...
Sing Loud, Sing Proud is a grand old time, a speaker buster and
steering-wheel pounder of a record, with the balance between the auld
and the new, precarious but acceptable. It’s also part of another
venerable custom — the record as primer for high-energy live show.
Which means that one should be saving for the purchase of concert tickets
along with the CD for the total experience!
Dropkick
Murphys formed in 1996 in Boston, MA. The band was originally just a
bunch of friends looking to play music for fun. They started playing
in the basement of a friend's barbershop with the goal of blending the
musical influences they’d grown up with (Punk Rock, Irish Folk,
Rock, and Hardcore) into one loud, raucous, chaotic, and often out-of-tune
mix they could call their own. Bolstered by the overwhelming reaction
to their music, the Murphys began to record and tour constantly, releasing
over ten singles and four albums while playing throughout the world.
Proud
the Murphys are of their traditional, working-man roots, and it shows
in the quality of their various releases. As consistent and predictable
as the folk music they’ve amped up, the Murphys have evolved a
bit since their semi-breakthrough, Do or Die. They’ve augmented
their punk barrage with more diversity in the jigging, adding pennywhistles
and bagpipes from two new Murphys who are an official part of the band.
In the
true spirit of punk rock, the band’s main goal is to play music
that creates an “all for one, one for all” environment where
everyone is encouraged to participate. In addition to bringing people
together for a good time, they hope to share some of their experiences
and beliefs in working-class solidarity, friendship, loyalty and self-improvement
as a means of bettering society. Say the Murphys, “You can preach
till you're blue in the face, but if you're lying in the gutter, no
one's gonna listen. If you pick yourself up by the bootstraps and live
your life to the best of your ability, you may set an example that others
will follow.”
(Some
info derived from an article by Johnny Angel from the LA Weekly
2/01)
