Dropkick Murphys & Rancid to Tour
Boston to Berkeley II
June 14, 2021 by Traci Turner
Yet another amazing concert announcement to welcome us back to live shows! Dropkick Murphys and Rancid will co-headline their Boston to Berkeley II Tour in the US.
Originally planned for 2020, the tour kicks off in August and runs through October. OC residents can see the bands in Santa Ana, plus take short trips to see them in San Diego, Los Angeles, and Paso Robles. Both bands will also appear at major festivals: Riot Fest in Chicago (September 18th) and Aftershock in Sacramento (October 8th).
At the tour announcement, Rancid’s Tim Armstrong said, “Looking forward to hitting the road with the Dropkick Murphys again for the second edition of our Boston To Berkeley Tour. Our good buddies The Bronx will be joining us on tour as well. See ya in the pit!”
Dropkick Murphys’ Ken Casey added, “Can’t wait to get back out there and kick the touring door open again. This is a great lineup and we are gonna take the country by storm.”
Rancid has been at this for a quarter of a century now, but remains as fresh as when they were newbies. Founding Tim Armstrong (vocals, guitar) and Matt Freeman (bass, vocals) released their first Rancid album in 1993, then added Lars Frederiksen (vocals, guitar) to them team. The trio released the epic albums “Let’s Go” and “…And Out Come the Wolves.” The band continued to have success with “Life Won’t Wait” and “Rancid.” After releasing “Indestructible,” Branden Steineckert (drums) was added to the band and the line-up remains as is. They have continued to release solid albums and always put on an amazing live show.
Dropkick Murphys – required St. Patrick’s Day soundtrack that also fits in all year long – have always given us music that becomes a rallying track for anything in life. With four consecutive Billboard top 10 albums (“Turn Up That Dial,” “11 Short Stories Of Pain & Glory,” “Signed and Sealed in Blood,” and “Going Out In Style”), they prove they are worthy of our attention. They kept us entertained with livestreams during lockdown, and now they are ready to be back in our face in person. Al Barr (lead vocals), Tim Brennan (guitars, accordion, mellotron, whistles, vocals), Ken Casey (lead vocals, bass guitar), Jeff DaRosa (banjo, bouzouki, mandolin, harmonica, acoustic guitars, vocals), Matt Kelly (drums, percussion, vocals), James Lynch (guitar, vocals), Kevin Rheault (touring bassist) and Lee Forshner (touring bagpipe player) will see you from stage soon.
The two bands have toured with each other before and have a long history together. In 1997, Rancid’s Lars Fredericksen came into possession of the original Dropkick Murphys EP. He passed it onto Armstrong, who snagged the band for his record label. (So this is like touring with your boss?!)
The final band of each show will alternate and most of the dates will have special guest The Bronx. Tickets go on sale this Friday (June 18th) at 10 a.m. in each time zone.
TO FOLLOW DROPKICK
TO FOLLOW RANCID
The Dropkick Murphys / Rancid Boston To Berkeley II tour dates:
| Date | City | Venue |
| Tue. 8/10 | Waite Park, MN | The Ledge Amphitheater – Waite Park |
| Wed. 8/11 | Kansas City, MO | Grinders |
| Fri. 8/13 | Lincoln, NE | Lincoln On The Streets |
| Sat. 8/14 | Wichita, KS | Wave |
| Sun. 8/15 | Sauget, IL | Pop’s Outside |
| Tue. 8/17 | Washington, PA | Wild Things Park |
| Wed. 8/18 | Cincinnati, OH | The ICON Festival Stage at Smale Park |
| Fri. 8/20 | Gilford, NH | Bank Of New Hampshire Pavilion |
| Sat. 8/21 | Worcester, MA | The Palladium Outdoors |
| Sun. 8/22 | Lewiston, NY | Artpark Amphitheater |
| Mon. 8/23 | Columbus, OH | EXPRESS LIVE! – Outdoors |
| Wed. 8/25 | Richmond, VA | Virginia Credit Union Live! |
| Fri. 8/27 | Asbury Park, NJ | Stone Pony Summerstage |
| Sat. 8/28 | New York, NY | Forest Hills Stadium |
| Tue. 8/31 | Philadelphia, PA | Skyline Stage @ Mann Music Center |
| Wed. 9/1 | Bridgeport, CT | Hartford Health Care Amphitheater in Bridgeport |
| Sat. 9/18 | Chicago, IL | Douglass Park (Riot Fest) * |
| Fri. 9/24 | Nashville, TN | Ascend Amphitheater + |
| Sat. 9/25 | Atlanta, GA | Atlanta Civic Center – Outdoors + |
| Mon. 9/27 | Corpus Christi, TX | Concrete Street Amphitheatre |
| Tue. 9/29 | Grand Prairie, TX | Texas Trust CU Theatre at Grand Prairie |
| Wed. 9/29 | Oklahoma City, OK | The Zoo Amphitheatre |
| Fri. 10/1 | Denver, CO | Mission Ballroom Outdoors |
| Sat. 10/2 | Sandy, UT | U of U Health Plaza Rio Tinto Stadium |
| Mon. 10/4 | Nampa, ID | Ford Idaho Center Amphitheater |
| Tue. 10/5 | Seattle, WA | WAMU Theater |
| Thu. 10/7 | Palo Alto, CA | Frost Amphitheater |
| Fri. 10/8 | Sacramento, CA | Discovery Park (Aftershock) * |
| Sat. 10/9 | Santa Ana, CA | Observatory OC Festival Grounds |
| Sun. 10/10 | San Diego, CA | Gallagher Square at Petco Park San Diego |
| Tue. 10/12 | Mesa, AZ | Mesa Amphitheatre |
| Wed. 10/13 | Paso Robles, CA | Vina Robles Amphitheatre |
| Fri. 10/15 | Las Vegas, NV | Theater at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas |
| Sat. 10/16 | Los Angeles, CA | Shrine LA Outdoors |
| * Festival date | ||
| + without The Bronx, opener TBA |
SID 210616 | JIMMY ALVARTEZ, EDITOR
