Alestorm - Voyage of the Dead Marauder (EP Review)
Alestorm - Voyage of the Dead MarauderReleased: March 22, 2024Line UpChristopher Bowes // vocals, keytarGareth Murdock // bassMate Bodor // guitarPeter Alcorn // drumsElliot Vernon // keyboardOnline FacebookInstagramIt wasn’t that long ago that everyone’s favourite Pirate Metal merchants Alestorm released new tunes on their seventh LP, Seventh Rum of a Seventh Rum, in 2022. But there are mosh pits to plunder so the band fired up the cannons for a five-track EP, Voyage of the Dead Marauder. It serves as a great sample of what Alestorm brings to the world, with heavy and hard hitting rhythms and plenty of sea shanty-inspired keyboards. The EP’s title track, ‘Voyager of the Dead Marauder’, is a cracking tune that brings back Patty Gurdy with her hurdy-gurdy and clean vocals. It’s got a great power metal melody from Mate Bodor and Christopher Bowes sounds appropriately zombified on vocals while Elliot Vernon adds growls. It’s Gurdy who really elevates it to a must listen with a tremendous chorus vocal. There’s a sweet little post-chorus breakdown too and overall it’s a good time with a bottle of rum.
The band picks up the pace on ‘Uzbekistan’, with thrashy pirate guitars and a hard-hitting party breakdown with plenty of synths. Vernon gets his growl on again and the final chorus is a rebel rousing tribute to the Uzbeki pirates. While the first couple of tracks get the metal part of the genre right, it’s ‘The Last Saskatchewan Pirate’ that brings the classic pirate elements. It’s a tale of a desperate man turning to piracy to make ends meet and there’s some ripping one liners among the lyrics, including boasting he “never pays his income tax”. It’s a “heave ho” chorus with some flute to boot. Definitely a beer drinking tune with your buddies.
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I enjoyed that there’s an old school aspect to the EP too. While plenty of recent EPs serve as mini-albums (looking at you Spiritbox and Bring Me The Horizon) or mini-compilations (Sabaton), Voyage of the Dead Marauder is more like the EPs of my youth. The first three tracks are rock solid and there’s a couple of tracks you’d be hard-pressed to fit on an LP. The first of these is the appropriately named ‘Sea Shanty 2’, an instrumental that fits the band’s theme. Fans are more likely to clamour for the incredibly sweary and foul final track, the unsubtly titled ‘Cock’. It’s arguably pirate punk with a raucous attitude and very short run time. It does the in and out in ninety seconds. For a band that is known for tunes like ‘Fucked with an Anchor’ and ‘Shit Boat (No Fans)’, it certainly fits within the band’s discog. It is what it is, probably offensive to anyone who isn’t a fan of the band. Alestorm is certainly a band that is an acquired taste with a sense of humour to match. Plenty though are on board with the pirate crew who remain shameless but very good at what they do. Voyage of the Dead Marauder has enough good tunes to be worth walking the plank for, even if you drop off to wait for the next full album.
Alestorm - Voyage of the Dead Marauder Tracklisting
- Voyage of the Dead Marauder
- Uzbekistan
- The Last Saskatchewan Pirate
- Sea Shanty 2
- Cock
Rating: 7 / 10Voyage of the Dead Marauder is out March 22 via NapalmRecords. Pre-order here.Review by KJ Draven (Twitter X and Instagram). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LT7HqIP55tI
