NEW FILM- STOKED: THE DREADNOUGHTS RETURN

Stoked. A documentary about The Dreadnoughts by Adam PW Smith.

Documentary, Short | 40minutes | 17 November 2017 (Canada)

Vancouver clusterfolk legends The Dreadnoughts have returned from a six year hiatus to record a new album. Filmed in the recording studio, and drawing from an archive of photos and film clips that go right back to their second ever live show, this low budget documentary rises above its station with great characters and stories that range from enlightening to hilarious (and occasionally dubious). These liquor soaked musical heroes prove themselves to be thoughtful, as well as entertaining. Everything you ever wanted to know about the Vancouver-based celtic-punk band – and perhaps things you didn’t – can now be found in, Stoked: The Dreadnoughts Return.

After a few years away The Dreadnoughts announced their arrival back on the circuit with a utterly brilliant new album and now also a documentary film.

The 40-minute film by Adam PW Smith looks at the 10-year history of the band. It features rollicking music accompanying a mix of old and new footage, including tongue-in-cheek, sometimes raw tell-all biographies of the band members, past and present. The documentary delves into the band’s temporary hiatus and return with last November’s release of  Foreign Skies.

The film contains what some might consider inappropriate language and if you of a delicate disposition then viewer discretion is advised!

The Dreadnoughts

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Adam PW Smith

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You can also still buy ‘This Place Is Awesome’ – a Dreadnoughts tour diary written by the director of this video. It’s 2009 and music photographer Adam PW Smith flies to England to spend a week touring with The Dreadnoughts in the middle of their first European tour. Smith was in the thick of it, suffering all the standard indignities but one. The result is a book that reveals much about life as a young, touring band who bring real meaning back to the DIY ethic, and a few things about what it’s like to be a 43 year old trying to survive in that environment. Available on amazon.com http://goo.gl/Q9Cdk

EP REVIEW: THE DREADNOUGHTS- ‘Foreign Skies B Sides’ (2018)

Four songs from one of the most original bands around that didn’t make it onto last years album but were still good enough to put out as an EP.

As their by line goes The Dreadnoughts are one part roaring sea shanty, one part haunting folk melody, and a solid chaser of gut-crunching street punk and that is as good a description of them as you could ask for! The Dreadnoughts are truly one of the biggest and most popular folk-punk bands in the world and they built up their audience and reputation from years of absolutely constant touring and four stunning album’s that only cemented their place in our hearts. Formed in the Downtown Eastside area of Vancouver,  British Columbia, Canada in 2016 from the ashes of popular Irish-punk band Siobhan they changed and adapted their range of influences and soon they had become one of the cities best live bands. After taking on their home town and then Canada it was then time to spread their wings and they soon became a regular feature on the European gig circuit playing everywhere from England to Russia and in between. They didn’t quite leave behind their Irish roots but as the albums flowed it became less of the focus on them and from Legends Never Die in 2007 to Foreign Skies last year they have added the traditional folk music of just about every European country they have visited to the mix and while they still play with the wild abandon of the old days their is much more to them now than just celtic-punk.

2007

2009

2010

Foreign Skies came out at the beginning of last November and takes all those musical influences and again mixes them all up but this time presents them in a concept album about the First World War that is both moving and poignant but, dare I say, also great fun to listen to. Sometimes fast, sometimes slow, sometimes acapello even with Irish, English and Eastern European folk and polka’s throughout. It could certainly be described as epic in my view.

LONDON CELTIC PUNKS REVIEW OF FOREIGN SKIES (DECEMBER 2017)

This year gave us the ambitious ‘concept’ album, Foreign Skies, from Canada’s own Dreadnoughts. It was released to mark the 100th anniversary of the first world war (yeah, I know, the Great War ran from 1914-1918, so that includes 1917!), and features twelve original tracks all based on events, people and places that were part of that war. There are a few standout tracks, notably; ‘Daughters of the Sun’, ‘Anna Maria’, ‘Jericho’ and ‘Black Letters’. The rest is all good with the usual fantastic musicianship we’ve come to expect from the Dreadnoughts. The subject matter does make it a rather sombre listening experience, and while the feeling/belief behind the album is admirable, there is no getting away from the subject matter. An interesting work, but it won’t get too many airings at parties over the festive season.

The album shows a side of The Dreadnoughts we had never seen before. You wouldn’t think their last album was called Uncle Touchy Goes To College would you? Have they matured? Well on this certainly but I very much doubt we have seen the last Dreadnought song about apple love and cider drinking.

Here we have four songs released on January 10th that didn’t quite make the cut on Foreign Skies. The band give no explanation as to why except to say they “still think they are pretty good and so we are sharing them with you”. Having listened to them the one thing I can report is that they weren’t dropped because of their quality they are as good on anything on the finished article but I suppose they were dropped to not fitting the scope of the album.

We start of with ‘Top Of The Hill’ which is the follow up to ‘Bay of Suvla’ from the album. Written by guitarist Nicholas Smyth it’s a five minute epic of a song taking in many of those influences already mentioned. A driving forceful rock number that is breathlessly typical Dreadnought territory.

“Faces down, eyes to front
you’ll get what you need boys
You’ll get what you want
fingers hard on biting steel
till theirs nothing left to feel

Summer rain gonna set you free
bury the ashes under the sea
and the dawn will break across your skin
And wash away your sin”

It is set during the Battle of Gallipolli. The battle took place only a few miles from the site of the ancient city of Troy but the horrors unleashed in that battle rivalled anything seen then or since. Imagine spending eight months in a trench dug under some cliffs at constant risk from snipers, suffering from dysentery spread by flies hopping from decomposing bodies to your food. The battle was fought in modern-day Turkey but in 1915 it was part of the Ottoman Empire who were fighting alongside Germany. The plan was to land at Gallipolli and take the capital Istanbul. The plan did not work. In fact it was a disaster leaving over 200,000 Allied casualties with many deaths coming from disease. The number of Turkish deaths is not clear but it is generally accepted that they far exceeded 200,000. Next up is ‘Poor Michael’ a song about two blackbirds singing to a soldier ion France. The song is sung acapello without backing. This is something The Dreadnoughts can claim credit for within the celtic-punk scene with many bands now following their lead and including one or two tracks within their sets. As you can imagine it’s a beautiful song with strong voices and even more powerful words.

‘Cold Rain And Snow’ is up next and its a fast and catchy number written by the bands lead singer Drew Sexsmith who was always known as the Dread Pirate Druzil on previous albums. Like on the album the lyrics belie the upbeat music and I’m sure it will take a few listens for the words to penetrate. The EP comes to an end with ‘The Best Of ‘Em’ again written by Nicholas Smyth and its simply Drew accompanied by piano and a faint accordion. The song is a tribute to the best of them. Those that didn’t come home. I can certainly see why The Dreadnoughts put this EP out. They are four excellent songs that deserved a release but they must come accompanied by the album so if you haven’t got it yet then I suggest you get onto it as soon as possible!

(listen to the whole EP below on the Bandcamp player)

Discography

Legends Never Die- July 2007 (Golden Tee Record) * Victory Square- June 2009 (Stomp Records) * Polka’s Not Dead- October 2010 (Stomp Records) * Uncle Touchy Goes To College- 2011 (Bellydrop Records) * Foreign Skies- November 2017 (Self Released)

Buy Foreign Skies B Sides

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EP REVIEW: AND THE WASTERS- ‘State Of Repair’ (2017)

Will Tun And The Wasters carry on exactly where they left off except without Will Tun and with kind of a new name but still with plenty of that explosive folk’n’punk’n’ska rebel rocking they are renowned for!

We first heard of Will Tun And The Wasters a good few years back when I got a call out of the blue from someone begging me to let their band support The Dreadnoughts and The Lagan at Mannions in north London. They would even do it for free they were so desperate. Music to any music promoters ears so they were booked straight away. They arrived at the venue from universities from right across England and played a blinder, going down an absolute storm. Very young and enthusiastic, their energy was infectious as well as their music bringing with them equal doses of folk, celtic, punk and ska. Fast forward a few years and now mostly settled in Bristol they had become firm festival favourites as well as gigging and touring the length and breadth of these islands. Then all of a sudden vocalist Will Tun announced he was off. Nothing personal but it was time to get a proper job or something. Rather than agonise over what to call themselves they just dropped Will from their name and decided to just call themselves And The Wasters. I love it and think its genius!

Last year And The Wasters played the main stages at popular English festivals such as Bearded Theory and Boomtown Fair and also completed an extensive tour of Europe. Adding elements of Latin, dub and even jazz to their usual brand of folk, punk and ska played with accordion, trumpet and fiddle. So after a year of playing as And The Wasters this new 5 track E.P State of Repair is their first release post-Will Tun and stands up well next to their album release from September, 2015 The Anachronist’s Cookbook which came out not long before Will’s decision to leave the band.

The EP kick’s off with ‘Lions Share’ and this is proper what we use to call festival music. Catchy ska based music but with hints of something a bit more aggressive below. The trumpet is leading the way and the band gel fantastically well and it’s a grand start to proceedings. Jo’s accordion rears its head towards the end and if we thought they would be hampered by Will’s absence then we were wrong. Next is ‘Small Victories and it’s more of the same. Still catchy and music to get you on your feet.

They may have left their more overt celtic-punk/ folk-punk sound behind but it’s back with a vengeance on the re-cycling anthem ‘Reduce, Reuse, Rebel’ all being it smothered in a rather lovely ska beat with again some great trumpet playing. ‘Bound as One’ adds Balkan folk into the mixture and stirs it about. This band sure do catchy well before the EP wraps up with the slow ‘Intro Dub’. None of the rowdiness of before bit more of a head nodder this one!

The past few years have seen the band taking their feel good music out beyond the usual safe spaces bands normally go. This band would literally play anywhere they can so attached are they to the idea of DIY music. The idea that bands can do it all themselves without the need for managers, publicists or record deals. But don’t be thinking they are just some happy-go-lucky ska-punk band version of The Wurzels though. Their music is only matched by what they have to say. That attachment to DIY only echos their positive message of solidarity, friendship and collective action. The band live by their message and their beliefs, being active within the DIY music scene and by lending support to various good causes.

(have a listen to State Of Repair before downloading it for *FREE* below)

GET STATE OF REPAIR

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ALBUM REVIEW: 13KRAUSS- TheEnd Is Nigh’ (2016)

Part Dropkicks, a wee part Molly’s but always 100% celtic-folk-punk!

The End is Nigh is the follow up album from 13Krauss  to their excellent debut album, Seguir En Pie, which was released to great acclaim back in 2014. For our review of that grand album then check out here. Originally forming up as a straight up, no frills punk rock band but after a Real McKenzies show in their home town they were inspired to change direction and take the celtic-punk high road. So the boys went on to add an accordion player and a bagpiper and 13Krauss the celtic punk band were born! Hailing from Zaragoza in what is basically the dead centre of Spain they have become firm favourites on the Spanish scene, and further afield as well, and on the basis of these two albums it is no surprise why either.

The album begins with ‘Reza Por Tu Vida’ and the sound of an ocean and a toiling bell adds some nice touches to this blistering slab of fast and furious celtic-punk. One of only three songs sung in Spanish, the rest are in English, except for the one instrumental. Its a brilliant start with shouty gang vocals atop of acoustic guitar and bagpipes and its very Dropkicks sounding indeed. ‘Doomsday’ follows and reminds me of my current scene fave’s Ferocious Dog with the fiddle looming large and cranked up electric guitar and mandolin. Bodi vocal style is excellent. Shouty and strained but never unintelligible and you know that if pushed he could give it a real ‘croon’ with the best of them. The bagpipes are back out for ‘Flying Broken Chairs’, a catchy as hell track telling of a wicked and wild night down the boozer. They literally just released the video for ‘Flying Broken Chairs’ just yesterday featuring footage from this years St Patrick’s Day gig in Sala López in their home town of Zaragoza.

The best celtic-punk bands have the ability to slow it down and with the aptly named ‘Slow Down’ 13Krauss prove they can do it too. The story is of looking for leprauchauns and has quite the polka sound to it. Much like The Dreadnoughts use to play. Another thing a lot of non-celtic in origin celtic-punk bands are very good at is bringing new sounds and influences into their music and again ‘En Mi Ataúd’ has a sort of polka /Russian thing going on and its great. ‘Don’t Feed The Goblin’ is the only instrumental here and instrumental by name MENTAL by nature. A fast as hell ride through Dropkick Murphy’s style bagpipe punk rock. 13Krauss switch it up again and ‘Miserable Bridges’ has a skate-punk feel to it while again David’s bagpiping is absolutely superb. We are nearing the end now and ‘The Smitting Blow’ changes it up again with a country folk punk number that is unlike anything else here but equally as good and then finally we have ‘El Mañana No Espera’ and the end of the album. The bagpipes are loud and proud and the curtain comes down on this fantastic album with another piece of Murphy’s influenced celtic-punk rock.

The album was recorded and mixed in their home town and the nine tracks clock in at a very healthy thirty minutes. It was released just after St Patrick’s Day earlier in the year and is available for download as ‘name your price’ and only €9 for the actual physical compact disc which comes in a rather nice jewel case with all the song lyrics, credits and pictures in a extensive twelve page booklet. That there’s not a single cover version here is the first thing that struck me on hearing The End is Nigh. Just nine great slabs of celtic-punk that show the influence of other bands in the scene but always with the 13Krauss stamp of individuality on it. They have a great knack of switching it up and just as you feel your in for a ride of Dropkick Murphys expectations your off in another completely different direction. There are some outstanding celtic-punk bands from the region with Catalan bands The Drink Hunters and Sigelpa due to release new albums very soon, Bastards from Galicia still touring Europe relentlessly and The Fatty Farmers having also recently released a excellent new album too. 13Krauss deserve to be heard beyond Spain but also beyond Dropkick Murphys fans too as this album will appeal to all fans of the genre whether you prefer the punky or the folkier side of celtic-punk. 

(You can have a free listen to The End Is Nigh by pressing play on the Bandcamp player below. Follow the link below to buy)

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* the guys from 13Krauss have also set up the ZARAGOZA CELTIC PUNKS group on Facebook so trot along there and join up here…

(Check out this full concert from 13Krauss. a unusual camera angle but you can see how much the crowd gets into as the gig goes along. Brilliant!)

ALBUM REVIEW: THE SURFIN’ TURNIPS- ‘Awake The West’ (2016)

Proper scrumpy punkers from old Bristol town. Cult legends in the South West. Fusing The Ramones and The Wurzels in an orgy of fast riffs, cider and marrow dancing!

Now The Surfin’ Turnips been around for a few years now since 1991 (ish!) and though I have heard great things about them our paths have never crossed. They have played a few times in London over the years but things just haven’t connected right for us. So here we are with The Surfin’ Turnips new album Awake The West which was released back in January this year but actually recorded back in the Summer of 2014. The various band members hail from Cornwall, Devon and Somerset but have strong associations with the town of Chipping Sodbury where they met while working, and the areas around Bristol where they currently live. Now one of the long lost and lamented celtic-punk bands of recent years has been The Dreadnoughts from Canada. For a few years their star shone bright as they toured relentlessly from one end of Europe to the other seemingly all year round. Well they may have hung up their fiddle but they did briefly reform for a few gigs back in 2014 and they played a solitary gig in England with The Surfin’ Turnips in Bristol. While over they also played on this recording so if you a Dreadnoughts fanatic, like most of us, then this is for you.

The album begins with ‘Turmut Hoer’ and its straight forward, heads down, classic punk rock with clear vocals and lyrics sung in a broad Bristol dialect and a vocabulary that leaves me baffled most of the time. When I looked up what a Turmut Hoer is it just came up as the name of pub after pub after pub all over the west country!

“I am a turmut hoer, from Wiltshire I were born. Me parents they be workin’ folk.  The fly be on me turmut”

So lyrically I am but lost except I do know that its all a loving tribute to the boys home. ‘The Quaker’ carries on the punk rock and sails into ‘Evenin’ in the Village’ a spoken word tribute to The Surfin’Turnips favourite beverage Cider which is followed appropriately enough by ‘Oh Apple Tree’. Featuring the first appearance here of the accordion

“Pass round the jug and take a supp, Cutler’s name drifts into the night.

Nought could compare with this pasty we share – the souls of the West join the light”

A cover of the sea shanty ‘Eddystone Light’ is up next. Made famous by Scots folk band The Weavers the song is about the lighthouse in Eddystone which kept ships from washing up and wrecking on the dangerous Eddystone Rocks, nine miles south of Rame Head.

While Rame Head is in Cornwall, the actually rocks are in Devon and the song tells of the lighthouse keepers son who meets his mammy, a mermaid.

“From this union there came three, A porpoise and a porgy and the other was me”

‘Ciderman Killed The Radio Star’ is another cider fixated song and it aint the last either!

They keep it local next up with a grand wee folky accordion led track ‘Sampford Peverell Pig Farmers Polka’. Thrashy guitars and that accordion keep the music up tempo and if nothing else this album is rollicking good romp and completely different from the celtic kind of folk punk I am more use to. Another spoken word piece follows and comes with a small dialect guide of west country words to help you through it.

“Gert = Big. Body = person. Axed = Asked. Batch – an areal of rough land. Ee = you. Queer – unexplainable. Shepton Mallet Races – Mid Somerset cider making town. Vleshy = fat. Vlat Voot – flat foot. Ar – Yes”

‘A Cottage On Dartmoor’ keeps the folk punk flag flying and finally Awake The West comes to an end with the traditional song ‘Spanish Ladies’ and for me is the true highlight of the album. Fast tuneful accordion punk rock with a real buzz to it except it doesn’t end there though as there is a secret track at the end that I won’t say anything about ‘cept to say it’s fecking brilliant!

The home of The Surfin’ Turnips the West Country has a proud, diverse and rich cultural, musical and literary heritage. In this time of globalisation and the creeping influence of London across England just as it is important for the celtic languages to survive we must not forget that tradition and language is not just confined to only the celtic countries. Places like the West Country and the northern counties and anywhere who had them also need to preserve their old ways. After all as a wise man once said

“If you do not know where you come from, then you don’t know where you are, and if you don’t know where you are, then you don’t know where you’re going. And if you don’t know where you’re going, you’re probably going wrong”

or something like that. West Country renaissance folk-punk aiming, and succeeding, in spreading the word of the West to those in need of apple salvation.

Ar, awake the West!

(you can have a sneaky listen to ‘Awake The West’ by pressing play on the Bandcamp player below then afterwards for just a measly fiver you can own it by following the link!)

Buy The Album

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ALBUM REVIEW: PINT OF STOUT- ‘Choose Your Devil’ (2013)

For those of you who like your celtic-punk a bit more sea bound here’s the second release from Pint Of Stout from the city of Luhansk in Ukraine. reminding me a whole lot of The Dreadnoughts if you substituted the fiddle for accordion. Formed in 2011 their first self titled album ploughed more traditional celtic-punk fare and very good it was too, only just failing to make it into the ‘LondonCelticPunks Top 5 Albums Of 2012’.

On ‘Choose Your Devil’ this time the gruff, pirate-style, almost metally in places, vocals are wrapped around more sea-shanty style punk than celtic but is just as good. its all original compositions with only one cover (“Spanish Ladies” a traditional naval song) no fillers and the lyrics are in english and as is usual the musicianship is top notch. where this bhoys differ though is their attitude to their music having made their first LP a free download they’ve repeated it with their 2nd album so you’ve no excuses not to download and listening!

Kenedis – drums
Morion – mandolin
Kirill Savintsev – guitar/vocals
Daniil Marchenko – bass
Yury Kharchenko – bayan

PINT OF STOUT –

CHOOSE YOUR DEVIL

free download here. if the link is broken or gone leave a comment and we’ll re-up it as soon as we can.

if you speak Ukrainian then check out their VK account here.  (VK is the largest European social network with more than a 100 million active users…apparently) but if not then check their Facebook page here.

PINT OF STOUT- DEVIL JOKE VIDEO