Captain Morgan’s Revenge - Been there, done that! But that’s talking about the morning after the night before knocking back Captain Morgan’s Dark Rum straight from the bottle. This
Captain Morgan’s Revenge is the debut album from Scottish Metal Pirates
Alestorm. Originally named
Battleheart (UK) they did a good job peddling their rather more Deathlier Metal around the Scottish Metal Scene but had to change their name to
Alestorm when they signed to
Napalm Records so as not to get confused with label-mates
Battlelore. They’d also changed tack somewhat and turned to playing Pirate Metal. And before y’all go “Ahh, like
Running Wild” – NO!
Running Wild, in my opinion, have songs about beer swilling, shagging and having a good time; with the occasional song about pirates flung in (Cos Pirates know all about beer swilling, shagging and having a good time). But, and more important, they didn’t sing like pirates, just
about Pirates.
Alestorm not only have songs about Pirates but sing them like what Pirates would sing them. And that, me hearties, is what puts
Alestorm in a class of their own.
Alestorm are Christopher Bowes – Vocals and Keyboard (Keytaur); Gavin Harper – Guitars; Dani Evans – Bass and Ian Wilson – Drums. At the time of writing they have just finished touring with Norther and Turisas and have gained many fans along the way. Unfortunately I missed their show when they came to Edinburgh but all the Metalheads I’ve spoken to who were at the gig said it was a brilliant night. Word of their brand of Pirate Metal spread as the tour progressed and the number of revellers turning up in Pirate gear brandishing plastic cutlasses grew at each gig. This mixed with Turisas fans dressing up as Viking must have made for a spectacular sight. Add to that
Norther’s unique blend of Blackened Melodic Death Folksy Metal you had yourself an unbeatable spread of aural and visual delight that should have had something to please every Metalhead that had parted with their hard earned dosh to catch this show. Whoever had the idea of these bands touring together is a genius as, from what I’ve been hearing, the showmanship and stage presence of the bands whipped the crowd into a metal frenzy.
Of course, there are always those who take their music far too serious. You can tell who they are at gigs; they’re usually the ones standing at the side or back of the venue with their arms folded looking like they really want to be somewhere else. For these people
Alestorm aren’t gonna float their boat; and if you think
Beatallica should be publicly flogged for their audacity in creating something humourus from two legendary bands, then again
Alestorm is probably not for you. No, bands such as
Alestorm are for people like me who grow old disgracefully, want non-thinking music – something that brightens your day and entertains. You want to go to one of their gigs and act like a loony, have a swordfight with some other numpty with a plastic cutlass, and come away from the gig going “Ooh ar, Jim lad”.
The songs on
Captain Morgan’s Revenge are mostly mid to quick tempo that you can rock back and forth to whilst banging your mug of mead off the table, with a shitload of memorable choruses. There are a number of keyboard and guitar solos throughout; though I must say that the guitar solos are mostly of the ‘Look what I can do’ variety that are just a bit of guitar widdley-wankery bolted on that aren’t really connected to the song structure. Being their debut album, I’m sure that this will improve as the band mature and Gavin Harper gets into the Pirate Metal groove and shucks off his Death Metal mindset. The keys solos, with their accordion sound, fit in a lot better with the music. Of note, the intro to the title track
Captain Morgan’s Revenge is shreddingly spine-tingling before calming down to typical Sea-Shanty style that I feel is gonna be
Alestorm’s anthem that fans are going to be baying for at every gig. Other noteworthy tracks are
Of Treasure; an acoustic shanty with penny whistle and Jew’s Harp,
The Huntmaster; a rip roaring tale of bravery and ale,
Nancy the Tavern Wench; about a drinking den of debauchery, violence and sin which sounds like it was written in honour to either
The Path Tavern in Kirkaldy or
The West Port Bar in Dundee, well known Metal haunts of the Metal Community of East Central Scotland.
The album finishes with a rendering of the ‘Unofficial’ Scottish National Anthem
Flower Of Scotland. It would have been the Official National Anthem but was nixed by parliament, which at the time sat in London, England, because it was thought as being insensitive to the English because it sings of the hammering they got at the Battle Of Bannockburn! Anyone who has watched the Mel Gibson Film
Braveheart and you remember right at the end when Scots went “Fuck it!” and charged the ‘Proud Edward’s Army’ who thought they were in for some ass-kissing; well, that’s what
Flower Of Scotland is about. Yet it’s alright for British National Anthem to refer to Englishman General Wade crushing the Scots; and I quote Verse 6:
Lord grant that Marshal Wade
May by thy mighty aid
Victory bring.
May he sedition hush,
And like a torrent rush,
Rebellious Scots to crush.
God save the Queen!
I mention this because I’ve read a few
Captain Morgan’s Revenge reviews where the significance of
Flower Of Scotland was completely overlooked. In fact, I’ve only seen it in one other review and that was just to say it was a cover song. There is a clip on You Tube recorded at the
Alestorm gig in Edinburgh on 03 March 2008 where the band played
Flower Of Scotland and the crowd sung; have a listen here
Flower Of Scotland and you can bet your ass everyone in the room was bawling the words at the top of their lungs! Now that’s Patriotism!!!
If you’re looking to check out some tracks from
Captain Morgan’s Revenge there are four tracks on their
My Space site and a few videos, some good quality, some not on
You Tube. Personally I like
Captain Morgan’s Revenge but like bands such as
Turisas, Korpiklaani and
Goat The Head, to get the full impact they need to be seen and heard live. Nevertheless, I like to play this album in the car, keeps the road-rage at bay and stops me flipping-off fuckwit drivers, it’s been on my mp3 player for yonks which makes walking the dog that bit more pleasurable. It’s just one of those albums that brightens your day and is gonna be on my playlist for a long time to come; well, at least until their next album!
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