SOUND BITES

With two decades of hard earned experience banked up, it only makes sense that Dropkick Murphys would slow down and mellow out a bit. Admittedly, their ninth album isn't as raucous as past affairs, and more or less continues the middle-age settling process that began in earnest on Signed and Sealed in Blood , their 2013 album. Don't get me wrong, this thing won't put you to sleep, and much of their classic attitude and velocity are intact (especially on Rebels with a Cause and I Had a Hat ); it's just that it's overall a more measured, thoughtful record, with more mid-tempo fare and more nods to classic rock than fans may be used to. The good news is, the adjustment suits them well; when the songs hit that sweet spot, like on the nostalgic Sandlot and the life-lesson status report via sports anthem  Paying My Way , they make their standard bar rock singalong fare sound like pure rock radio bliss (you know, if rock radio was cooler than it is now). All told, it...

They can't all be shining examples. Collected below are ten songs/artists that I hesitated to nominate for the Year in Rock awards, but have redeeming qualities to them nonetheless. Some impressed me initially only to have interest wane quickly; others I expected better from. These are Year in Rock 2013's Honourable Mentions:

Stream Dropkick Murphys' eighth effort here, courtesy the good folks at purevolume.com When it comes to a rollicking good time, few bands are as dependable as Dropkick Murphys. While Signed And Sealed In Blood doesn't match some of their past efforts in terms of sheer volume, their punk-infused pub rock spirit is well intact. Check out opener The Boys Are Back , sure to be a frequent set opener on Dropkicks shows henceforth for the proof. Burn ups the tempo while Jimmy Collins' Wake and lead single Rose Tattoo bring a higher than normal level of maturity to the proceedings. End Of The Night is a nice closer, a roaring blast of a ballad that will inspire countless drunken singalongs.

Usually, this is the time of year when the reflections on the twelve months that were are complete and this place becomes a ghost town for at least a couple weeks because there's nothing interesting being released until April. In fact, if you noticed during my chronologically ordered nominees rollout, you'll find that only 7/50 came out in the first quarter of the year (with five of those being in March, and none in January). Maybe the labels are panicking to get their properties out there before no one cares about albums anymore, maybe my music addiction's spiraled too far out of control. Whatever the case, the first three months of 2013 are logjammed with potentially and guaranteed awesome albums alike. So, we took a look back, and will remember 2012 fondly; now let's dive into 2013 and start devouring more tasty riffs! After the jump are my 15 most anticipated releases coming in the early part of 2013:

DROPKICK MURPHYS Going Out in Style From: Going Out in Style Released: March 1 Even at their fastest and heaviest, Dropkick Murphys have always been one of the most fun bands to listen to.  There's just something about their Celtic-infused punk rock that's a blast to sip whiskey and howl along to, no matter what the subject matter.  If you need confirmation of this, just go see them play a show sometime.  It's as though the Dropkicks are the raucous, tuneful musical manifesto of an Irish wake.  That the title track of their 2011 album Going Out in Style is actually about an Irish wake seems like acquiescence of the highest order. Of course, Dropkick Murphys have traditionally been at their best when telling stories; from the hilariously inappropriate chubby chaser anthem Spicy McHaggis Jig to the harrowing account of drug-induced broken homes in The State of Massachusetts , there's always been a fine art at work in their music.  With Going Out ...