O'Briens Pub

O'Briens gets 5 stars out of me for being 110% of what it sets out to be...a straight up, hole-in-the-wall, punk/rock dive bar and exactly what I set out in search of.  
I transplanted here from L.A. a couple years ago and finally got my best friend to come out a couple weeks ago.  Either of us would take a bullet for each other and it's been that way for nearly 2 decades, but we're like yin and yang...I'm black, he's white.  I'm usually chilled out, he's got a typical Irish temper.  I'm soul/hip-hop, he's metal/punk.  
Anyway, on his visit, I wanted to give him a real Boston experience so we did touristy stuff (Fenway, Duckboats), cultural (ICA, SOWA), and even hit Revere beach to relax. But for music I wanted to take him somewhere he'd really appreciate as truly Boston.  I hit Yelp for help (yes, I was that square, searching online for punk venues) and decided on O'Briens.
As soon as we walked up, I knew I made the right choice and once inside, we were not disappointed.  Pretty tiny, a faint odor of sweat and beer, ear-splittlingly loud bands where members of the next band are standing in the crowd next  to you waiting for their turn and appreciating the act on stage.  Drinks were pretty cheap and we managed to get in a fair few of them in us, served up by the solid bartenders.  Squeezed in shoulder to shoulder, it was one of those moments where you really get something that you for some reason never could.  I GOT punk, and I have O'Briens to thank for that.  Needless to say, my buddy had a blast and his Boston experience was complete!

Went here a few weeks ago looking for a good show. Just recently moved to the area and had no idea of where to go or anyone to go with for that matter, so I just searched some local shows for the night. Ended up having a really awesome time. The crowd was really cool, $3.50 for PBR tall boys, and I met a bunch of cool people. Great place for shows, especially if you grew up in small venues where it was tough to tell where the band ends and the crowd begins. Decent sound for a small venue too.

Legit rock bar. Nothing more, nothing less.