The remains of Hurricane Ida were bearing down on Connecticut. However, the Boston to Berkeley II tour lived up to the old showbiz phrase, “The Show Must Got On”.
Hartford Healthcare Amphitheater in Bridgeport, CT is a beautiful theater created from a minor league baseball field. Thus, the roof covering the general admission floor is covered by tent material. The sides are open to the great outdoors which tends to keep it cooler for their summer concerts. However, with strong winds and rain, the GA area gets a bit wet. That didn’t dampen the spirits of young and old punk rock fans in attendance this evening.
The start of the show was pushed up to try to beat the storm. Los Angeles punk rockers, The Bronx took the stage a half-hour early as the crowd was still filing in. Even though the crowd was a bit sparse, the band played their hearts out. Lead singer Matt Caughthran stalked the stage like a lion on the prowl. His voice, like that of a lion, growled with a fierce intensity. The Bronx is touring on their latest release entitled The Bronx VI which is their 6th studio album. It’s a powerhouse of an album. After almost 20 years in the business, they prove that they are as relevant as they were when they started. They’ll wow you whether on vinyl or on stage.
After the stage crew hustled to make quick work out of the equipment changeout (remember, there’s a major storm coming) Rancid took the stage. 30 years in the business hasn’t slowed these guys down a single bit. They hit the stage with their wildly popular “Roots Radicals” and there was no slowing them down! Lead vocals bounced seamlessly between guitarist Lars Frederiksen and guitarist Tim Armstrong. Bassist Matt Freeman is widely regarded as one of the top punk rock bass guitarists. This night, as always, he lived up to that title! Holding down the rhythm section was the animated Branden Steineckert. Not only did he do an exceptional job keeping time, he clearly was having fun doing so!
Their set seemed to lean heavily on 1995s platinum release “…And Out Come The Wolves”. Fans showed their approval as they danced and sang along as the rain started falling in earnest. Occasionally joining Rancid on the keyboard as their 5th member was the Dropkick Murphy’s multi-instrumentalist, Tim Brennan. He fit right in and really gave the band a full sound. Towards the end of the set, the crowd was treated to a solo version of “The Wars End”. The song showed the versatility of Frederiksen and was a nice contrast to the rest of the frenzied high-powered set.
Rancid’s set finished up and leaving viewers wanting more. There are no signs of these guys slowing down. That’s certainly a good thing for those who are fans of hard-driving punk with occasional ska undertones.
Again, the stage crew hustled to change equipment. One noticeable difference during this break was the addition of squeegees. The rain started falling harder and the wind was blowing it onto the stage from the open sides as well as some from tent seams above the front of the stage. The crew worked tirelessly to keep the stage as dry as possible and that was no small feat.
Finally, the mighty Celtic punk rock band from Boston, Dropkick Murphys hit the stage! As they took the stage, singer Ken Casey came running across the front of the stage gleefully clearing the water with a squeegee. To the delight of their long-time/old school fans, they opened the show with their 1997 release, “Boys On The Docks”. The Murphys also treated the fans to several new songs from their latest release, “Turn Up That Dial”. These songs were as joyously received as the songs from years past.
The center of the floor was surrounded by a circle barricade to keep folks off the extremely wet area of the floor. Casey implored the crowd to form a circle pit dancing around the barricade and the hardcore fans complied. As the set went on, you could tell that Casey and co-singer Al Barr were getting wet and not from sweat. As you can see in some of the accompanying photos, the rain was really coming down.
After the 7th song of the set, one of the new songs, “Good As Gold”, they made the announcement everyone was dreading. The show was being cut short. It was NOT because the band had become weary of playing in the inclement weather, not in the least. However, to be honest, no one could blame them if that was the reason for the sake of their own safety! Sadly, a large amount of lightning was moving into the area. Thus, for the safety of everyone in attendance, they played a mere 8 song set. Finishing off the set was their wildly popular “I’m Shipping Up To Boston”.
No one in attendance of a shortened show should ever fault a band or a venue’s management for cutting it short for the sake of safety. Yes, it’s a huge disappointment for the fans but it is best that no one gets hurt and everyone can leave before a possible disaster happens.
The Boston to Berkeley II tour resumes Sept 24th in Nashville. Do what you can to get to one of these shows as it is NOT to be missed!!!
Dates / Locations for the second leg of the tour: