Roadtrips

Somebody call 911 -- here it is, St. Patrick's Day and in Boston, fer the luvva the Irish, and no sign of the two reigning local heroes of pub punk. Only foul play can be to blame. Especially since the Dropkick Murphys spent last Paddy's day in -- urgh! -- New York City, a blatant bit of bad form. But nay, we spy the rat bastards spending the drinkin' man's holiday in, of all places, Portland, Maine. They're at the Asylum (207-772-8274) on March 18 with local hardcore stalwarts Tree (whose logo is, after all, a four-leafed clover) and UK punk pros the Business. Alas, the Murphys couldn't be bothered to join the Business on their trek through the rest of New England -- which includes dates at the Met Café (401-861-2142) in Providence on March 16 and at Karma (617-423-NEXT) in Boston on March 19. Oh, fer shame! And what of the other half of the equation, the Big Bad Bollocks? They've opted to spend their March 17 at the Iron Horse (413-584-0610) in Northampton.

So what have we? Some kind of semi-aquatic food chain, apparently. Newfoundland's Great Big Sea open for the Push Stars at Avalon (617-423-NEXT) on March 17. The Push Stars open for Cracker at Lupo's Heartbreak Hotel (401-272-5876) in Providence on March 23. Then Cracker hit Karma on March 24. Stevie Ray-worshipping blues guitar phenom Kenny Wayne Shepherd is at Avalon on March 16; then he'll head to Lupo's, where he's already sold out a March 17 gig, prompting the venue to add another on the 19th.

Okay, on to the nasty stuff. Wu-Tang Clan affiliate Ghostface Killah -- not to be confused with Jim Jarmusch's as-seen-on-cinema hero Ghost Dog -- attempts to bolster album sales of his new Supreme Clientele with a mini-tour that comes only as close as Razzle's (413-732-8181) in Springfield on March 18. That same night in Lowell, radio station WAAF rents out the Tsongas Arena for a gig with nü-metal's Static-X, Incubus, and our favorite new girl band, Kittie -- who look young enough to be the Donnas' Marilyn Manson-loving little sisters and rock so much harder than those Drain STH poseurs. When they scream, it sounds like screaming. And their riffs totally out-blackmetal Coal Chamber. Anyhow, the only way to get tickets is to tune in WAAF. But you can also catch Incubus playing the State Theatre (207-775-3331) in Portland, Maine, on March 19.

In a couple of weeks a Boston band called the Explosion will release an EP on Jade Tree, the Label That Emo Built. The surprise: the Explosion are a back-to-roots high-energy hardcore band, a headrush-inducing, candy-coated blur that's got us digging through our vintage '76-to-'83 vinyl for comparisons. They're hitting the road for a few dates with labelmates the Promise Ring, who ditched the emo thing and made a classy, classic-sounding pop album, Very Emergency, that made all the right critics' Top 10 lists. Catch both bands at the Met Café March 20 and the Iron Horse on March 21; the Explosion's CD release is at Karma in Boston on March 26.
-- Carly Carioli