Dropkick Murphys - This Machine Still Kills Fascists [CD]

Format: CD
Catalogue No.: DLM002CD
Barcode: 5400863089221
Release Date: 30 Sep 2022
Genre: Punk/Hardcore

 Dropkick Murphys announce a new album, unlike anything they’ve done to date, bringing Woody Guthrie’s words to life on ‘This Machine Still Kills Fascists’, released via the band’s Dummy Luck Music / [PIAS].
 In the 10 songs that make up ‘This Machine Still Kills Fascists’, Dropkick Murphys bring Woody Guthrie’s perennial jabs at life - many of which are from the 1940s and ‘50s - into the present, with the resulting music eerily relevant to today’s world. And they’ve done it all without their usual arsenal of electric guitars. In fact, not a single amplifier was used to animate Woody’s words in these songs, but DKM harnessed all of their trademark power to bring Woody’s lyrics to life.
 Dropkick Murphys founder Ken Casey explained, “The project has been a long time in the making. Nora Guthrie thought her father would’ve got a kick out of us, would’ve liked us, that we were somewhat kindred spirits so to speak, which to us was a huge honor.”
 Nora Guthrie added, “I collected lyrics on all kinds of topics… lyrics that seemed to be needed to be said - or screamed - today. Ken Casey is a master at understanding Woody’s lyrics, which can be complicated, long, deadly serious, or totally ridiculous. DKM is capable of delivering them all.”
 Dropkick Murphys’ James Lynch said, “Nora gave us the privilege of going through the archives and selecting some lyrics to use. The common thread that I see through everything was this love for people and this understanding of the universal truth that there is no one person fundamentally better than another person.”
 ‘This Machine Still Kills Fascists’ isn’t an acoustic folk departure for Dropkick Murphys - it’s a continuation of their journey with Woody Guthrie, which began nearly two decades ago when the band covered Woody’s ‘Gonna Be A Blackout Tonight’ on their 2003 album, ‘Blackout’. The journey reached new heights a few years later when founder Ken Casey discovered a few scribbled lines about Boston in the Woody Guthrie archive. The band painted Woody’s lyrics about their hometown into a vicious punk missive called ‘I’m Shipping Up To Boston’ and put the song on their 2005 album, ‘The Warrior’s Code’.
 First single ‘Two 6’s Upside Down’ is a forlorn gambler’s lament, awash in love and loss, murder and punishment. Ken Casey said, “We all love how ‘Two 6’s…’ came out. We’ve actually been playing it live on tour in Europe and the crowds have been super enthusiastic about it. Plus we really love to play it live.”
 Other standouts on the album include ‘Dig A Hole’, which features Dropkick Murphys’ full band performance wrapped around Woody’s rare Smithsonian Folkways recording, with Ken Casey essentially duetting with Woody, with a special appearance by Woody’s grandson, Cole Quest, on Dobro guitar and backing vocals; ‘Never Git Drunk No More’, featuring a duet between Casey and alt country artist Nikki Lane; ‘The Last One’, with guest vocals from country roots group Turnpike Troubadours’ Evan Felker, who hails from Woody’s hometown of Okemah, and Cole Quest on Dobro; and ‘Ten Times More’, which was written, arranged and recorded on the spot and features a guest appearance by Dom Flemons, founding member of Carolina Chocolate Drops, on harp; he also appears on ‘The Last One’ and ‘All You Fonies’.

Tracklisting
Two 6’s Upside Down
Talking Jukebox
All You Fonies
Never Git Drunk No More (feat. Nikki Lane)
Ten Times More
The Last One (feat. Evan Felker of Turnpike Troubadours)
Cadillac, Cadillac
Waters Are A’risin
Where Trouble Is At
Dig A Hole (feat. Woody Guthrie)