Band: Alestorm Album: Captain Morgan's Revenge Label: Napalm Records Rating: 8/10 Website: http://www.www.alestorm.net BUY NOW!

You thought you’d seen it all? Think again because Scotland has produced a rare success in the form of pirate metal band Alestorm. We have had Viking metal, battle metal, all sorts of strange metal but...Pirate Metal! For the majority of us, that concept stretches the imagination too far but you’d better believe it because it’s damn good too! They claim that their sound is like: ‘If pirates had a stack of marshals’, and I think they’ve hit the nail on the head. The intro of the first tune brings undeniable comparisons with Turisas, with its catchy guitar and keyboard harmonies but as the main tune emerges, it turns into something much heavier than Turisas have ever produced…it becomes real power metal. To claim that lead vocalist Chris Bowes sings would be an overstatement indeed, but the gruff chanting accompanies the symphonic melody well and when the rest of the pirate gang join in for a shout at the end of one of the many complex riffs in the opening song, you can’t help but cheer with them. But it’s not all simply fun. There is a rather impressive solo from both the guitar and Chris’s keytar at the end of almost every song which emphasises this bands musical intentions warning us to take them seriously, or else! Their title track, ‘Captain Morgan’s Revenge’ is the longest track on the album and while you can’t argue that they have compromised quality for quantity, the song does drag on for too long and apart from the solo, the guitar can hardly be heard! Nonetheless, it remains interesting, and the extremely commanding riff, which takes over from a typical power metal introduction, remains heavy and harmonic with the chorus being sung in every tavern in Scotland! The other two tunes that I feel made this album what it is were ‘The Huntmaster’ and ‘Wenches and Mead’. The Huntmaster captures the perfect balance or true heavy metal and fun and is, in my opinion, the only song to do that. The balance of the guitar and keyboard this time was perfect, and the masterful tonality with which the opening chord sequence was conducted helped to make the enjoyment level extremely high. ‘Wenches and Mead’ is easily the most entertaining piece on the album while songs such as ‘Death Before The Mast’ and ‘Terror of the High Seas’ bring us back down to earth with a more classic power metal style with definite thrash influences. Overall…this is the most fun album of the year so far and it’s gonna take a clown to beat it! The musical mixture is perfect, and while the balance of fun and real metal was not always equal, overall it balanced out to leave the listener happy, but also with a desire to listen to the album again and again. The only criticism that I have of the debut is that the guitar is way too quiet in most of the songs, and it’s not as though the keyboards are overpowering…it’s just that the guitar volume needs boosting up a little. A great debut album from a great band…i’ll be eagerly awaiting the sequel. Lewis Klein Back to Reviews