The venue was literally right alongside the boardwalk, which is a stones-throw from the ocean. It was a very nice location for such a place and the it was a beautiful day. The venue is basically a large, round tent. The acoustics of the show were completely abysmal. It was the wrong venue for a punk show in general; in my opinion punk rock shows need to be in small, acoustic-sympathetic bar/clubs. The show was still loud, it just sounded terrible.
I missed Jake Burns' set entirely, which is a shame seeing that he's something of a legend himself, having fronted the great Stiff Little Fingers. Perhaps Ireland's first proper punk band. We arrived about 30 minutes after showtime (which was 6 PM sharp, apparently) and the Bouncing Souls were halfway through their set. They were probably my favorite band of the evening. Such classics as "Gone", "Kids and Heroes" and "True Believers" were all performed with much youthful enthusiasm. I really wish I'd caught their entire set.
Dropkick Murphys were up next. Despite being a fine live act, their performance felt a bit hollow. I really didn't feel too much of a connection with their music at all. Maybe I've heard "I'm Shipping Up To Boston" in one too many commercials. Also, poor sound marred any potential chance of any true enjoyment.
Headliners Rancid took the stage with definite purpose. Their newest album Troublemaker is basically more of the same old Rancid, for better or worse. The band was tight with Tim Armstrong and Lars Frederiksen in fine form. Their twenty-song set included a whopping eight tracks from their platinum break-through album ...And Out Come The Wolves (including the classic singles "Ruby Soho", "Time Bomb" and "Roots Radicals"). "Nihilism", "Radio" and "Salvation" from Let's Go also got proper airings. As did a few from their newest album, including the single "Ghost Of A Chance".
The absolute highlight of the evening was Rancid & Dropkick Murphys performing an encore four-song set of "Take 'Em All" by Cock Sparrer, "Cretin Hop" by The Ramones, "Folsom Prison Blues" by Johnny Cash and "If The Kids Are United" by Sham 69.
