Four long goddamn motherfucking years I have been without new Dropkick Murpheys and finally that damn bloody Irish curse is over! The boys from Mass. are finally back with a new album titled Going Out In Style and boy oh boy will I be buying a case of Guinness and drinking to this ASAP.
In the four years they have been gone, Dropkick has not missed a step and are better than ever with their latest release which is filled with Celtic Punk goodness. Going Out In Style is supposedly a concept album based on the life of Cornelius Larken, but is more of just awesome Celtic folk songs more then anything.
Hang Em High, the opening song is one of my favorites on the whole album as it is filled with a huge bagpipe sound and has a fist rising anthem chorus. After listening to it, I knew I was in for something special and then I wanted to go yell at someone in a drunken stupor. (in a good way of corse)
The next song, Going Out In Style matches the intensity of the first song and the fact that they were back to back forced me to run out to my local pub and start a huge barroom brawl. “You can stack me on a pyre and soak me down with whiskey Roast me to a blackened crisp and throw me in a pile I could really give a shit - I'm going out in style!” If that does not make you want to go out and have a great old fashioned drunken night with your friends than I recommend checking your pulse and rushing to the hospital cause you might be dead and stealing the precious air from a drunkard.
The album is not all just crazy anthems and also features more traditional Irish folk sounds such as on 1953, Broken Hymns and my personal favorite Cruel. The uplifting slow inspiring lyrics match the sound of the songs and I can picture myself walking into a pub after a long days work and singing a couple of tunes while swaying with a pitcher of beer in one hand and a a bottle of whiskey in the other.
As with every Dropkick Murphey's album, the band has a need to stand up and fight for the working class and the union's causes. Going Out In Style, continues that tradition with Take 'Em Down. While Take 'Em Down is the shortest song on the album, it is by far the most powerful. Calling for the working class to unite and stand up to the man with chants of “Let them know We gotta take the bastards down!” It is definitely a standout track and is even dedicated to the thousands of Wisconsin workers who are currently protesting the budget plan of Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker. When will they learn, when you wage a war on the working class, don't complain when the working class fights back. Short and powerful just the way I like it.
Going Out In Style does not contain any filler on the thirteen track record and every song is worth listening too. The intro to Deeds Not Words is fantastic as is the ode to friendship track Sunday Night Matinee. There is even a Bruce Springsteen guess feature on the second to last track Peg O My Heart, which is phenomenal and a surprisingly great collaboration.
The last song on the record is a cover of one of the greatest Irish traditional songs of all time The Irish Rover. Dropkick performs one of the craziest versions of the song I have ever heard and I cannot wait to hear it live. If you see an insane drunken dude wearing a green leprechaun suit bashing beer bottles over his own head and others screaming obscenities in the air, do not be alarmed I am just really really drunk.
In closing, the wait has been worth it as Dropkick Murphey's have a delivered a great fun record. If you are a fan of the band or a fan of alcohol, I would definitely listen to Going Out In Style and anticipate going to your local pub and getting shitty immediately afterwords.
Ranked On the Beavis and Butt-Head Scoring System: 3.5 Beavis' out of 5 Butt-Heads
Recommended Songs: Hang 'Em High, Going Out In Style, Take 'Em Down, Peg O My Heart
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