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Release date: March 17, 2016
Running time: 14 tracks
“My Drinkin’ ain’t Done” is the long awaited debut album by Bunch of Bastards. And who are Bunch of Bastards? A Dutch band fronted by Andries van den Broek, aka Dutch Irish Bastard, (accordion), and Cor (vocals). The rest of the band consist of Huib on electric guitar and mandolin, Peter on acoustic guitar, electric guitar and banjo, Dex on bass and John on drums and percussion.
Bunch of Bastards have labeled their style as “full force folk” and then they have recorded 14 tracks that run in 50 minutes. Are they on the Circle J end or on the Royal Spuds end? To tell you the truth, they have followed their own way. Some numbers have a The Pokes twist (the opening track “Lucky Break”, track no. 2 “Back in the Day”with its Sex Pistols inspired intro and “Let’s Called it a Day”), while others have a The Real McKenzies feel (the kick-ass track no. 9 “Run’n’Drink” and the addictive “Many a good Reason”). Together with those fantastic songs, there are a couple of excellent Celtic punk anthems (“Sing with Us Bastards” and “The Dutch”), the brilliant “Katusja Kalashnikova” with its ska punk touch and a great guitar work at the end, the poignant “Sky over Rotterdam”, the gypsy punk inspired song “Middle of Nowhere” or the Christy Moore sounding song titled “Live Again”. The guys have decided to cover “Whiskey in the Jar“, which is placed at the end of the CD.
Lyrically, the album is quite interesting, with several songs about losers and some tracks about booze. And the album packaging is a labour of love: a six panel packaging with a 16 page booklet including all the lyrics to the songs, a band pic, thank yous and studio credits.
The Netherlands have a very interesting Celtic punk scene with bands such as Circle J, Drunken Dolly, Scrum, The Royal Spuds, Flannery or The Folkaholics. Fortunately, Bunch of Bastards have been able to find their own niche and to deliver a highly recommendable album.
You can also check out the album review that our mates from London Celtic Punks wrote about “My Drinkin’ ain’t Done” HERE
01 – Lucky Break 3:42
02 – Back In the Day 2:56
03 – Middle of Nowhere 3:34
04 – Katusja Kalashnikova 4:07
05 – Hey Barkeeper 4:20
06 – Sky Over Rotterdam 4:16
07 – Sing With Us Bastards 2:32
08 – Michael Malloy 4:47
09 – Run ‘n’ Drink 3:26
10 – The Dutch 3:33
11 – Live Again 4:28
12 – Lets Call It a Day 3:08
13 – Many a Good Reason 2:46
14 – Whiskey In the Jar 2:33
