Since 1996 Boston's The Dropkick Murphys have fused traditional Celtic music, hardcore, and just straight-up rock 'n' roll into a sweaty, swinging sledgehammer. The floor in front of the stage at the band's shows rapidly shifts from pogo to mosh to frappe. The band's onstage power and lyrical adherence to the life and times of the common man has earned it wide appeal. The music is wildly aggressive, with lyrics that hit their mark thanks to the band's battle-cry delivery.

In 2004 the band re-recorded the 1903 classic "Tessie" for the Boston Red Sox. It became the team's official song, and that year the Red Sox won its first World Series in 86 years. The Australian Football League has adopted the band as well. And the band has gone Hollywood, appearing on the soundtrack of Martin Scorsese's crooked cop film, "The Departed."

Singer Al Barr was packing his bags for the upcoming tour with The Offspring when we called. The band had just played a hometown gig with Aerosmith the night before. Below you'll find an edited transcript of what he had to say.

CITY: So Aerosmith - how was that?

Al Barr: It was great man. It was a wild time. They asked us to do the show and it was a huge honor; one for the book, as they say.

Your music has been adopted by the Red Sox and now the Australian Football League. What's with The Dropkick Murphys and sports?

There are a number of members in the band that are actually rabid sports animals. I am not one of them, but our founder and leader, Ken Casey, would follow under the category. I'm outnumbered by the sports fans, let's put it that way. I support the local teams obviously, the Pats, the Sox, and the Bruins. But I don't keep up to date.

Why does it seem that Boston bands carry a whole lot of hometown pride, more than anywhere else?

It just kind of is. It's always been that way. I think New Englanders are just naturally built that way, at least that's been my experience growing up here. I've always found that people from Boston and the states surrounding seem to have a real sense of where they come from and don't like anyone talking smack about it.

Now that you've got more than 10 albums with a proven formula, how do you keep it fresh?

We've always said we're like The Ramones or AC/DC with what we do; if it ain't broke, don't fix it. But at the same time, we have to keep challenging ourselves. And if we find that tunes we're putting together for a record are boring us, we're not going to record them. I mean, it has to be something we feel passionate about.

Is there any room for any changes? And do your fans roll with them?

Within the confines of The Dropkick Murphys we've never been pigeonholed. I guess you could say we're a punk band meets a folk band, and within those confines we're able to do a ballad and a hardcore song and a folk song. And with "The Meanest Of Times" we got that all together. We finally fused it all together and you have your folk and your punk all in one song in some cases. Our fans kind of allow us to do that.

So there really are no limitations?

No, there's not. I mean, you're not gonna get any oboes or tubas or any synth-techno shit, but in terms of the rock 'n' roll genre, there really are no limits.

At this point your band is as influential as the bands that influenced The Dropkick Murphys to begin with.

You know, I appreciate the words, but I always look at it as we're very lucky to do what we do. We all say we have the best jobs in the world. We're very blessed to have the best fans and most loyal fans in the world. Everybody in the band has been doing it for a long time, and I've seen the hardcore scene in America change drastically since 1980. I always tip my hat to the ones that came before us. Bands like The Clash and The Ramones, and Stiff Little Fingers and the Boston hardcore bands like Gang Green and the Straw Dogs. And then Ronnie Drew - may he rest in peace - and The Pogues and bands of that ilk. And of course, straight-up American folk.

Yeah, and there are bands that look at you the same way.

Well, I appreciate that, and maybe history will remember us that way. It's not really something I look out my window and check. If it ends up that way, it's nice. We just do what we do, and if we're making a positive influence out there, that's great. I'm not going to shy away from it, but at the same time I'm not seeking any glory from it either.

The Dropkick Murphys

w/Frank Turner, The Offspring

Tuesday, June 30

CMAC, 4355 Lakeshore Dr, Canandaigua

7 p.m. | $19-50-$39.50 | 232-1900

dropkickmurphys.com