Alestorm
No Grave But the Sea
(Napalm Records)
The first time I came across these pirate metal pioneers a few years back, I thought they were likable enough. Unfortunately, their sea-soaked anthems tend to run dry after awhile. Sing-a- longs like “Bar und Imbiss,” “Man the Pumps,” and “Mexico” are all fun for the most part, but not enough to carry the whole album (if nothing else, definitely check out the video-game inspired video for said track “Mexico,” which features plenty of vintage-style graphics and, we’ll just say – eye candy – as well). Maybe it’s just me, but the whole pirate thing seems to wear thin after awhile, which is exactly what happens on No Grave But the Sea. Unless you plan on sailing the seven seas any time soon, my advice is to just skip it.
