Washington, DC – Union Stage
March 20 – Pittsburgh, PA – Thunderbird Music Hall & Cafe
March 21 – Indianapolis, IN – The Vogue
March 23 – Milwaukee, WI – The Argo
March 24 – Minneapolis, MN – Fine Line
March 26 – Calgary, AB – The Palace Theatre
March 27 – Vancouver, BC – Orpheum
March 29 – Seattle, WA – The Crocodile
March 30 – Portland, OR – Crystal Ballroom
April 1 – San Francisco, CA – August Hall
April 2 – Los Angeles, CA – Pacific Electric #marywallopers