Lake Buena Vista, FL – It’s a remarkable thing when a band can make a sold-out show feel like an intimate house party, but that’s exactly what the Dropkick Murphys pulled off when they burst into the House of Blues Orlando on Sunday.
More than 2,000 people packed shoulder-to-shoulder to sing along to the punk icons’ extensive catalog and the setlist delivered. Ostensibly the St. Patrick’s Day Tour 2022 was in support of Turn Up That Dial, their tenth full-length album released while the pandemic still had a firm grip on 2021. And there were a fair number of tracks from it, including the defiant crowd pleaser “Middle Finger.”
But the deep catalog of hits that have cemented Dropkick Murphys’ legacy as scene titans also gave them ample tracks to choose from.
Both Boston and Irish heritage form the backbone of the band’s brand and the show kicked off with a salute to the latter with their walk-on song. The entire length of the Chieftain’s “The Foggy Dew” as sung by Sinead O’ Conner heightened the anticipation of a crowd sporting their finest merch, kilts, Bruins jerseys, Patriots gear and T-shirts sporting slogans like Masshole and Kiss Me I’m Highrish.
A brief silence was broken by the unmistakable drone of bagpipes blasting “Scotland the Brave.” (Even the roar of the crowd couldn’t overpower an instrument originally designed as a weapon of war.) The band seamlessly launched into “Cadence to Arms” over the bagpipes, with frontman Ken Casey bouncing from one side of the stage to the next like a prizefighter.
One contributor to the house show feel was a lowered stage, which brought the band closer to the level of the audience. The typical barricade gap was bridged with a small platform for Casey and other band members to walk out and mix with the fans. Indeed, more than a few times the microphone was literally thrown into the crowd to boost participation.
A second factor was the nature of the songs, which are mostly built to be sung at full volume in a crowded pub. An argument could be made that anthems like “Blood” cannot be fully appreciated until performed live.
While Dropkick Murphys are the first names in Irish punk for many (no disrespect to Flogging Molly fans), the band mixed a few tributes to their forefathers as well. In addition to starting their show with the Chieftains, the setlist included a cover of The Clash’s “Police on My Back” and The Pogues’ “The Body of an American.”
Working the crowd into a frenzy before Dropkick Murphys took the stage were opening acts The Bombpops, The Rumjacks, and Jesse Ahern. The Bombpops accented the punk roots of The Dropkick Murphys with furious riffs layered under the wispy cotton candy vocals of Jen Razavi. Setting the table for Gaelic treats were the Rumjacks, who mirrored the makeup in many ways of the Dropkick Murphys with a full complement of guitars, singalong drinking tunes, tin whistles and bagpipes. Singer/songwriter Ahern took the stage with just his guitar, but his laidback and personable style had the crowd singing along by the second song.
PHOTO GALLERY
DKM Setlist:
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- Chieftains-The Foggy Dew (Tape)
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- Cadence to Arms
- Do Or Die
- The Boys Are Back
- Barroom Hero
- Blood
- Johnny, I Hardly Knew Ya
- Turn Up That Dial
- Middle Finger
- The Warrior’s Code
- We Shall Overcome
- Boys on the Docks
- Cruel
- The Bonny
- The State of Massachusetts
- Queen of Suffolk County
- Good as Gold
- Curse of a Fallen Soul
- Police on My Back (The Equals cover)
- Going Out in Style
- Caught in a Jar
- The Body of an American (The Pogues cover)
- The Dirty Glass
- Rose Tattoo
- Kiss Me I’m #!@’faced
Encore:
Worker’s Song
I’m Shipping Up to Boston -
Show Date: March 6, 2022
