Celtic punk band Dropkick Murphys was originally formed in 1996 in Quincy, a city that is a part of Boston's metropolitan area. Although, there are two versions about the origin of the band's name from former members, both of them coincide in citing a rehab center as source of inspiration.
Dropkick Murphys began to play rehearsing in the basement of a barbershop, eventually releasing a number of EPs before signing a contract with Hellcat Records, a vanity records label based in Los Angeles, California.
The band has developed since then a unique musical style blending Irish music, hardcore, and oi!, a subgenre of punk-rock of the street working class rooted in the United Kingdom back in the 1970’s.
Other metal bands and oi band have also influenced Dropkick Murphys music, including AC/DC, The Clash, The Swinging Utters, The Pogues, and Stiff Little Fingers.
Dropkick Murphys' debut album, "Do or Die" was released in 1998 and then after some lineup changes began. Even with lineup changes, the band returned to the studio in 1999 and released a new album "The Gang's All Here". This album also produced a video for the track "10 Years of Service" and also includes a secret ending at the title track: former guitarist Al Barton's answering machine can be heard on it.
Dropkick Murphys began to attract public and critic attention with their traditional Saint Patrick's Day weekend shows, held year after year in Boston, as important as their nationwide and worldwide tours.
The turn of the century increased the band live presentations going to the Warped Tour and many other festivals, but feeling especially engaged with Boston's concerns and even supporting some unions in that city.
From 1998 to 2007, Dropkick Murphys has released six albums, from which their fourth, "Blackout" was their breakthrough into the mainstream in 2003 peaking at number 83 on Billboard, and which track "Time to Go" was included in Tony Hawk's Underground video game.
The band's most recent album, "The Meanest of Times" was released on September 18, 2007 by another vanity label, Born & Bred Records, topping at number 20 on Billboard 200 chart, with nearly 28,000 copies sold out in its first week.
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