ALESTORM 'Back Through Time' w/ Voyager and Scuurvy - Brisbane

When I heard that Alestorm were gonna be in town, there was no question as to my attendance. Hearing that they were going to be joined by Brisbane-based Scuurvy [the band, that is, not the disease], and Perth-based Voyager, was simply icing on the metal cake. And I was not disappointed.

What really set this particular evening apart from other metal gigs was the sheer amount of people who were present for the first support band. Usually, the venue is only about one-third full before the headline act. Not so with this night. As soon as the first support act started, the place was a good two-thirds capacity.

First up, to whet our piratical appetite, was Scuurvy, in full pirate regalia. A great Brisbane band, who has recently returned to the scene after a long hiatus, Scuurvy was clearly enjoying themselves as much as the audience. Regaling us with such merry tunes as ‘The Bloodsoaked Shores of Insanity Island’, ‘Send Ye Down to See Olde Hobb’ and more, the crowning moment came during ‘Across the Seven Seas’, when the cabin boy, clearly having annoyed vocalist Captain Blacktooth Barnsley, was given his eternal punishment of bloody death, given in the form of a sword slash across the chest, covering the poor bastard in his own blood [however, it mustn’t have been too fatal a wound, as the chastised cabin boy was easily picked out of the audience later that evening, his white shirt coated in dried ‘blood’].

Then came Perth-based group Voyager, whose music I have had heard very little of, until that fateful night. After the first verse, I was immediately converted, however it seemed I was a little behind the rest of audience, who were clamoring and cavorting, raising hell and clearly over the moon at seeing the outfit play their first Brisbane gig. Indeed, it was hard to decide which band the audience was more eager to see, Voyager or Alestorm.

Voyager certainly put on a great show, playing their beautiful brand of melodic metal, playing ‘Land of the Lies’, ‘Lost’, and ‘I am the Revolution’ from their CD release I am the Revolution. Though the Song of the Set award goes to the best of the 80’s and 90’s medley they played, featuring bits from various songs including ‘Boom, Shake the Room’, ‘You’re the Voice’, ‘Black or White’, and many, many more.

All of this, however, was simply the appetizer for the main course. At the end of Voyager’s set, the curtains on the stage closed, and we were left in breathless anticipation of what was to come. And we were not disappointed. As the curtains slowly opened, Alestorm were already rampaging along with ‘Back in Time’, the first track off their new album, Back Through Time - yet to be released.

After melting our faces off with a sweet taste of what to expect from the new album, Alestorm moved straight into ‘Over the Seas’, and quickly followed through with the most glorious of anthems, ‘Wenches and Mead’ [thank god, because I’d had this song rolling around inside my brain all damn night]. Then came ‘Leviathan’, and ‘Heavy Metal Pirates’. 

The next song came with a dedication from front man Chris Bowes  to all the Australian women, who spoke on behalf of the entire group when he claimed “we could molest all of you!” The song was, of course, ‘Nancy the Tavern Wench’. After this bewitching ballad, came a song “heavier than your mother”, ‘Black Sails at Midnight’. We then got to hear ‘Shipwrecked’, and ‘That Famous Ol’ Spiced’.

After so many songs, however, Chris admitted they were “too drunk last night” and needed a short break from vocals, so Alestorm happily copped out and played their instrumental song ‘No Quarter’, which had the entire audience jigging along in joyous piratical hornpipe style.

Then came a delightful cover, because “we can’t be bothered to write our own songs”, with ‘Wolves of the Sea’, before the band launched into ‘The Huntmaster’, and “a song from our new album, which we promised would be on sale tonight, but isn’t because someone fucked up”. This song had some very complicated lyrics, which we were encouraged to sing along to – ‘Rum’ – with a chorus that rang [ready for it?!] “Rum, Rum, Rum, Rum, Rum, Rum!”

After such a deep and meaningful segue from the frivolous theme of piracy, Chris managed to bring some hilarity to the evening by announcing “my friends, I have some bad news. I’m carrying your child!” Then he nearly incited a riot, proving his power over the metal-masses by instructing the audience thusly: “I want all the Sheilas on this side, and all the guys on this side, and I want you to kick the shit out of each other”, while the band ripped into ‘Captain Morgan’s Revenge’. Then, thankfully, they played my all-time favorite Alestorm song, ‘Keelhauled’, before finishing their set in glory and applause and general 'yaaaars!' of approval.

But wait! Was this the end? After one minute, when quite a few members of the audience had filed out, Alestorm returned for an encore! It was during this final song ‘Set Sail and Conquer’ that each band member was introduced, and Peter Alcorn was able to demonstrate his animal impersonation during a mid-song drum solo. 

Overall, this was one night that was not to be missed. If you missed it, you really missed out. Hilarity, joy, moshing, drinking, and, undoubtedly, some wenching [sic] were all indulged in during the night, and I cannot wait for the next Alestorm tour!