Nov. 5, 2007
Chanting crowds, checker-print shoes, Irish tattoos and a fan wearing the Irish flag as a cape were only the beginning of what Dropkick Murphys brought out in fans at its sellout show Sunday night.
Dropkick Murphys had an opening act that featured Irish-punk bands Filthy Thieving Bastards, The Briggs and The Tossers. The band is touring the United States to promote its new album, "The Meanest of Times."
And like any punk show should be, there was never a dull moment.
Dropkick Murphys entered the stage of the Senator Theatre at 10:04 p.m. and some crowd members instantly flew through the air to get closer to the band, punches were thrown, shoes were lost to the crowd and bouncers threw water on moshing crowd members - but nothing stopped the band.
It wasn't just the crowd that was taking a walk on the Senator's wild side, guitar player Marc Orrell bounced from amp to speaker, diving into the crowd and rolling around on the stage.
Taking notice to the chaos unfolding in front of, and on the stage, Dropkick Murphys lead vocalist and bass player, Ken Casey, told the crowd that the band recently played in a parade to celebrate the Red Sox recent World Series championship win.
"Who invites us to a parade? How stupid is that?" Casey said.
But even in Chico, band members managed to represent their home of Boston with more than just a casual mentioning while delivering a classic Dropkick Murphys performance.
Casey got the crowd riled up by pointing out that one fan in the front of the crowd was wearing a New York Yankees hat - a big "no-no" by Dropkick Murphys' standards.
"Just take it off so we can burn it and everything will be OK," Casey said, as the fan threw the hat onto the stage.
The band and the fan laughed it off as the crowd, young and old, bounced around the venue to "For Boston."
Dropkick Murphys also played such hits as "The Field of Athenry," "The State of Massachusetts," "(F)lannigan's Ball" blasting bagpipes, mandolin and all, as the crowd threw their fists in the air, chanting along.
"God Willing," a song that front man Al Barr said that the band would like to dedicate to their friend Greg "Chicken Man" Riley who died in a motorcycle accident in 2004, was also played.
But no Dropkick Murphys show would be complete without "Kiss Me I'm S---faced," a crowd favorite off the band's 2003 album, "Blackout."
Bouncers stood along the venue barricade pulling girls onto stage to accompany the band in the performance. I was fortunate to share the adrenaline of the band first hand when a bouncer named Junior Tuitele pulled me onto the stage.
Tuitele confessed that Dropkick Murphys weren't his usual musical genre of choice, but he enjoyed the show anyway.
"This was the craziest crowd I've ever seen," Tuitele said. "They really know how to put on a show."
After the crowd members were escorted offstage, Dropkick Murphys came back for an encore playing, "I'm Shipping Up To Boston," a song off of the band's 2005 album, "The Warrior's Code."
This time the band spared no time bringing crowds of rowdy fans onto the stage to accompany them with their encore song.
Camille Burge, a 17-year-old high school student from Sacramento, was one of those fans.
"It was awesome," Burge said. "I have been on stage with them four times now and it's always nuts."
Dropkick Murphys know how to combine the perfect amount of energy, old songs, new songs and chants of "Oi! Oi! Oi!" to put on a show that the audience should never forget.
Amber Morley can be reached at amorley@theorion.com
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