By Dave Parsons
Wheeling, West Virginia had the luck of the Irish a wee bit early this year, when Wesbanco Arena hosted the Dropkick Murphy’s St. Patrick’s Day tour on March 2. Despite having another well attended event in town right up the street, and downtown Wheeling looking like a bombed third world country due to never ending construction, the crowd filed in all evening and the arena had a packed standing floor and seating area by the time the band took the stage.
A three-song recorded introduction alerted the crowd to get in place, and at the stroke of 9 PM, the Dropkick Murphys took the stage to a raucous ovation. Opening with Your Spirit’s Alive, it set the tone of what was to come, both on stage and off. By the time they got to the second song, The Boys Are Back lead singer Ken Casey was on the platform in front of the stage, helping to balance crowd surfers, and sharing a line or two of the chorus with them before security showed them the way out. It was obvious the this crowd came for a party and the band never slowed down.
There was a little bit of everything for the music lover, as well as for the visual. Mixing a band that never stops moving around the stage to a video board with a little bit of everything on it throughout the night, kept everyone entertained. The setlist was chocked fill of hit after hit, like Two 6s Upside Down, Climbing A Chair To Bed, and Barroom Hero.
The crowd surfing never stopped, prompting Ken Casey to ask for a hand for security as “this is not what these guys agreed to.” By the time the band got to Johnny I Hardly Knew Ya the circle pits were in full operation in the middle of the crowd on the floor.
It’s hard to imagine that Dropkick Murphys can keep the energy at the highest level for almost 2 hours nonstop, when you realize how many years they have been on the road. It’s almost like the audience on the floor has been in training for this marathon for some time. By the time they got to songs like Rose Tattoo the crowd was at the pinnacle of engaged and the band let the crowd sing the majority of the song for them.
Prior to the Dropkick Murphys set, the long touring band Pennywise put in a solid 14 song, 55 minute set of crowd favorites. They never really paused between songs, but held the last note of one and down beat into the next one. Each song seemed to amp the crowd a little more, making them the perfect lead into the Dropkick Murphys.
Additions to their usual sets on this tour included the band-titled Pennywise as well as a cover of Stand By Me that would have made Ben E. King sing along as loud as the Wheeling crowd did.
Opening this leg of the Dropkick Murphys tour is The Scratch. A 4 piece acoustic band from Dublin, Ireland they have a nice mix of traditional Irish and heavy metal. Taking the stage to a mostly empty arena is never a great spot to be in, but The Scratch poured out their unique blend to the audience that was there, and thanking the crowd a few different times for being their early to hear them
Dropkick Murphys Setlist
1.) There is Power in a Union (Recorded Song)
2.) The Foggy Dew (Recorded Song)
3.) Your Spirit’s Alive
4.) The Boys Are Back
5.) Climbing a Chair to Bed
6.) Going Out in Style
7.) Prisoner’s Song
8.) Johnny, I Hardly Knew Ya
9.) Two 6’s Upside Down
10.) The Gauntlet
11.) Barroom Hero
12.) Road of the Righteous
13.) Bastards on Parade
14.) The Auld Triangle
15.) The State of Massachusetts
16.) Skinhead on the MBTA
17.) Buried Alive
18.) Dirty Old Town
19.) (F)lannigan’s Ball
20.) Rose Tattoo
21.) T.N.T. (AC/DC cover)
22.) Captain Kelly’s Kitchen
23.) Kiss Me, I’m Shitfaced
24.) Worker’s Song
25.) I’m Shipping Up to Boston
Pennywise Setlist
1.) Peaceful Day
2.) My Own Country
3.) Straight Ahead
4.) Same Old Story
5.) My Own Way
6.) Violence Never Ending
7.) Fuck Authority
8.) Blitzkrieg Bop
9.) Pennywise
10.) Live While You Can
11.) Society
12.) Broken
13.) Stand By Me
14.) Bro Hymn
Photo Gallery : Dropkick Murphys – Wesbanco Arena (03.02.2024)
