Review Summary: The meanest of times showcases the passion and energy these Celtic punk rockers are capable of producing. Highly recommended to first time Dropkick Murphy listeners and long time fans.
The Dropkick Murphy’s band name was originally taken from a man in Boston who used to run a rehab centre for drunks and bums. He was kind of like the boogey man since parents used to tell their kids that if you were too drunk to get home he would lock them up in the house until they were sober again. Don’t know if it’s true or not but it’s a good enough reason to name your band after him. Anyway this is the Dropkicks 6th studio album and follows on from their 2005 release and my favourite ‘The Warriors Code’.
If you’ve never listened to a Dropkick Murphy’s album then I best warn you by saying that the lead vocalist Al Barr is not the finest singer in the world. His vocals are best described as gritty and his style is more shouting than actual singing. However this totally fits the loud and heavy punk melodies of most of the songs and the fact is that there are few people out there who can match the passion and energy that Al brings to their songs. I’ve previously heard people listen to them and say that their music is likely to make people smash *** and start riots, bar fights, and other acts of violence. However the presence of bagpipes, mandolin and accordion in all their music also makes people want to spontaneously break out into a jig so this music is definitely a lot of fun to listen to.
The ‘Meanest of Times’ mixes up this fun aspect with a lot more serious tunes. The name of the album is derived from the hard lives that a lot of the band members lived through as children. Therefore there seems to be a central family theme running through a lot of the songs. I would highly recommend reading over the actual lyrics, as they are really good and rather poignant.
Now for a brief track by track description of the songs.
Famous for nothing: This fast and frantic start track is greatly accentuated with lots of backing vocals and bagpipes. Very good song for those new to the Dropkick Murphy’s as it sums up their music style well. The story behind this is about a gang of guys handling the problems and troubles within their hometown through alcohol. 8/10
God Willing: Dedicated to friends they have lost over the years. Okay track but the music doesn’t have enough depth to match the meaningful lyrics. Rather repetitive but the chorus is rousing and fun to sing along to. 6/10
State of Massachusetts: A Banjo solo kicks of this song, which is the first to tug at the heartstrings as it’s about an abused mother’s children being taken away from her. The banjo is really the highlight of this track and really makes you want to dance a crazy jig, despite the sadness. 9/10
Tomorrow’s Industry: A nonstop rocking track that kicks off with an awesome count in. A rousing indictment on greedy America companies and how they cause family’s to suffer by working them harder and paying them less. A great drumbeat drives the frustration and anger home. 8/10
Echoes on ‘A’ street: The first relatively slow track (well as slow as dropkicks get) doesn’t really do it for me. As far as I can tell it’s about a dedicated woman (Shannon) waiting for her master to come home. Actually maybe it’s about a dog and her master. 6/10
Vices and virtues: A sad song that belies its meaning behind a rowdy rocking beat. The sing along chorus ‘Whisky, war, suicide and guns’ sums up the songs story. One son hung himself, another froze to death in an alley drinking gin, one got shot over drugs and another by a snipers gun during the war. 7/10
Surrender: A great paced track that has really grown on me. Well-timed vocals and a great guitar riff work well for this song about a son who couldn’t live up to his father’s wishes. 8/10
(F)lannigans Ball: Has guest vocal’s from Irish legends Spider Spacey ‘The Pogues’ and Ronnie Drew ‘The Dubliners’. Unfortunately the singing in this song is an acquired taste and you will either dig the unique tone or it will put you off the song completely. However the bagpipes are a real highlight on this track and the chorus absolutely rocks. I just wish this Flannigans ball shindig were real as it had free beer on tap, the boys were hammered and the girls were hearty. A fight then breaks out and someone tears a leg of a table and smashes dishes, someone gets kicked in the spleen and the piper nearly gets strangled. The girls in the middle nearly get trampled and that put an end to Flannigans ball. 9/10
I’ll begin again: Another song with a shout along chorus but it does get a bit repetitive. Basically about a guy recently out of jail for a crime he didn’t commit. Has a short guitar solo to finish off the song but apart from that nothing stands out on this track. 6/10
Fairmont Hill: A slow song based on an Irish barroom ballad. The banjo and drum beat work well but unfortunately Al Bars untuned voice stands out like a sore thumb. Still it’s a good song if you can forgive the vocals. 7/10
Loyal to no one: A banjo breakdown and an angry chorus shouting ‘Loyal to no one!’ are the highlights on this trick. I think there’s even a slight hint of accordion in the back of this one, but I could be wrong and maybe it’s just the bagpipes or mandolin. 7/10
Shattered: A nice bass line kicks this track one off which then drives into overgear as one of the fastest punk sounding tracks off the album. Since they’re ranting their anger on a wide range of things this track has to be fast to fit it all in. Steroid abusing ball players, anorexic role models, child molesting priests, cops stalking girls, the crooked FBI and gay cheating husbands are all covering in the space of 2 min 48 sec. 8/10
Rude Awakenings: The slow banjo starts this song and blends in well with the vocals. This song really hits its stride midway as after a 1,2,3,4 count in the bagpipes change the tempo. The song is best summarised by the lines “I buried my loneliness with her for the night then I left with new symptoms no antidepressant could cure”. Let the lyrics “With the night still fresh on my breath I awoke to the grime face of death” be a warning not to sleep with strangers who don’t even know who you are the next morning. By the end you’ll probably singing along “Hey, what she take ya for”. 8/10
Johhny I hardly knew ya: This is based around an American civil war classic ‘When Johnny comes marching home’ and when you hear this song you’ll probably say I heard this before. An absolutely awesome track and definitely the most fun and exciting one on the album. The mandolin plays a major part in this song along with the rousing chorus “We had guns and drums and guns and drums. Hurroo Hurroo” It even has a break down near the end with a kicking drum beat. I can’t get enough of this track. 10/10
Never Forgot: The final track of the album begins with bag pipping goodness and ends on a positive note. Compared to previous songs this one has a very uplifting message that basically says that even though things can be hard “May good fortune turn your way and to everyone who’s had someone remember them today”. The chorus will have you singing, “When you got love and we got family”. 7/10
Jailbreak (Bonus Track): This is a cover of a song released in 1976 by the Irish band Thin Lizzy. Due to the bagpipes throughout it sounds different to the original but is still rather catchy. Would have preferred them to cover their other hit ‘The boys are back in town’, but I suppose Everclear have already done that. 7/10
In conclusion if you’ve never heard the Dropkick Murphy’s before then ‘The meanest of times’ would be a good album to start with as it sums up their style very well. While getting used to the raw vocals takes awhile it’s hard to beat the amount of passion and energy these guys put into their music. Personally this album isn’t as good as the ‘The warriors code’ or ‘Blackout’ as these releases had a greater diversity of energetic Irish songs. This newest release is missing this Celtic flavor due to the bagpipes being less pronounced throughout. However as there’s a number of meaningful stories to hear on this album you‘ll get more from it if you thoroughly read and listen to the lyrics.
If you’re a long time fan of the Dropkicks like me then this album is sure to please. If you're a first time listener and can forgive the harsh vocals then I would also highly recommend this album.
Rating: 4/5
