The Dreadnoughts – Into The North

Vancouver’s The Dreadnoughts have never written the same album twice. Starting as a sea shanty inspired celtic punk act, the band has evolved into a rustic folk troupe, boot stomping polka purveyors, and most recently, a somber tribute to the grim sacrifices of World War I.  So when the band announced that their next full length, Into The North would be a one of a kind love letter to their sea chanty days it seemed that they would be returning to their roots.  But a closer look reveals that the band takes their commitment a step further by momentarily shelving their punk tendencies and exploring fifteen tracks of pint raising a capella featuring only a sparingly rationed drum beat, accordion or fiddle between some tracks.

If I’m being truthful, I made the initial mistake of assuming that the songs would be in the vein of their self titled debut and that The Dreadnoughts would be returning to the raucous days of “Old Maui.” I was caught off guard when the bulk of the album was entirely composed of “pure” sea chanty chants like the vocal-only cries of the “Old Maui” of their 2011 EP, rather than of the boisterous plugged-in celtic punk of their 2007 debut.  Compare the traditionally wooden masted ship upon the cover of Into The North with the armour clad vessel on the front of their self titled debut and the differences should be clear. I realize it was my fault for misreading the press release, but it’s best to clarify your mindset entering such a project to stave off confusion, or even disappointment.  For if you’re awaiting your next sweaty fist raising crowd surfing moment, you won’t find it here.

Instead, Into The North builds a swashbuckling world where dockside cider and deep water vessels reign supreme.  As a rule, the album rotates between pure a capella and some form of instrument supported jig.  The accordion takes centre stage here, providing just enough atmosphere to flesh out the album’s minimalist approach.  “Rosibella” opens the album towards this end, offering up a boot stomping rhythm guided by the sole thumping of Marco Bieri’s drums and Nicholas “The Fang” Smith’ s commanding bellow.  The rest of the band joins the chorus in a combination of gang vocals that belt the line “heave away!” as if in anthemic recruitment to a life on the high seas. Others like “Paddy Lay Back” and “Whup Jamboree” fall snugly in line with this trend.  “Roll Northumbria” serves as a high point in seafaring lore, projecting imagery of a slow, steady rolling tanker that commands the seas and instills confidence and awe in those in its wake. With a backing baritone chorus of a capella and a finely fiddled late song bridge, the track rolls along like a ship cutting forcefully through a fierce gale.  

Perhaps one of the most endearing aspects of Into The North is the handful of tracks that focus upon The Dreadnoughts’ home country.  The featured trio include “Joli Rouge,” “Dear Old Stan,” and “Northwest Passage,” all encompassing an aspect of good old Canadian pride.  The first of the batch, “Joli Rouge,” serves as yet another ode to The Dreadnoughts’ affliction for cider. A tribute to a humble Montreal brewery that named their finest cider after The Dreadnoughts, the track takes aim at commercial breweries, playfully claiming that “… you can have a Magners, and pour it over ice, or you can have a strongbow if it’s sadness that you like,” extending a welcome to purveyors of authenticity to “join us up the river … where the real cider starts to flow,” at the one and only Joli Rouge. Meanwhile, “Dear Old Stan” honours the time tested work of Canadian folk legend Stan Rogers, framing songs like “Harris and the Mare” and “The Flowers of Bermuda” as pivotal moments in the band’s childhood.  It’s the type of track you’ll be humming in your head as you go about your work for days. The band follows the track with a classic cover of Roger’s most well known track, “Northwest Passage,” which marries Rogers’ rustic vocal style with faint acoustic strumming and a subtle interplay of accordion, fiddle and tin whistle. So many bands have covered this track – The Real McKenzies, Pirates for Sail, and more recently, metal group Unleash The Archers, to name a few – but this may be one of the finest renditions yet.  Expect nothing less from The Dreadnoughts.

If you take the time to watch the documentary, Stoked: The Dreadnoughts Return, the band highlights a memorable chapter in their early career at “The Pirate Bar” in Poland.  During this legendary performance the band set in motion events that would cause the bar’s management to attempt to shut down their set by pulling the power to the soundboard.  At the time the band played whatever they could to feed the hungry crowd, which mostly included Ramones’ covers. But with the release of Into The North, should The Dreadnoughts ever find themselves stripped of technology again, they now come armed with fifteen sea shanties sure to satisfy a crowd without concession.  

Into The North is perhaps the most “Dreadnoughts” album The Dreadnoughts have ever released.  Yet it’s also the slowest moving with regard to tempo, with The Dreadnoughts fully committing to their vision of an album build soley of sea shanties.  The Dreadnoughts never waiver or return to the safety of a punk tune, but rather venture further out to sea with each passing song.  Some tracks work better than others (I wasn’t hugely drawn to “Shallow Brown” or “Starbucks Complaint”), but on the whole Into The North is a successful experiment that shouldn’t take long, if at all, to win over The Dreadnoughts’ devoted fans.  It might not be the best starting point for newcomers, but Into The North will forever hold a special place in the band’s legendary discography.