ALBUM REVIEW: 25/7 – Lagerstein

Setting sail across the seven seas once more, pirate metallers LAGERSTEIN have crafted their third studio album 25/7. The record follows a three year hiatus since All For Rum and Rum For All, and has seen new blood joining the S.S Plunderberg; Lucky The Great boards the ship on bass while Rusty Timbers nails his colours to the mast as the band’s newest drummer.

The latest offering starts off with Midnight Moonshine, which from the very first chord gives that pirate theme that LAGERSTEIN have established themselves on – the riffs are crushing and combine well with the keyboards to send you on a journey into the deepest depths. Captain Gregaaarrr carries the track throughout with his unique vocal style, adding even more to the pirate style, and the whole track itself really gets you headbanging almost immediately.

This same element has been implemented in 25/7, as the ending of Midnight Moonshine leads straight into Dig Bury Drink. There are certainly more nautical themes in the opening moments of this record, the keyboards and violins prominent throughout and showing a bit of a throwback to the band’s first album Drink ‘Til We Die. From the title itself it’s pretty self-explanatory as to what this track is about, and while there is a classic LAGERSTEIN sound to it, the riffs and bass certainly add another dimension to the heavier side of the band and it combines really well.

If anyone has ever listened to LAGERSTEIN before or even managed to get themselves to see them at a live show, then you may be aware that the band have a habit of drinking any form of alcohol from a shoe, and they have paid homage to that in this album with Shoey Song, which gives somewhat of a backstory as to where the idea came from.

LAGERSTEIN have certainly been dubbed pirate metal, and the theme has been there since their debut album back in 2012, and there’s no doubting that in 25/7 the band have strayed from their roots; they continue telling the tales of the crew on board the S.S Plunderburg, the tracks certainly give a party feel to it and is something that is just really fun to listen to from start to finish.

LAGERSTEIN are renowned for partying and 25/7 sums up their whole persona in just one record. From a musical perspective, it has a good mix of some of the older LAGERSTEIN sound from previous records, as well as implementing subtle differences which make it stand out more, giving a heavier impression from the metal perspective, and takes the band that one step further in the right direction. Overall a solid, fun record from start to finish.

Rating: 8/10

25/7 is set for release August 23rd via Kegstand Records. 

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