Alestorm - Sunset On The Golden Age

Published July 30 2014

*=Staff's pick	Walk The Plank Drink* Magnetic North 1741 (The Battle Of Cartagena) Mead From Hell Surf Squid Warfare Quest For Ships Wooden Leg! Hangover Sunset On The Golden Age

Genre	Power/Folk Metal	Christopher Bowes	Vocals
Tracks	10	Christopher Bowes	Keytar
Running time	49 Min.	Dani Evans	Guitar
Label	Napalm Records	Gareth Murdock	Bass
Release	01 August 2014	Peter Alcorn	Drums
Country	Scotland	Elliot Vernon	Keyboard
Producer	Lasse Lammert
Similar artists	---

With songs about pirates and parties with strong drinks, etc, Alestorm doesn't step away from its past or into a completely new era. It's consequently pretty much what we have gotten earlier on the lyrical contents and when adding the music that's backing the themes up, I find consistency on that matter as well, because the songs' melodic approach doesn't vary significantly from previous releases either. The band's originality stays within piracy and its miscellaneous quests and they have definitely not been looking for some kind of transformation to any other type of metal at all.

The music unsurprisingly doesn't come out of complexity, but is more focused to generate party songs, whose purpose is to bring forth melodies to shout your lungs out to at concerts. It's a cheerful and vivid music that contains elements of folk and power metal with noticeable keyboards on top and with rough choirs in the choruses to fit the subjects. Christopher Bowes voice is hoarse and not particularly exact or beautiful, but still comes out appropriate to match the piracy theme.

If you're unable to embrace catchy, easygoing metal with a little juvenile, but still truthful and brutal, lyrics, this is absolutely nothing you should spend your time or money on. It will be nothing but a waste of time and effort. To have the slightest chance to enjoy this record, you have to be on the same positive wavelength as the band is and you have to treasure the occasion and see the fun of it.

As the moment of truth approaches, Sunset On The Golden Age however doesn't reach sky high levels, even if I like a fair share of it. It lacks those really smashing party tunes whose presence in the past has been defining and a trademark for Alestorm. Therefore, in my book, this release lands in the vast space of something decent and when I enter party mode I would rather listen to one of their earlier albums instead.

See also review of: No Grave But The Sea , Leviathan

Performance	Originality	Production	Vocals	Songwriting
6	5	6	4	5

Summary
5 chalices of 10 - Tobbe