Happy New Year! It's been a while since my last post due to lack of gigs and releases over the Christmas period, but I'm back to reviewing starting with my first gig of 2013: Dropkick Murphys.
Dropkick Murphys have been the band at the forefront of Celtic Punk ever since the release of the song I'm shipping up to Boston' and it's feature on the the Academy Award winning film The Departed. It's surprising to think that Dropkick Murphys, even with a reputation to rival bands like Bad Religion and Pennywise, are a relatively new song. Yet songs such as evidently I'm shipping up to Boston and The State of Massachusetts have become more or less anthems, or literally so for sport teams in Boston. Few punk bands have seen as much success in the charts as Dropkick Murphys. Their most recent release, Signed and Sealed in Blood, which was a huge success in the US, peaking at number 9, didn't make much more than a ripple over here in the UK, most people seeming relatively unaware of its release. Nevertheless with two consecutive sold out shows at the Forum, it's evident that their solid reputation hasn't faltered.
My first full set of the night was courtesy of the Fat Mike discovery Teenage Bottlerocket. Having been a fan for a couple of years after hearing them for the first time on the Mike Davies Punk Rock Show, I was pretty excited to be seeing them for the first time. Though unfortunately they seemed to suffer from the effects on the so-called 'snowstorm'. As Dropkick Murphys said later in the night, despite the night being sold out, 500 people couldn't make it, and I'm sure that most of the people that did manage to make it were late and missed Teenage Bottlerocket. Playing to a half empty room, it's always going to be tough to put on a good performance and fill the gaps in the room. Teenage Bottlerocket were bursting with energy, both musically and physically. The set was a whirlwind of fast-paced skate punk tracks with a hint of pop-punk and a welcomed cover of the Ramones classic Blitzreig Bop. It featured some of my favourite tracks Skate or Die and Radio. However their music does lack variety and became repetitive and Teenage Bottlerocket didn't seem to be having their best night, often slipping up in timing. Despite this, it was still an enjoyable set.
And finally, the moment we've all been waiting for, the Boston Celtic Punk Legends, Dropkick Murphys! Opening with the more than appropriate The Boys are Back from their new album, it gave a clear indication as to what this show was about. It was about continuing their riotous past and showing us that their new material is just as anthemic as their old: Dropkick Murphys are back.
Sure enough, their new tracks are as anthemic as their old. The set was certainly not lacking in features from Signed and Sealed in Blood, including their first single release Rose Tattoo and Prisoner's Song. These tracks received as much of a reaction and as loud a sing along as well-established songs. One thing Dropkick Murphys do have is variety. They definitely exploited this, playing the more recognisable fast-paced Dropkick Murphys songs we all know and love like Shipping up to Boston, but also experimenting by playing a country version of a song. Surprisingly they failed to include The State of Massachusetts, which was a disappointment. Though I wasn't completely convinced they managed to pull it off, it certainly made their set interesting.
Regrettably, Dropkick Murphys severely suffered from technical difficulties. Being forced to stop halfway through their set in the middle of Jimmy Collins' wake for possibly 10 minutes, it certainly created a rift in their set, several members of the audience even seemed to leave. The crowd lost momentum and energy, and what was originally a wild pit of Irish dancing faded away during the break and took much of the remainder of the gig to build bag up again. Though by the time I'm Shipping up to Boston kicked in, the pit was in full swing again. Finishing the set with new classic End of The Night and TNT (the AC/DC cover) complete with a full on stage invasion, the set managed to end on a high and overcome the technical difficulties until they were nothing more than a distant memory.
Dropkick Murphys have been the band at the forefront of Celtic Punk ever since the release of the song I'm shipping up to Boston' and it's feature on the the Academy Award winning film The Departed. It's surprising to think that Dropkick Murphys, even with a reputation to rival bands like Bad Religion and Pennywise, are a relatively new song. Yet songs such as evidently I'm shipping up to Boston and The State of Massachusetts have become more or less anthems, or literally so for sport teams in Boston. Few punk bands have seen as much success in the charts as Dropkick Murphys. Their most recent release, Signed and Sealed in Blood, which was a huge success in the US, peaking at number 9, didn't make much more than a ripple over here in the UK, most people seeming relatively unaware of its release. Nevertheless with two consecutive sold out shows at the Forum, it's evident that their solid reputation hasn't faltered.
My first full set of the night was courtesy of the Fat Mike discovery Teenage Bottlerocket. Having been a fan for a couple of years after hearing them for the first time on the Mike Davies Punk Rock Show, I was pretty excited to be seeing them for the first time. Though unfortunately they seemed to suffer from the effects on the so-called 'snowstorm'. As Dropkick Murphys said later in the night, despite the night being sold out, 500 people couldn't make it, and I'm sure that most of the people that did manage to make it were late and missed Teenage Bottlerocket. Playing to a half empty room, it's always going to be tough to put on a good performance and fill the gaps in the room. Teenage Bottlerocket were bursting with energy, both musically and physically. The set was a whirlwind of fast-paced skate punk tracks with a hint of pop-punk and a welcomed cover of the Ramones classic Blitzreig Bop. It featured some of my favourite tracks Skate or Die and Radio. However their music does lack variety and became repetitive and Teenage Bottlerocket didn't seem to be having their best night, often slipping up in timing. Despite this, it was still an enjoyable set.
And finally, the moment we've all been waiting for, the Boston Celtic Punk Legends, Dropkick Murphys! Opening with the more than appropriate The Boys are Back from their new album, it gave a clear indication as to what this show was about. It was about continuing their riotous past and showing us that their new material is just as anthemic as their old: Dropkick Murphys are back.
Sure enough, their new tracks are as anthemic as their old. The set was certainly not lacking in features from Signed and Sealed in Blood, including their first single release Rose Tattoo and Prisoner's Song. These tracks received as much of a reaction and as loud a sing along as well-established songs. One thing Dropkick Murphys do have is variety. They definitely exploited this, playing the more recognisable fast-paced Dropkick Murphys songs we all know and love like Shipping up to Boston, but also experimenting by playing a country version of a song. Surprisingly they failed to include The State of Massachusetts, which was a disappointment. Though I wasn't completely convinced they managed to pull it off, it certainly made their set interesting.
Regrettably, Dropkick Murphys severely suffered from technical difficulties. Being forced to stop halfway through their set in the middle of Jimmy Collins' wake for possibly 10 minutes, it certainly created a rift in their set, several members of the audience even seemed to leave. The crowd lost momentum and energy, and what was originally a wild pit of Irish dancing faded away during the break and took much of the remainder of the gig to build bag up again. Though by the time I'm Shipping up to Boston kicked in, the pit was in full swing again. Finishing the set with new classic End of The Night and TNT (the AC/DC cover) complete with a full on stage invasion, the set managed to end on a high and overcome the technical difficulties until they were nothing more than a distant memory.
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