DROPKICK MURPHYS ā€“ The Meanest Of Times (Born & Bred)
Original release date: September 18th, 2007
In a surprising move, Dropkick Murphys have opted to leave their longtime home at Hellcat and release their sixth studio album through their own label, Born & Bred. Iā€™ll be shocked if it doesnā€™t pay off, though: The Meanest Of Times is much stronger than their well-received but uneven last album, The Warriorā€™s Code.
The seven-piece Celtic punk outfit have really consolidated their sound on this outing. Thereā€™s nothing so poppy as Sunshine Highway from The Warriorā€™s Code, and theyā€™ve also avoided the extremes of that albumā€™s piano-based Eric Bogle cover The Green Fields Of France and full-throttle punk Citizen CIA. Thatā€™s not to say that theyā€™ve sacrificed variation entirely; rather, theyā€™ve just perfected their fusion of the disparate elements. Their blend of mandolin, tin whistle and bagpipes with street punk has never sounded quite this good.
The opening three cuts (Famous For Nothingā€™s compelling tale of childhood gangs, rousing and emotional God Willing and The State Of Massachusettsā€™ portrait of a family torn apart by drugs) are blindingly great. They might not be as heavy as some songs the band has released in the past, but their passion gets the blood racing more. This high water mark is equalled several times on the album, notably when they take on the old Irish drinking song Lanniganā€™s Ball ā€“ reworked here as (F)lanniganā€™s Ball and recorded with irresistible energy. The Dropkicksā€™ renditions of traditional songs have always been terrific, but this track and Fairmount Hill (a Boston take on Spancil Hill) prove that when they rewrite and personalise the lyrics, the results are even better.
The bandā€™s own compositions such as Vices And Virtues, Iā€™ll Begin Again and Never Forget channel the same gripping timelessness, and even lesser moments like Shattered still stand tall. Highly recommended.
Owen Heitmann
