REVIEW - THE DOGS FROM THE GRAPES "Sailor Without Sea" (2015)

The Dogs from the Grapes "Sailor Without Sea"
Release date: September 30, 2015
Running time: 20: 22, 8 tracks

The Dogs from The Grapes are a new Italian band from Brentonico that were our Band of the Month in October. The sextet have released an 8 track mini-album on which Italian Celtic punk and North American Celtic punk influences are merged.

The songs from the album can be divided into three groups. The first one would include fast-paced self-penned songs: the opening track “Brotherhood of DTG”, a well-balanced mix of mandolin, accordion and flute, “Red Ribbons”, a catchy song that can be filed together with The Dirty Artichokes early material and “Riot Bomb”, another amazing pub(folk) rock number.

Three tracks could be put on the second group: more mature efforts like “Sailor without a Sea”, “A Working Class Song”, interesting song with la-la-la chorus and “Together Again” with its banjo intro, infectiuos chorus and their Italian DNA.

Finally, the covers. The Dogs from the Grapes cover one ballad and one reel. “The Wild Rover” is played with gusto while “The Congress Reel” gets a different treatment. Instead of playing the tune at the right speed, The Dogs from The Grapes play a first round at a slower pace, then a second round at a mid-pace and finally, the reel is played at full speed.

“Sailor Without a Sea” is the first step on The Dogs from The Grapes’ career. The band has the right punk attitude and their instruments mix, with banjo/mandolin and flute instead of tin whistle, places them together with other young and fresh bands from Hungary and Italy.

Tracklist:

1. Brotherhood of D.F.T.G. 01:00   
2. Sailor Without Sea 03:03
3. The Wild Rover 02:21
4. A Working Class Song 03:05
5. Red Ribbons 02:15   
6. Riot Bomb 03:24   
7. Congress Reel 02:05   
8. Together Again 02:52

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Review by Kinksmarkham