And Now…For Something Completely Different- A Concert Review of The Dropkick Murphys

I’ve just returned from ten days in Ireland…exhale. It’s my fourth visit and one of my longest. Damn, I love that place! So…apologies for the radio silence. No blogs or Substacks for a bit. I was there with my three kids and their significant others as well as my boyfriend. Glorious! I can’t promise it won’t happen again. Sometimes you just have to be in the moment. Besides, life and living is where all the other stories come from.

Anyhow… moving on to this piece. While in Dublin I had the amazing privilege and opportunity to see The Dropkick Murphys with my boyfriend, my son and his lovely girlfriend. To say this is a rare treat is the very definition of understatement. Before the show I even got to spend the evening with some dear friends who live in Dublin. What a night!

Needless to say, I arrived at the show in a fine mood, ready to have a grand ol’ time. I am sure right here that is where most reviews would drop off the proverbial cliff. Nope. Spoiler alert! Dropkick Murphys ROCK!!! Literally. Actually. Rock!

These guys are classics. They are a Celtic punk rock band from outside of Boston. To get to see them in Dublin, Ireland? Outstanding. They played traditional Irish instruments in addition to your basic hard rock fare: tin whistle, the Uilleann pipes (like bagpipes except using your elbow, “Uilleann” is actually Gaelic for elbow), the accordion, the fiddle and the mandolin. They also use Scottish bagpipes for big intros, because how can you not?

There are lots of ways that a favorite band can disappoint a fan. Might be lack of enthusiasm, could be set list choices, could be loss of voice, maybe the sound engineer screwed things up, the list goes on. None of these occurred. What I really enjoy about Dropkick Murphys is, being punks, they aren’t polished. They are passionate. So, the singing might not be classically trained multi-octave, but it’s heartfelt and I am welcome to, even encouraged, to sing along in my profoundly not-in-key way. It’s like being at the best block party ever, with thousands of your most outstandingly awesome buddies.

Please do yourself a favor and check this band out. As I have gotten older, I have watched so many artists whom I loved pass away. It’s important to find new songs, new groups. You need artists who are still making new music, not merely playing their golden oldies. Mind you, Dropkick Murphys are NOT new… or young…but they ARE fun!!!  They’ve put out four new albums in the last six years. Highly recommend taking in a show on the 2026 United States Apology Tour for the FantaFascist in the People’s House: