Nihilista Magazine - Offend To Defend Music and Arts News and Reviews
Alestorm – Black Sails At Midnight
Alestorm – Black Sails At Midnight
1. The Quest
2. Leviathan
3. That Famous Ol' Spiced
4. Keelhauled
5. To The End Of Our Days
6. Black Sails At Midnight
7. No Quarter
8. Pirate Song
9. Chronicles Of Vengeance
10. Wolves Of The Sea
With song titles like 'The Quest', 'That Famous Ol' Spiced' and....er...'Pirate Song' in tow, it's probably safe to say that Alestorm's second full-length won't be making any huge departures in sound. Still, 'Captain Morgan's Revenge' was a barrel of rum-swigging laughs, so more of the same will probably satisfy most cutlass-dangling loonies. Which is probably lucky, as that is exactly what 'Black Sails At Midnight' provides, and to their credit, the Scottish troupe's charm certainly hasn't worn thin yet.
The majority of the album keeps to the galloping, hook-riddled gusto laid down by older tunes such as 'Over The Seas', with 'Leviathan' and '...Spiced' offering especially irresistible fist-in-the-air moments. There are some extremely ludicrous moments, including the violin-led 'Keelhauled' and a dramatic, acoustic opening to 'To The End Of Our Days' that is the closest thing to seriousness that Alestorm have ever reached. Other than that, it's all business as usual, and the result is another ridiculously silly and properly fun slab of true Scottish pirate metal. Ye-fucking-arr!
7/10
Review by Merlin Alderslade
Thanks to www.Metal-blade.co.uk and Napalm Records