Check their website for full details of the Feb. 13th concert taking place in Kansas City (which strangely, is in Missouri.) Score another one for the poor midwestern pirates this cold winter!

I had a conversation a while back with Patch, lead singer and principle songwriter of the Musical Blades. On asking him what other pirate bands he enjoyed, he expressed to my utmost surprise that he doesn’t listen to other pirate bands – not even a little bit. He does this so that his own writing will remain truly “his own”, wishing to follow his own instincts as to what pirate music can be rather than risk following the leads of others. While I myself could never fathom removing myself from the wealth of pirate music splendour that exists these days, I would offer the observation that Patch’s own abstinence seems to have served him, and the Musical Blades as a whole, rather well.

On their new album, Piratically Incorrect, the Musical Blades show themselves to be a band that fits the pirate mould to a T, while at the same time defying stereotypes and common trends. Their music is soulful yet strong – many of their songs speak of the sort of non-denominational spirituality one finds when clinging to the railing during a squall, while others demonstrate the irreverance one exhibits once making it safely ashore again (and thusly to the nearest tavern.)

In musical style, Piratically Incorrect boasts a unique mix. Where most of the songs feature strong, clear vocals and crisp, lively guitar work, others – such as Drink til She’s Pretty and Orsa Ad Finish (I Ran) [incidentally, NOT a pirate remake of Flock of Seagulls] – hail from the “drunken barn dance” school of music. The album begins with Blackbeard’s Demise, a spoken word piece set to music which sounds as though it were read from the headlines following the famous pirate’s decapitation. It’s an enjoyable piece, and an excellent introduction to this fine album. Next up is Johnny I Hardly Knew Ya – a manly sort of singin’ song, sort of a drinking man’s fight anthem.

Subsequent songs show the Musical Blade’s spiritual side – Old Triangle begins with a longing, and then continues with in a faster pace that nonetheless remains thoughtful. Pirate’s Plea, however, is exactly as the title would indicate – a cry to the heaven’s from a distraught sailor realizing the bleakness of his existence. Later songs share in this somber tone – So Dies the Captain is a touching tribute to a captain that’s passed on, while the bitter sweetness of Pirate’s Lullaby has a distinct Simon & Garfunkel bent to it. Ocean Burial and Maracaibo also carry a slow strength, while still finding their own original voices in turn.

While strength and strange reverence would seem the overriding theme of this album, there is still time made for the alternate side of the coin. Dirty ‘lil Accent is perhaps the most harmless sounding dirty song I’ve ever listened too – think smutty Beatles. Drink ’til She’s Pretty you can guess at yourself, while Ship Load o’ Bastards traces the distress of a sailor who learns that his entire crew is made up of his own illegitimate sons.

Bullgine, Spancill Hill, and What’ll it Be are all decent songs in their own rights, and nicely compliment the album while not entirely standing out. Bring on the Limey Birds, however, is worth a mention as it’s a fine tribute to the female performance group that has often shared the stage with the Musical Blades – a song distinctively funkier than the rest of the album, and a fun change of pace.

Piratically Incorrect definitely charts its own course in the Pirate-Core world – hardly “off the map” in the way of pirate rap or pirate jazz, but also not remotely the “same ‘ol same ‘ol” that can be the trap of pirate faire music. The Musical Blades are definitely a band not quite like any other, and their new album is well worth a listen.

I just returned from the St. Louis Pirate Festival – my third year in attendance (and being as it’s their third year having the festival, I’d call that a pretty good track record on my part.)

The Scallywaggs always look suspicious.

The St. Louis Pirate Festival is held on the same grounds as the St. Louis Renaissance Festival – wooden paths checkered with nooks, cranies, and permenant buildings for vendors of food, beer, and wares. Vendors this year were decent, although there seemed to be a smidge fewer than in the past. The Pyrate Trading Company was amongst the highlights for me – not only because they’re such good mates of mine, but because they still make some of the finest hats and leather goods around. Even my father-in-law, who attended the festival with me, found himself a hat to call his very own.

Entertainment included festival veterans The Scallywaggs, 3 Pints Gone, Thom Bedlam, The Chuvani Bellydancers, and many others. Some of the former musical acts were sadly missing, though, including the Bucklers of Swash, Limey Birds, and Bounding Main. However, for the first time ever this festival hosted The Musical Blades, which was a great treat being as I’ve been a fan for years, yet never able to meet them or catch a live show.

Panama, of the Musical Blades, seemed oddly protective of his privates throughout the weekend.

Also a treat was meeting the Bilgemunky.com and Bilgemunky Radio fans. One bloke truly made my day by yelling out during the end of a Musical Blades performance that he heard them on Bilgemunky Radio. Other listeners gave me rum (yay!), one bowed to me (always a classy move), and a third I almost ran away from, being as he was dressed in Air Force fatigues and looked quite serious. Happily it turned out that he wasn’t looking to arrest me, but merely he and his daugher wished to meet “the Bilgemunky”, but had been held up most of the day with other military-type duties until the last minute. Thanks to all of you – it’s always great to meet listeners/readers. I just hope I didn’t seem too much a spaz, as I’m still unaccustomed to it all

Sadly, the weekend’s greatest disappointment was the crowd – I mean, where was everyone? Ok, granted, the weather predictions were pretty foul, but Saturday turned out to be quite decent, yet the crowds were awfully sparce. Sunday, well, the remnants of Hurricane Ike saw fit to crash the party and flood the festival, so I guess no one can be blamed for not attending that day (especially being as it was cancelled.) The good news, however, is there are still two more weeks. Sadly I can’t return myself, but if you’re even remotely in the area I heartily recommend checking it out.

Due tribute and courtesy to the Bilgemunky is always a smart move.

Genre: A Capella Festival Songs
Rating: PG-13
Target Audience: Late teens to early retirement

In my humble opinion, traditional-style pirate bands have a unique chanllenge set before them. Being as much of their music is performed live on the festival circuit, they must cater to the live-action, beer-guzzling, turkey-leg-waving-to-the-music crowd. This is what I consider “renny” music – quasi-baudi, slightly goofy, and sometimes requiring audience participation. And this is all fine until this same band enters the recording studio, where much of this live performance just doesn’t translate well to the digital medium…

I should stop myself before you reach a forgone conclusion that I’m going to describe the Musical Blades’ album “A Knife to Remember” as a renny band that just doesn’t work on CD, as that’s not accurate. What they do, actually, is straddle the fence, bouncing between renny songs that would work well live (but indeed fall a bit flat in your home theater), and other songs that show a budding piratey genius perfectly suited to modern media.

The “renny” songs on this album are generally a’ capella. They are often fun, sometimes sing-songy, and occasionally include pop-culture references (Larry the Cable Guy is evoked in “I’ll Have Me Beer” – likely a first in pirate CD history.) The songs “Whoo Whaa!!” and “Tigo Bitty” are PG-13 dirty, and along with many of the other renny songs include brief tangents whereby the singers step aside to share a joke, comment, or gag. These songs are all good, although I feel better suited to outdoor live settings.

More fitting to the CD medium are “Scurvy Lousy Blokes” and “The Derelict” (this last is NOT the same as the famous “15 Men on a Dead Man’s Chest” song by the same name, rather being a slow, melodious – even forboding – song that’s at once heroic and strong. Very nice.) Also included in these superior songs are “Drink, Drink, Drink” (certainly the Musical Blades’ most famous number) and “Devil Knows our Name”, being a catchy piratey tune that can only be faulted for apparently being recorded in a studio that didn’t own a pop-guard (a must for any singer making frequent use of the word “pirate.”)

Knife to Remember also features a few in-between songs, being more suitable to CD than the renny songs, but not quite as superior as the others previously mentioned. “Down to Old Maui” features decent vocals and fun guitar work, although the tune feels a little rushed. “Ode to a Pirate” is easy on the ears and piratey, and “Blow the Man Down” is serviceable if not overly memorable.

All told, “A Knife to Remember” is a decent, if not stellar, pirate album. In it, The Musical Blades show real talent – they clearly have what it takes to place themselves on the piratey charts. This skill is clearly displayed on several songs, making this a fine album for any piratey collection. But hopefully future efforts will see the Blades branch out a bit and leave their festival roots behind as they further explore the recording medium. Should they do so, I expect they’ll prove capable of fantastic works.