Dropkick Murphys considered cancelling Coachella gig after Boston bombings

Celtic punk rockers the Dropkick Murphys almost cancelled their appearance at California’s Coachella festival on Saturday (20Apr13) in light of the Boston bombings in their native Massachusetts. The Rose Tattoo hitmakers, who hail from the city of Quincy, were in California when they learned that two bombs had exploded close to the finish line at the Boston Marathon on Monday (15Apr13).
They faced a worrying wait as they tried to check on their friends and family in the immediate aftermath of the tragedy, and although all of their loved ones were unscathed, group founder Ken Casey reveals they seriously considered pulling out of the second weekend of Coachella to return home.
They chose to press on with the weekend gig and instead honour the three killed and the more than 175 others injured in the blasts, but Casey admits it wasn’t an easy call to make.
He tells the Los Angeles Times, “It’s that fine line. You can’t change your lives too much. That serves the purpose of the people trying to perpetrate these crimes.
“The only, only, only good thing about these incidents is it makes everyone stop in their tracks and shows you people – people helping each other. This puts things in perspective. Spend a little less time on your cellphone checking email (sic) and talk to people you care about. This shows you what matters.”
The Dropkick Murphys had asked the audience at a show in Los Angeles on Wednesday (17Apr13) to observe a moment of silence for those hurt in the disaster, but the rockers decided against doing the same at Coachella.
He says, “We know people are here to party and we don’t want to rain on anyone’s parade. It’s nice, though, if even in a situation like this people can acknowledge the more serious elements of society and how fleeting life can be – how crazy life can be.”
Instead, the group opened its afternoon gig with the rowdy fight song For Boston, and dedicated Your Spirit’s Alive to all affected by the bombings. They also thanked the crowd at the end of their set for “showing so much support for the people of Boston”.
The bandmembers are already doing their part to help rally support for the people of Boston – they unveiled plans to sell custom-made T-shirts online on Wednesday and pre-sales have already raised more than $100,000 (£62,500) for charity ahead of its 30 April (13) retail date.