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November 03 2016
Dropkick Murphys' New Album 11 Short Stories Of Pain & Glory Due Out January 6
Band Announces 11 Short Stories of Pain & Glory 2017 National
Tour Starting February 21 And Culminating With Annual Hometown Run Of
Boston Shows St. Patrick's Day Week
The Dropkick Murphys today announced that their ninth studio album 11 Short Stories Of Pain & Glory will be released on January 6th through their label Born & Bred Records. The album is available for pre-order now and the band has shared an incredible lyric video for
the song from the album "Blood". Ted Hutt, who has previously worked
with the band (and Gaslight Anthem and Old Crow Medicine Show), produced
the new album.
Dropkick Murphys--Al Barr (lead vocals), Tim Brennan (guitars,
accordion, mellotron, whistles, vocals), Ken Casey (lead vocals, bass
guitar), Jeff DaRosa (banjo, bouzouki, mandolin, harmonica, acoustic
guitars, vocals), Matt Kelly (drums, percussion, vocals), James Lynch
(guitar, vocals)--also announced a tour with openers The Interrupters
and Blood or Whiskey except where noted (see full dates below). The
first U.S. date of the 11 Short Stories of Pain & Glory 2017 tour is
February 21 in Bethlehem, PA. The trek will culminate with the band's
annual hometown run of Boston shows St. Patrick's Day Week (March
15-19). Tickets for all shows go on sale this Friday, November 4.
The Dropkick Murphys have been synonymous with the city of Boston, and it's almost startling to learn that 11 Short Stories Of Pain & Glory was
not recorded there, but in El Paso, Texas. "To me, the whole journey
starts with the fact we actually agreed to go - and then went - to
Texas. Because we've never left home to make a record," says bassist and
founder Ken Casey. "As everyone's lives have become crazier and busier
with kids and families, it's gotten harder to buckle down at home. We
decided to leave Boston, go down to literally the middle of nowhere and
lock ourselves in a room."
Besides the location, the album was influenced by the band's work
with The Claddagh Fund, a charity the band established in 2009 to help
support addiction recovery as well as children's and veterans'
organizations. The band is hands-on in raising funds, mentoring, and
lending a helping hand in the fight. Many of the songs reflect these
experiences, and the band's sadness, anger and dismay at the opiate
epidemic ravaging the country - in particular, Boston and New
England. The song "Rebels With A Cause" was written about kids who are
given up on, and left behind by a system that has written them off as
hopeless. "Paying My Way" is about the way up and out of addiction and
the dream of bigger and better things in life.
"4-15-13" stands out as one of the most emotional pieces in the
group's catalog. The track pays homage to the victims of the Boston
Marathon Bombing, most of whom the band grew to know personally after
visits to their hospital rooms in the aftermath. "Since that day, we
felt like not taking the challenge to write a song about what we all
went through would be taking the coward's way out," Casey reflects. "We
put more importance on writing that piece of music than anything we've
ever done, because if you're going to touch that day, it has to be done
right. We went through so many emotions with that whole experience, as
did everyone in Boston. It changed the city forever."
On the album, the band carries on the tradition of rough and tumble
storytelling - the kind of writing that never leaves fans wondering
whether the band have lived what they're singing about. A look back at
childhood life, a snapshot of a clueless Masshole, a stop-you-in-your
tracks reflection on a terrorist tragedy...it's all there across the
record's 11 tracks. There are moments of ass-kicking Celtic punk
attitude, ball-busting wisecracks, tear-jerking confessions, and the
kind of upbeat words of wisdom that can be chanted loud and proud across
arenas and stadiums worldwide.
11 Short Stories Of Pain & Glory represents a high-water mark for
Dropkick Murphys as they invite listeners everywhere to once again take
an active part in their story. "We've stayed true to what the band is
and has always been. And we're still expanding on our sound and lyrical
content," offers Brennan.
Pre-order 11 Short Stories Of Pain & Glory on iTunes + get an instant download of "Blood"here
Stream "Blood" on Apple Music
Stream "Blood" on Spotify
Stream "Blood" Amazon
Stream "Blood" on Google Play
11 Short Stories of Pain & Glory tour dates are as follows with
The Interrupters and Blood or Whiskey except where noted below.
2/21/17 - Bethlehem, PA - Sands Bethlehem Event Center *+
2/22/17 - Columbus, OH - Express Live! *+
2/24/17 - Clive, IA - 7 Flags Event Center *+
2/25/17 - Hinckley, MN - The Grand Minnesota Taste Together *
2/26/17 - Sioux Falls, SD - The District *+
2/28/17 - Kansas City, MO - Uptown Theater *+
3/1/17 - Tulsa, OK - Cain's Ballroom *+
3/2/17 - Little Rock, AK - Metroplex Live *+
3/4/17 - Birmingham, AL - Iron City *+
3/3/17 - Robinsonville, MS - Horseshoe Tunica - Bluesville *+
3/4/17 - Birmingham, AL - Iron City *+
3/6/17 - St. Petersburg, FL - Janus Live *
3/7/17 - Ft. Lauderdale, FL - Revolution Live *
3/8/17 - Lake Buena Vista, FL - House of Blues *
3/10/17 - Myrtle Beach, SC - House of Blues *+
3/11/17 - Washington, DC - Shamrockfest Dropkick Murphys ONLY
3/12/17 - Huntington, NY - The Paramount *+
3/15/17 - Boston, MA - TBA
3/16/17 - Boston, MA - TBA
3/17/17 - Boston, MA - TBA
3/18/17 - Boston, MA - Agganis Arena
3/18/17 - Boston, MA - After Party @ House Of Blues with Pro Boxing
3/19/17 - Boston, MA - TBA
* w/ Blood or Whiskey
+ w/ The Interrupters
Note: Following the March 18 Agganis Arena show, the band's official
after party at House Of Blues on Lansdowne Street will feature the St.
Patrick's Clash II Pro Boxing with local hero, U.S. Marine Afghan
Veteran and undefeated Light Middleweight Mark "Bazooka" DeLuca (16-0,
10KOs), as well as top local talent and some of Ireland's best fighters.
Proceeds from the after party will benefit The Claddagh Fund charities.
Website: www.dropkickmurphys.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/DropkickMurphys
Twitter: https://twitter.com/DropkickMurphys
Instagram: @dropkickmurphys
