History
In 1997, McColgan left Dropkick Murphys "to pursue a lifelong dream of becoming a firefighter for the Boston Fire Department." In 2002, McColgan decided he could no longer stay away from music and formed Street Dogs. They first recorded a seven song-demo, which feature McColgan along with his former Dropkick Murphys bandmate Jeff Erna on drums, Rob Guidotti on guitar and Bill Close on bass.[1] They signed with CrossCheck Records in 2003,[2] with Michelle Paulhus now on bass. By the time they started recording their first album, they yet again had someone else on bass, this time Johnny Rioux. Savin Hill (which was produced by former The Mighty Mighty Bosstones member Nate Albert[3] and featured guest appearances by Al Barr and Ken Casey from Dropkick Murphys) was a success and resulted in a supporting tour with Celtic punk band Flogging Molly.
The band underwent a complete shuffle in 2004 when McColgan took a leave of absence from his firefighting career to devote time to recording and promoting their second album Back to the World.The Street Dogs at this time enlisted Marcus Hollar on lead guitar, and expanded the range of their sound with the addition of rhythm guitarist Tobe Bean III. The drummer's spot was filled by Joe Sirois, formerly of The Mighty Mighty Bosstones.
Their second release, Back to the World, proved to be even more of a success for the band. It was hailed critically in the United States, Europe and Japan and opened the doors to touring with Social Distortion, Tiger Army, Bad Religion, Millencolin (in Europe), The Bouncing Souls (US And Japan) and The Briefs. The band also toured on the Vans Warped Tour in the summer of 2005 and embarked on their first headlining tours in the US and Europe.
2006 saw more shows, both headlining and opening for the likes of Rancid,[4] The Adolescents[5] and The Bouncing Souls.[6] Also in 2006, released their third album, Fading American Dream. It was recorded earlier in the year with producer Ted Hutt (Flogging Molly, Madcap, The Bouncing Souls).
While on tour opening for Flogging Molly on February 27, 2007 show at the Sokol Auditorium in Omaha, NE, bass player Johnny Rioux collapsed on stage due to an apparent seizure. McColgan stopped the show and called for paramedics. At the start of the Flogging Molly set, lead singer Dave King dedicated the show to Johnny and announced that he was all right and would be well enough to play the next night in St. Louis. Following that tour, more dates came headlining as well as European shows.
In February 2008, it was announced that the Street Dogs signed on to Hellcat Records. Their fourth album, State of Grace, for Hellcat, which they started recording in early February 2008, once again with Ted Hutt[7] was released on July 8, 2008.[8]
At recent shows, Street Dogs have been promoting Oxfam America, a humanitarian organization fighting poverty and hunger. McColgan spoke to the crowd mid-set at the Bamboozle Festival in New Jersey in May 2008 about the organization while wearing an Oxfam T-shirt. In support of State of Grace, the band toured at the Vans Warped Tour 2008 as a main stage act. Following their Warped tour stint, the group set out on their successful fall State Of Grace headlining tour and then went to Europe for the European Eastpak Antidote tour.
The band released their fifth album, Street Dogs, on August 31, 2010[9] on Hellcat Records.
On February 21, 2011, the band performed at an acoustic show with Tom Morello, Tim McIlrath, Wayne Kramer, and Ike Reilly in Madison, WI in support of the ongoing protests against Gov. Scott Walker's proposed Budget Repair Bill.
In March 2011, the Street Dogs announced a five-week stint on the 2011 Vans Warped Tour, from June 24 until July 30. This would be their third time on the tour, after 2005 and 2008. After the Warped Tour, the band planned a European festival tour in August, and then Australia and Japan in October.
The band embarked on the nine date Sham Rock-N-Roll Festival in September 2011 where they were the co-headlining act for the Dropkick Murphys. Other than appearances on various Warped Tour lineups, this was the first time McColgan toured with his former band since quitting thirteen years earlier. McColgan would even join the Dropkick Murphys onstage for performances of such songs as "Barroom Hero" and "Far Away Coast" from the Do or Die album.[10]
In an interview with AMP, Johnny Rioux was asked about a new album from the street dogs. Rioux said, "We want to do a labor standard solo record with Mike, release the large number of B-sides with the records they were recorded for, mix our live in Boston DVD and record, prepare for our first trip to Australia, return to Japan, get back into some Celtic festivals, and just be happy and grateful people are still loyal after almost 10 years."
On November 26, 2012, McColgan wrote on the band's Facebook account that starting January 1, 2013, Street Dogs would be taking a break from recording and touring, but he assured fans that the band was not breaking up.[11] Later that day, Tobe Bean announced that he would no longer be a touring member of Street Dogs, but he will "always be a Street Dog".[12] In February 2013, it was announced that McColgan and Rioux would form a side project with original Dropkick Murphys member Rick Barton called FM359. In March, it was announced their break from touring would be ending in July when they tour Europe.[13] In March, McColgan mentioned that the band would exclusively work with the Pirates Press Records label in the future, and they planned to release a 7-inch single, a live album, and a DVD. He also mentioned that the band was hoping to get Lenny Lashley from Darkbuster to replace Bean on guitar, and on April 9 the Street Dogs Facebook page announced that Lashley had officially joined the group. They also announced their next single, "Crooked Drunken Sons", a song named after their annual tour, which will be released on Record Store Day 2013. Another single, "Rustbelt Nation", followed a month later.[14] Later in the year, Hollar was replaced by Matt Pruitt (Have Nots).
Members Mike McColgan, Johnny Rioux and Pete Sosa started a side project called FM359 with former Dropkick Murphys guitarist Rick Barton, Street Dogs collaborator Hugh Morrison and Halston Luna. The group, which has an Americana sound, released their debut album Truth, Love and Liberty in January 2014. In April, on Record Store Day 2014, they released a split EP with Noi!se.
On June 22, 2018, the band released their sixth album, the first in eight years, Stand For Something Or Die For Nothing. McColgan said of the album, " "The dumbing down of America is a reason to write songs in 2018. The theme is wake the fuck up and the working class needs to unite across all colors, creeds, nationalities, genders and realize that we are being pitted against each other by snake oil salesmen and autocrats."[15]
On February 13, 2020, via the band's Facebook page, McColgan and Rioux announced the group was disbanding after 17 years. The final round of shows was expected to include a small St. Patrick's Day tour with Flogging Molly and Mad Caddies as well as two headlining shows, one in Long Beach, CA on March 16, and their final show to be announced in their hometown of Boston, MA. However on March 12, the band announced the cancellation of the Long Beach show alongside Flogging Molly's cancellation of their tour due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[16][17]
Former members
Mike McColgan – lead vocals (2002–2020)
Johnny Rioux – bass (2003–2020)
Pete Sosa – drums (2012–2020)
Matt Pruitt – lead guitar (2013–2020)
Lenny Lashley – rhythm guitar (2013–2020)
Jeff Erna – drums (2002–2004)
Rob Guidotti – guitars (2002–2004)
Bill Close – bass (2002)
Michelle Paulhus – bass (2002–2003)
Marcus Hollar – lead guitar (2004–2013)
Joe Sirois – drums (2004–2007)
Tobe Bean III – guitars (2005–2012)
Paul Rucker – drums (2007–2012)
Shards of Life
Street Dogs Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Can anyone seem to find the appropriate words to say?
When the pain of loss and sudden change conjure family strife
Is there any hope at all for a return to normal life?
Is there solace in condolence or just deeper pain dug up?
The sad truth is victim's families have nothing to look forward to
And I'm sick of picking up the Boston Globe and seeing painful days of loss
Shards of life are left behind, no easier, kinder path to find
With a loss so bitter, so incomplete, with it hopes and plans crash in defeat
And hope is a foggy and distant memory no hope for normalcy
Cling close to the legacy of loss and shards of life, of life
We see a new war in the offing as we're challenged by a new plight
It's media handle is terrorism, it's the same old ideological fight
The debates will rage on, are we handling this thing right?
Can't turn away reality, can't push it out of our mind's eye
Shards of life are left behind, no easier, kinder path to find
With a loss so bitter, so incomplete, with it hopes and plans crash in defeat
And hope is a foggy and distant memory no hope for normalcy
Cling close to the legacy of loss and shards of life, of life
And civilian loss on the other side, is that something that we try to hide?
What about the human condition, I'm sick of all these justifications
Where is the real outrage? My god, there's got to be a better way
Is this how we solve problems? I guess we haven't really evolved much
Shards of life are left behind, no easier, kinder path to find
With a loss so bitter, so incomplete, with it hopes and plans crash in defeat
And hope is a foggy and distant memory no hope for normalcy
Cling close to the legacy of loss and shards of life
And cling close to the legacy of loss and shards of life
Cling close to the legacy of loss and shards of life
The song "Shards of Life" by Street Dogs addresses the aftermath of a terrorist attack and the toll it takes on both the victims’ families and society as a whole. The lyrics first question whether anyone can find the appropriate words to say when the smoke and fire of an attack drift away, and whether there is any hope of returning to normal life amidst the pain of loss and sudden change. The subsequent verses delve deeper into the extent of the damage done by the attack, not only to the individual families affected but to society and the human condition as a whole. The song probes the question of whether condolence offers any real solace or simply unearths deeper pain, bringing up the sad truth that victim's families have nothing to look forward to. In the context of these questions, "shards of life" are left behind, and the song concludes that hope is a foggy and distant memory.
Through its lyrics, "Shards of Life" calls on listeners to question society's response to terrorism and war, and whether the fruits of this violence are truly beneficial or if they only lead to more suffering. The song argues that, ultimately, the true legacy of such attacks lies in the shattered pieces of the lives they leave behind, and the shards of memory that continue to haunt survivors and communities.
Line by Line Meaning
So when the smoke and the fire of another attack slowly drift away
As the physical remnants of a new attack cease, the emotional pain remains
Can anyone seem to find the appropriate words to say?
It is difficult to articulate the depth of the sorrow and loss from these events
When the pain of loss and sudden change conjure family strife
Families of the victims struggle to cope with the unexpected loss and upheaval
Is there any hope at all for a return to normal life?
The possibility of returning to life before the tragedy seems distant and unlikely
Is there solace in condolence or just deeper pain dug up?
Offering condolences may not bring comfort and may even stir up more pain
The sad truth is victim's families have nothing to look forward to
The future is bleak for those who have lost loved ones in these violent events
And I'm sick of picking up the Boston Globe and seeing painful days of loss
The constant coverage and reminders of tragedy in the media is overwhelming
Question everything without apology about the horror and the cost
It is necessary to examine the full impact and consequences of these events, without fear or hesitation
Shards of life are left behind, no easier, kinder path to find
The aftermath of tragedy is filled with difficult, painful fragments of life to navigate
With a loss so bitter, so incomplete, with it hopes and plans crash in defeat
The loss is devastating and future plans now seem unattainable or pointless
And hope is a foggy and distant memory no hope for normalcy
The prospects of a normal future seem dim and distant, lacking hope
Cling close to the legacy of loss and shards of life, of life
Hold tight to the fragments left behind as a reminder and tribute to those who were lost
We see a new war in the offing as we're challenged by a new plight
A new conflict, in the form of terrorism, has emerged and poses a significant challenge
It's media handle is terrorism, it's the same old ideological fight
Despite the new label, the root causes and motivations of this conflict remain unchanged
The debates will rage on, are we handling this thing right?
Discussions will continue over the best approach to effectively address this issue
Can't turn away reality, can't push it out of our mind's eye
It is necessary to confront and acknowledge the harsh reality of these events rather than ignore or dismiss them
And civilian loss on the other side, is that something that we try to hide?
The loss of innocent civilian lives in other parts of the world should not be ignored or overlooked
What about the human condition, I'm sick of all these justifications
The justification of violence and loss of human life is unacceptable and highlights a failure to value human life and well-being
Where is the real outrage? My god, there's got to be a better way
There needs to be genuine, widespread outrage and more effective approaches to address these recurring tragedies
Is this how we solve problems? I guess we haven't really evolved much
The continued violence and lack of progress in finding solutions highlights a failure to evolve and address complex problems
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind