The latest album from the Bostonian septet Dropkick Murphys, most recently recognized for “I’m Shipping Up to Boston” and “The Departed,” is a refreshing reassurance that exploration within rock music is alive and well.
The Meanest of Times, the sixth album for the band and the first recorded under its self-established label Born and Bred Records, is a product of the band’s general formula for production: kick out some jams but remember the bagpipes.
Combining punklike brashness with impatience and a catchy sound that brings out the best of blue-collared American music, Dropkick Murphys has released a multi-faceted record that builds a harmonic bridge across the Atlantic, only this time a famine is not the guilty instigator.
The Meanest of Times puts extra emphasis on the Irish folk influence by making the mandolin, accordion and other atypical rock instruments seem appropriately exalted. At the same time, this ensemble could not seem any more genuine in its rock roots, as each track sounds as if the band is playing until respiratory assistance is necessary.
Besides the onset rocking that occurs throughout the album, the band takes an extra step by creatively reformatting traditional Irish folk songs for the 21st century. “Johnny, I Hardly Knew Ya,” a remake of the recognizable “When Johnny Comes Marching Home” — an American version of an Irish battle hymn — epitomizes how trendy these musicians can make anything sound.
The album is well-balanced with songs such as “The State of Massachusetts” in which a tumultuous banjo part is intertwined with the more or less standard rock sound to form an enjoyable auditory result.
Although The Meanest Times reflects some of the success this band has enjoyed recently, it is hard to determine what the band’s next step might be. Only so much room for improvement is allowed in the narrow Irish punk-rock genre, and common sense leads one to believe Dropkick Murphys has efficiently used its most popular options.
Regardless, any of this album’s success on the charts might help boost the marketability of the band’s label and cause more good to arise. However, after this album, it will be increasingly difficult to produce a sound that people want to buy.
With each album comes a concurrent reduction in possibility for the next, and Irish folklore is not exactly the most abundant source of musical inspiration or foundation.
Foretelling aside, this band is in a groove lately, and as long as it has the opportunity to express its raw passion, chances are someone out there will be eager to listen. Besides, what else is anyone going to listen to March 17?
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