Beth’s Music Moment: Dropkick Murphys LIVE!

Step with me into the Wayback Machine as we travel back...back...back in time...all the way back to this past Wednesday!

After a quick bite to eat at Backstage Grill (mediocre food, but early access to seating in the venue, so it was worth it) we found a spot on the second level of Club Fever, a local nightclub. It had been ages since I’d been there. I think the last time might have been with Shane for Better Than Ezra, and that was before I met Ken. Anyway, this time we were there for Dropkick Murphys. (Click on picture to embiggen.)

First, we got to hear a couple of opening bands. I’m sorry I can’t recall the name of the first one, but they were one I wasn’t familiar with. High energy, and the drummer was great! The second band was the Swingin’ Utters (I double-checked, and it really is spelled with Ts!), and I was familiar with them from Rock Band, of all places! One of their songs was on Rock Band 3, and I liked it enough that I downloaded a couple of their albums. Also high energy and fun.

But the main attraction was, of course, the Murphys. They hail from the Boston area, and they’ve been around for quite a few years, but I only recently became familiar with them because they started playing one of their songs at Notre Dame football games. I was like, “This song is so cool, but I don’t know what it is!” My friend Bart informed me that it was “Shipping Up To Boston” by Dropkick Murphys. When I saw they were going to play Club Fever, I said I thought it would be fun to go. That’s a pretty high-profile band for a smaller venue, so I try to grab such opportunities when I can. I ordered a couple of CDs, and we listened to them on a recent road trip and enjoyed them. They bill themselves as an “American Celtic punk band,” and by science, that is exactly what they sound like! Although they are obviously a punk band, they add Irish folk elements, and include instruments like banjo, mandolin, and even bagpipes. It’s a fun mix.

All three bands were great, and the crowd was in a great mood, really getting into them all. As I’ve written, it was the Notre Dame home opener, so there may have been quite a few college students there. After the bands were done, someone started a “Here come the Irish!” chant, so I think it’s a safe bet that there were students and plenty of fans there! Lots of energy coming from the bands, and the crowd gave it right back. The sound was great, and there was even a mosh pit (and no, I did not participate). We don’t often get this sort of national act right downtown (we usually have to drive to one of the local casinos, or up to Chicago), especially punk bands, so this was a fun treat. I got a kickass black Murphys tanktop and I’m looking forward to wearing that soon. I am definitely a new fan, and I will seek out more of their music. We listened to one of their CDs as we were driving to the game and while we were tailgating on Saturday, and it was a great soundtrack for the day!

Fun show and fun bands...I hope we get a few more like that in the future!

Coming soon to this space: Friday night’s festivities and today’s lunch and tour of the State Theater with Drew.

Here is a snippet of video that Ken took. TURN IT UP!