It’s a fair point to say that the Dropkick Murphys return to Scotland around every two years, so when they do come it’s going to be a long-awaited and highly anticipated evening. This alone would justify their sold out show at the Barrowlands (aside from the reason ‘well, it’s the Dropkick Murphys’), yet the announcement of New Jersey’s very own Bouncing Souls as support caused one last surge of ticket sales, et voila, Scotland had a sell-out.
The opening slot of the night went to London-based The Biblecode Sundays; a group who mix a love of celtic music with an undeniable rock slant. While the room was pushing a third full for their set, they did gradually rouse some dancers in the crowd. It didn’t take the largest stretch of the imagination to see why they were a great addition to a Dropkick Murphys tour and, despite the lack of audience at this point, they were pretty good to watch.
Next up came one of the best support slots seen in a while. The Bouncing Souls are frankly legendary and, as a band, have surpassed the 20 year mark with ease. While not everyone in the room was accustomed to them prior to the set, a good number were surely converted judging from the audience’s concession of ‘damn, they’re good’. Playing a string of tracks including ‘Manthem’, ‘We Love Fun’ and ‘East Coast Fuck You’, the band basically owned the Barrowlands with their simple brilliance. For a punk rock band, they weren’t exactly the most aggressive and vigorous; in fact, Greg Attonito’s dancing was awkwardly endearing, but that’s part of the quality the foursome possess.
To end their set, the band tackled the famed ‘True Believers’ to the largest response thus far. While Greg bridged the gap between himself and the crowd for yet another spell, his return signalled a special guest. Taking on guest vocals for a verse was Murphys’ vocalist Al Barr and, well, the Barrowlands lost their minds. Some people may attend shows impatiently waiting for the supports to shimmy along, but there were definitely many pleasantly surprised by NJ’s finest. On the other hand, fans of the band prior to the show weren’t surprised in the slightest.
No matter how big the support, the evening was to belong to one band and one band alone. Opening to ‘Irish Rover’ the Barrowlands leapt wholeheartedly as the Dropkick Murphys took to the stage and, until their acoustic break later in the set, it’s a fair assumption that they just never stopped. Promising to play a song for Scotland after their Red Sox victory track ‘Tessie’, ‘Fields Of Athenry’ was met with a outrageously rapturous response. There’s something patriotic always present in Scotland and the Dropkick Murphys are certainly enough to bring that out. With kilts donned both on and off stage and bagpipes present in the set-up, there was an undeniable feeling akin to that of the drunken singalongs at sports matches.
The likes of ‘I’m Shipping Up To Boston’ left the floor area in complete anarchy and ‘Kiss Me, I’m Shitfaced’ was pretty much the ultimate drunk singalong for thousands. Ending their encore with a two-track stage invasion, the Murphys bridged the gap between band and fans as a high quantity crammed on alongside them. With high spirits and roaring vocals, the evening drew to a close, leaving most both invigorated for being a part of that show and disappointed that it’s likely another two year wait to follow.
The Dropkick Murphys were fantastic – there’s no other way to put it. The evening was full of dancing both on and off stage, soaring singalongs and an unimaginable atmosphere. There was just something there that entire night; it was fun, carefree and well worth the wait. It’s just a shame that it could be a while until we’re given such a treat again.
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To end their set, the band tackled the famed ‘True Believers’ to the largest response thus far. While Greg bridged the gap between himself and the crowd for yet another spell, his return signalled a special guest. Taking on guest vocals for a verse was Murphys’ vocalist Al Barr and, well, the Barrowlands lost their minds. Some people may attend shows impatiently waiting for the supports to shimmy along, but there were definitely many pleasantly surprised by NJ’s finest. On the other hand, fans of the band prior to the show weren’t surprised in the slightest. 
