Dropkick Murphys & Bad Religion shake NYC with the Summer of Discontent
The magic of The Rooftop at Pier 17 is rare—a stage suspended above the city, where the New York skyline becomes part of the show. And on August 9, The East River breeze tangled with the distortion pouring from the amps of two punk rock legends, Dropkick Murphys and Bad Religion, and for a moment, it felt like the whole city was singing back.
Some openers feel like a warmup, a placeholder before the real action. Not The Mainliners. From the first note, they came out swinging with the kind of energy that could easily headline many of NYC’s storied music halls. True to punk form, the songs were brief, sharply written, and locked the crowd into the tempo for the rest of the evening.
Bad Religion stepped up with the confidence of a band that’s been fanning the flames of rebellion for more than forty years. Part of the joy in seeing veterans like this isn’t just hearing your favorite songs—it’s the storytelling between them, the way each track ties into a larger conversation they’ve been having with the world since the ’80s. When they launched into “Sorrow,” I was right back in my own embattled teenage years, growing up in a strict religious household and quietly clinging to bands like this as proof that I wasn’t alone. I caught sight of several young kids on the shoulders of their fathers, singing along to lyrics written long before they were born. It was a beautiful sight, and a telling reminder that punk rock will never die.
As the sun set behind the concrete jungle of the Financial District, the beauty of Pier 17 really takes hold. The stage lights cut sharper against the night, and behind Dropkick Murphys, a beautifully lit Brooklyn. The band took the stage like a battalion, in a singular formation across the front of the stage, seamlessly trading spots at the small platform built at the edge of the barricade, each taking a turn to meet the crowd face-to-face. What followed was a Celtic-punk siege
Of course, if there’s one thing these Boston stalwarts hate more than the New York Yankees, it’s Donald Trump, and they weren’t shy about letting the crowd know. During “Bury the Bones”, flashing images lit up the screens, highlighting the absurdity of hatred and corruption in politics. The juxtaposition of those images with a rooftop full of people united in song against that same absurdity was a beautiful thing to witness.
From there, the night only got wilder—crowd surfers cascaded across the rooftop, fans screamed into the darkness of the night and a circle pit so massive during the last two songs it looked like the pier itself might spin off into the East River. It wasn’t just the ticket holders who got in on it either; people lined the Brooklyn Bridge to listen, catching the echoes bouncing off the water. Over it all, a full moon hovered above the East River, claiming its own front-row seat.
Amid all the volume and chaos, one quiet moment cut through. After the final notes faded and the lights dimmed, frontman Ken Casey stayed perched on that same stage platform, signing merch, taking selfies, and leaning into conversations with fans for at least twenty minutes. It went well past the point most bands would be halfway back to the bus. That’s impact—that’s devotion to the scene and to the people who keep it alive.
For a night billed under the Summer of Discontent Tour, there wasn’t an ounce of disappointment to be found. Just sweat, smiles, and the kind of connection that turns a show into a story you’ll be telling years from now.
Bad Religion SET LIST
Recipe for Hate
Supersonic
You Are (the Government)
Candidate
No Control
Struck a Nerve
New Dark Ages
Modern Man
My Sanity
I Want to Conquer the World
Fuck Armageddon... This Is Hell
Fields of Mars
Do What You Want
True North
Atomic Garden
We're Only Gonna Die
Generator
You
21st Century (Digital Boy)
Infected
Cease
Anesthesia
Sorrow
American Jesus
Dropkick Murphys SET LIST
Who'll Stand With Us?
The State of Massachusetts
Going Out in Style
The Boys Are Back
Longshot
The Hardest Mile
Barroom Hero
Out of Our Heads
Chesterfields & Aftershave
Middle Finger
Finnegan's Wake ([traditional] cover)
Caught in a Jar
School Days Over
Johnny, I Hardly Knew Ya
Bury the Bones
Walk Away
Rose Tattoo
Worker's Song
I'm Shipping Up to Boston
The Big Man
