With the roar of wailing bagpipes, ripping guitars and snarling vocals, Dropkick Murphys wrap a modern punk rock ethic around an age old Irish folk music tradition. Their innovative sound is marked by an uncompromised spirit of loyalty to the working-class environment in Boston, where the band members were raised, and a hooligan-like adoration for the city’s sports teams. The band will take the stage on the Hill Friday, October 30 as this year’s Student Programming Board (SPB) “Big Show.”

Dressed in Bruins jerseys, cut- off tees and kilts, the Dropkick Murphys are a far cry from the made-up pop culture rock stars on MTV. There is an unpretentious and gritty, yet poetic, quality to the Dropkick’s music that harkens back to an era when rock stars didn’t wear makeup, when song lyrics were scrawled on bar napkins and when people believed that the words to a song might actually change something in the world.

The Dropkick Murphys paint “Springsteen-esque” portraits of the plights of the working class, proud family heritages and the loss of loved ones with their fiery lyrics, whiskey soaked melodies and honest ballads about blue-collar workers, war and death. Dropkick Murphys somehow manage to weave themselves and their past into every piece of music they write without sounding pretentious or sentimental.

Devin Burkhart ’11, chair of the live music committee, was instrumental in bringing the band to Colby. “I chose Dropkick because I know they put on a great, high energy show that will sell to students at Colby as well as members of the local community.”

The group was formed in the basement of a barbershop in the South End of Boston in 1996 where they began self-releasing early recordings and hosting local shows. Two years after their formation, Tim Armstrong, (the front man for the punk rock band Rancid), signed Dropkick Murphys' to Hellcat Records. The rest, as they say, is history.

The band’s relentless touring, in-your-face attitude and unpretentious charisma has helped them reach widespread mainstream success without compromising their strong values.

Their song “Tessie” was featured in the major motion picture Fever Pitch, and continues to be played at Fenway Park, along with their track “Dirty Water,” after every Red Sox win.

The band’s music has been featured on video game sound tracks, MTV programs and, perhaps most notably “Shipping out to Boston” as the theme song for the Academy Award winning film, The Departed.

The stage is set for Dropkick Murphys' to take the Hill by storm this weekend. “I think it’s going to be a great show, they’re a big name band that can definitely get a crowd going. I’m more excited for this show than I have been for a Colby concert in a long time,” Craig Zevin ’11 said.

Given that the show will take place during Halloween weekend, “it’s going to be interesting to see how the costumes effect the head banging and jumping around and dancing,” Tommy Kimball ’12 commented.

Dropkick Murphys' have made a name for themselves by putting on raucous performances and getting fans involved. “I’m excited to see what a mosh-pit looks like at Colby,” Chris Scharff ’11 said. “I can’t wait to get in one.”

The band’s anthems of redemption and rising up after falling down, about wearing a cut off and a kilt on stage is a spirit anyone can get behind.

Whether they know it or not, Dropkick Murphys'’ bouncing Celtic melodies will make most any student want to break into a punked out version of Riverdance when the band takes the stage this weekend.

Just as Dropkick Murphys' transcends genres, their music will strike a booming power chord in anyone who will open up to the spirit and let the bagpipes carry their steps.

Doors open at 8:00 p.m. and the show will begin at 9 p.m. Tickets are on sale this week  for $15 and $25 for students and community members, respectively. Students are limited to two tickets per ID.