It is my personal opinion that it is near impossible to not like Alestorm. You might not think that their music is top tier, but you just have to like them as a band. A band of pirates singing and drinking about pirate-y things and having a good time while doing it is just something that I think everyone can get behind. And for the uninitiated, please sit tight, and experience why you will need to check out Alestorm and their newest release, No Grave But The Sea.
So, as we’ve established, Alestorm is perhaps the most known name in the little-known genre of “pirate metal”, which is exactly how it sounds. When it comes to Alestorm, their sound could be described as a mix of Scottish folk metal and power metal. To add to the atmosphere of the overall pirate schtick, keyboards add brass, accordion, and concertina notes as well. Their entire song library consists of pirate themes of sailing, pillaging, and most importantly, drinking. Given that Alestorm is very much known for these traits and does very little in ways of change, you would think that they would get hackneyed and worn out, but every Alestorm album has just been a ridiculous amount of fun. No Grave But The Sea is an absolute continuation of this trend.
"Alestorm"
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hJ_eVIZkjZE[/youtube]
The album begins with the title track, “No Grave But The Sea” with trumpet calls and a heavy fast-paced riff, unshyly flaunting the pirate themes immediately. And although I could focus on just the bands aesthetics for the remainder of this review, the actual music does warrant a good amount of focus. The music is definitely not overlooked or sacrificed for the sake of the image, and is done incredibly well. “Alestorm” is a perfect example of a song that is super catchy, but is also knocks it out of the park in terms of the metal (as well it should, if they’re going to put their name on it). It’s also probably the heaviest song on the album, with lots of screaming and chugging guitars as well.
But one of my favorite tracks is definitely “To The End Of The World”, which is where their power metal flavors are at their best. And to be perfectly fair, the atmosphere of this song, as well as several others on No Grave But The Sea is heavily reliant on the synthesized orchestral brass which might become grating for some listeners. The accordion/concertina sounds can get away with it, and there genuinely sounds like a fiddle is nearby as well, but that might be the only thing I could musically nitpick on this album.
Now, a lot of my enjoyment from this album definitely comes from buying into the image. And I feel that a lot of your enjoyment will come from that as well. But, if we’re being completely honest, there’s nothing groundbreaking or nothing exactly musically masterful about it either. However, it is an absolute good time. When I listened to this album from top to bottom, several times at that, I always felt the energy and the fun the band exudes, pretty much like their live shows. It’s not meant to be taken as seriously as a prog metal album, and you’re just meant to have fun and enjoy good music. And with all this taken into account, I really have no choice but to give Alestorm and No Grave But The Sea a high and positive review. And I should be given some bonus points myself for specifically avoiding any and all pirate/nautical puns or comparisons. There’s enough of that in the album for a lifetime.
"Mexico"
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-r8jlHDBMsw[/youtube]
