He went against the grain, he fought the good fight, he spoke up and sang about his beliefs. That’s no coincidence, explains Murphys founder Ken Casey: “ Woody Guthrie, he’s the original punk. Whether it’s standing up to Nazi thugs or standing with working men and women on a picket line, showing up is what holds the center in DKM’s world.Īs Woody once said: “A folk song is what’s wrong and how to fix it, or it could be who’s hungry and where their mouth is, or who’s out of work and where the job is, or who’s broke and where the money is, or who’s carrying a gun and where the peace is.” In both song and deed, Dropkick Murphys have always held true to this same view. Like Woody, showing up in real life is what makes their songs so impactful. The band’s ethos of family, community, service, and action depends upon honest reporting in their music. This is where Guthrie and the Murphys intersect. He made a point of showing up when it counted most, often performing at fundraisers, benefits, and rallies to champion working class causes and condemn greed, war, and unchecked capitalism - all with his guitar in hand.
Guthrie wrote songs from the heart and for the common person. DKM harnessed all of their trademark power to craft these songs and bring Woody’s lyrics to life. But make no mistake: this is NOT your grandfather’s folk album. In fact, not a single amplifier was used to animate Woody’s words in these songs. And they’ve done it all without their usual arsenal of electric guitars. The resulting music is eerily relevant to today’s world. In the 10 songs that make up this album, Dropkick Murphys turn Woody Guthrie’s perennial jabs at life - many of which are from the 1940s and ’50s - into the time of their lives. There’s an answer to that question - and it’s contained on This Machine Still Kills Fascists. But what about lyrics that were written about the people and issues of the author’s time - then put away, never to be seen until almost a century later, when a band pulled them out of the archive and were floored by how vividly those lyrics describe the news of their day? Tearjerkers and kids’ songs, thought provokers and rally cries. We can all think of songs that fit every era, every life event. T HE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Some songs are timeless.
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