Disco de Dropkick Murphys: “The Meanest of Times [Digipak]”

I have been a Dropkick Murphy's fan for about 8 years now. After Warriors Code released, I was a little unsure of the direction of the band. I did like Warriors code but it was a move away from "Sing Loud..." However with "The Meanest of Times" the Dropkick Murphy's have found a way the fuse good hard Irish music with punk rock, once again. I have had the privilege to own this CD for over a week and have listened to it probably 100 times already and this is my quick run-down.

"The meanest of Times" quite frankly is a mixture of the Warriors Code and Sing Loud Sing Proud. It has several very up beat song with loud and sing along choruses. They have expanded their music instruments and now fully rely on Spicy for Bag piping. There is no way a fan of DKM could listen to this album and not at least fall in love with in love with one or more songs on this album. The song Flannagan's Ball is an instant classic, with two God's of Irish music singing along. This album, however not my most favorite from DKM, is a great album and is worth buying.

Of course now people can preview the albums online, but bottom line: Buy it, you won't be sorry.

It's not often the case these days that a band can consistently put out albums that bring more depth and maturity to their work. All too often, bands recycle old ideas, or worse, try to match themselves with whatever

the public trends (or better still - the big marketing machines) are in to. Not at all true with DKM, thank God!

Although this album is a bit edgier in many respects than Warrior's Code, it maintains an overall tenor that makes the group hard to classify. Are they Punk? Irish? Rock? Heavy Metal? Perhaps one of the joys of this band is that they refuse to be put in a box for easy marketing. And, therefore - in my humble opinion - retain an appeal that strikes the fancy of many types of audiences. Their live shows are a great example of this broad spectrum of appeal. All of which makes landing at # 20 on the Billboard Top 200 list that much more remarkable. Let's hope they can continue to retain their originality with each new recording.

Here's the deal with "The Meanest of Times": Fans of Dropkick Murphys' first two albums, the more punk-oriented "Do or Die" and "The Gang's All Here," probably will love this album. Fans of the band's most recent three albums, the more Celtic-oriented "Sing Loud, Sing Proud," "Blackout" and "The Warrior's Code," probably will think it's a step in the wrong direction for the band.

Personally, I think on "The Meanest of Times" Dropkick Murphys finally has found the perfect combination of its punk and Celtic roots. All the Celtic instruments are present, but they're generally played in unison with the guitars instead of by themselves. Also, Al Barr and Ken Casey's gang vocals have never been better than here, especially on the album's blistering first four songs.

Along with Against Me!'s "New Wave," it's looking like "The Meanest of Times" could become one of my favorite punk albums of 2007.

Thanks alot DKM. I'm sure all the punk purists who were whining over the last 3 albums will just love you guys now. But for me, I can't help but feel ripped off. You release 2 great songs, The State of Massachusetts and Flannigan's Ball, make me so psyched for a great celtic punk masterpiece, and I get this; a bland punk album with a few songs with any Celtic influence.

The first 3 songs are phoenominal(sp?). Then it goes to some okay DKM punk rock. Okay, not that bad; but I am waiting for a good celtic punk song. They've completely butchered Flannigan's Ball. The guest singers simply sound terrible and ruin the mood of the song. Also, they made ballads sound good before, but they're just boring now. The bagpipes are absent through alot of the album, which made me hope for more use of the tin wistle, but I was let down there too. DKM can do really great punk; The Gang's All Here for example is an awesome album, with hardly any Irish influenced songs. Take It And Run from The Warrior's Code is by far one of my favorite DKM songs. They can do great punk, but they don't do it on The Meanest of Times.

I have to say I was very disappointed. It seems that this album is an answer to all the punk whiners. The great songs are The State of Massachusetts, Johnny I Hardly Knew Ya, God Willing, Loyal To No One, and Famous For Nothing. There are some other songs that are above average.

This album really is the meanest of times for the Dropkick Murphys.

This CD is just like every other one that DKM has come out with... It is amazing. They change their sound around on various songs, which is refreshing, instead of all hard and loud all the time. They are one of the few bands that can consistently come out with a good record. Just like any other album they have come out with, this is worth the purchase.