Playing like they mean it: the Dropkick Murphys.

Dropkick Murphys are two shows down with one tonight, two tomorrow, and one Sunday still to go. What better way to spend your St. Patrick's Day! Don't forget about the three New York City shows coming up next week followed by one night in Pomona, New Jersey. Check out the band's latest release 'The Singles Collection, Vol. 2' out now on Hellcat Records.

From the Daily Free Press:

Playing like they mean it: the Dropkick Murphys

Hold your Guinness high, find your greenest sweater and brush up on your Gaelic, because there are few events that celebrate Boston's Irish heritage as fully as this one: a Dropkick Murphys show on St. Patrick's Day.

Coming back to their hometown for the celebration, the Dropkick Murphys will be celebrating their roots with the rest of Boston's Irish with a different show every night of this week at Avalon on Lansdowne Street. Fans of the band's Celtic punk sound know that a Dropkick show is more than a show: It's a wired, wild trip into the heart of working-class Southie, complete with tin whistles, bagpipes and enough whiskey-induced spastic energy to draw generations of Bostonians to their feet.

The Dropkick Murphys, formed in 1996, have released over 10 singles, two EP CDs and four full-length albums to date, and have established an enormous worldwide fan base, touring Europe and Australia. The Dropkicks have also landed high-profile slots on the Warped and Punk-O-Rama tours, performed at the Sex Pistols' notorious Silver Jubilee gig and brought Conan O'Brien home on "The Late Show."

Rated "Best Live Band 2004" in Boston Magazine's annual "Best of Boston" issue, there is no doubt that these bootstrap rockers have made a name for themselves, in spite of their avoidance of the mainstream music industry, with raw talent, brazen attitudes and a steady diet of black-and-tans.

The group's homecoming shows have become so legendary, they've shattered venue sales records previously held by the Ramones, selling 8,000 tickets for four shows in 2003.

The band and its friends and families will also be attending the annual St. Patrick's Day parade on Sun. Mar. 20 starting at 1 p.m., meeting at the corner of Broadway & C St. by Al's Liquors, underneath the Dropkick mural. Take the red line toward Braintree and get off at Broadway station, and you will be right in the heart of the action. m

By Jessica Sanborne
href='http://www.dailyfreepress.com/news/2005/03/17/Muse/Playing.Like.They.Mean.It.The.Dropkick.Murphys-896533.shtml' target='_blank'>dailyfreepress.com