You could call it a one-two punch when Flannigan’s Right Hook plays at O’Malleys Irish Pub in Weston this weekend.

The pub, with the historic limestone cellar built 55 feet below the ground, already sets the scene for a good time. But when you add Flannigan’s Right Hook, a Celtic bluegrass band that plays with the energy and youth of a rock band, it’s going to be a rollicking good time.

“For us, the appeal is they play the traditional songs our crowd from age 21 to 60 enjoy, but they also draw a younger crowd due to the energetic nature of the show,” says Corey Weinfurt with Weston Brewing Company and O’Malley’s Pub. “They’ve really built up a good following, so it should be a good audience for us.”

The band members were all in rock bands originally, says Cameron Russell, 28, who plays guitar, harmonica and is the lead vocalist. Fate would change their direction, however, when they began jamming with Eddie Delahunt, a well-known Irish musician in Kansas City. They learned the Irish tunes, put their own bluegrass twist to them and started developing a following. Then one day they got a last-minute phone call from a booking agent to play at O’Dowd’s on the Plaza for St. Patrick’s Day. They were a hit.

“Then we were all out one night,” Russell says, “and said we should try this Irish thing for real.”

Russell is Irish, which didn’t hurt. The other members of the band include Shane Borth, who sings vocals and plays a red, electric fiddle, and Michael Cochran, who also is a vocalist and plays the drums.

And it’s no accident they could make the transition from rock to Irish bluegrass. They are all professionally trained musicians: Russell at the University of Kansas and Borth and Cochran at the University of Missouri — Kansas City Conservatory of Music.

At O’Malley’s this weekend, they will be adding a cellist to the mix.

“He played with us a couple of times last year,” Russell says, “and he was awesome, so we invited him back.”

He’s currently taking a break from a music school in Pennsylvania, Russell says. They will perform a mixture of favorite Irish songs — spiced up — including “Whiskey in the Jar,” a fast Irish drinking song, popular with their fans.

As far as the band’s unusual name, it does have an Irish story, of sorts, behind it.

“Shane and I grew up with this guy named Mike Flannigan,” Russell explains. “He was a complete stereotype Irish guy. When he drank, he would get real punchy. One night he was throwing a couple of those right hooks. We named it Flannigan’s Right Hook after that.”

Their namesake is not to be confused with any of the Mike Flannigans involved in the Kansas City Irish Festival, Russell says.

“No,” he laughs, “the only part he is involved in is drinking.”

heaR IT

What: Flannigan’s Right Hook

Where: O’Malley’s Irish Pub, Weston, Mo.

When: 8 p.m. to midnight, tonight and Saturday, Dec. 29

Cost: $5 cover

See a video of the band at O’Malley’s on youtube.com. Type in “Flannigan’s Right Hook” under search and look under videos