Dropkick Murphys at the Wellmont Theater on Tuesday, February 10th, 2026

The Dropkick Murphys are easily one of the most iconic Celtic punk groups of all time. From selling out Fenway over and over to headlining festivals around the world, the boys from Boston have worked hard the last 30 years and know how to celebrate that legacy. The fact the show came through on a Tuesday did effect the crowd for the opening acts, but a sold out show is a sold out show and by the time Dropkick took the stage, the place was ready.

Kicking the night off, and only 30 minutes after doors opened, was California's Slugger. I wasn't familiar with these guys before the show, and they were even a last minute addition to the tour as a whole, but knowing who was already opening I had a feeling they were going to meet those already high expectations. My faith in the Murphys and their team paid off, as Slugger came out swinging (pun very much intended) with an old-school hardcore punk sound. Despite playing first and to a small but growing crowd, they made a number of new fans that night, myself included.

As much as this was Dropkick's show, Haywire was the band I was most excited for, as this was the first time I wasn't working security and could actually enjoy them without worrying about flying trashcans. These guys have been working hard over the last two years, having only released their first album in 2024. They have a tendency to play wherever and whenever they want, flying from Colorado, to Jersey, and back in a three day span; a Brooklyn gallery wrestling show followed shortly by a show on the Williamsburg Bridge bike path that same night. Easily the hardest working band in hardcore obviously killed it, with frontman Austin Sparkman jumping into the crowd to kickstart the pit when he felt it needed an extra push.

In a style shift from the heavier punk and hardcore before them, The Aggrolites came out with their signature reggae style. At this point most of the crowd had arrived and they were treated to a high-energy performance from an excellent group of musicians. Despite being a more mellow style compared to the rest of the bill they still got the crowd moving, albeit less as a mosh pit and more in the regular dancing sense. While they did play a set that was mostly theirs, mostly focusing on their first three albums, there were a few covers that made their way onto the setlist. From punk icons like The Clash to the classics like Frankie Valli, The Aggrolites did an excellent job at making these covers their own. They ended their set with the title track of their debut album "Dirty Reggae" followed by their version of "Don't Let Me Down" by The Beatles, a song that quite honestly sounded better with their reggae spin put on it. Then, the lights came up and everyone knew there were only a few minutes away from the moment we were all there for.

While the official name of the tour is the "For The People...In The Pit" tour, the Dropkick Murphys showed right from the start this tour was also celebration of 30 years, playing "Deeds Not Words" which hadn't been played in a month shy of a decade before this tour as well as the live rarity "Caps and Bottles". They didn't linger on deeper cuts all night, as fan favorites like "Johnny, I Hardly Knew Ya" and newer songs like "Chesterfields and Aftershave" came into play throughout the set. Before the tour kicked off, Dropkick Murphys announced a split EP with Haywire that contained the re-working of their song "Citizen C.I.A." into "Citizen I.C.E." and, when it came time, Austin from Haywire came and took the already high-energy song to new heights. Sadly the night did have to end, but not without the triple threat that is "I'm Shipping Up To Boston", "Rose Tattoo", and "Worker's Song" with the new hit "The Big Man" thrown in for good measure.

Dropkick Murphys played a 23-song set that included:

Deeds Not Words
The State of Massachusetts
Caps and Bottles
The Boys Are Back
Gonna Be A Blackout Tonight
Walk Away
Fields of Athenry
Johnny, I Hardly Knew Ya
Who'll Stand With Us?
Chesterfields and Aftershave
Barroom Hero
Boys on the Docks
Caught In A Jar
Sirens
The Green Fields Of France
The Vultures Circle High
Good As Gold
Citizen I.C.E. (with Haywire's Austin Sparkman)
James Connolly
I'm Shipping Up To Boston
The Big Man
Rose Tattoo
Worker's Song

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