Dropkick Murphys: Al Barr (vocals); Marc Orrell (guitar, accordion); James Lynch (guitar); Ryan Foltz (mandolin, whistle); Spicy McHaggis (bag pipes); Ken Casey (bass, background vocals); Matt Kelly (drums).
Additional personnel: Boston Police Gaelic Column Pipes & Drums, Harney School Of Dance Step Dancers.
Recorded live at the Avalon Ballroom, Boston, Massachusetts in March 2002. Includes liner notes by Nancy Hammerle Teacher and Dennis Lshane Author.
This Boston-based Irish punk band's proletarian, all-for-one attitude, as espoused consistently in its lyrics, is perhaps best exemplified by a live album like this one, where their energy and communal relationship with their audience can be clearly heard. You can hear the crowd chanting along to the lyrics of Dropkick Murphys' working-class anthems with faithful vigor, and the band responds in kind by kicking the already-high energy level up even further. Though their blend of punk and Celtic flavors is unique (they surely don't have much company in blending punk guitars and bagpipes), the sound (and the sociopolitics) also bear strong echoes of early Oi outfits like Sham 69, all rousing shout-along choruses and martial rhythms. Interestingly, its when they tackle the more Irish-sounding tunes (as on "The Rocky Road to Dublin") that the boys seem to be at their punkiest.
