Okemah Rising

Along with 2022's This Machine Still Kills Fascists, Dropkick Murphys’ Okemah Rising stems from a self-directed project, the purpose of which was to compose original songs based on previously unpublished Woody Guthrie lyrics. The album features the American Celtic punkers in collaboration with folk-rockers the Violent Femmes (‘Gotta Get to Peekskill’), country singer-songwriter Jaime Wyatt (‘Bring It Home’) and fellow Bostonian headbanger Jesse Ahern. With the exception of ‘When I Was a Little Boy,’ the mostly acoustic music is frenetically hardcore, which for some ears can be a turn-off. The Murphys have always been politically active. With Ahern playing guitar and singing, ‘Ripping Up the Boundary Line’ is a rallying cry urging workers to cross artificial boundaries separating rich and poor. The band's signature anthem, ‘I’m Shipping Up to Boston,’ which tells the tale of a peg-legged sailor in search of his missing appendage, sounds more intriguing and hilarious thanks to the unplugged treatment. In today's political landscape, ‘Run Hitler Run’ takes on additional poignancy. Recently, the Ohio branch of the AFL-CIO, the largest federation of unions in the US, gave the Dropkick Murphys a ‘special recognition’ award for ‘empowering working people through their music.’ This album attests to the validity of the recognition.