Hop on board with Celtic punk pirates Paddy And The Rats and sail into their upcoming album From Wasteland To Wonderland, out April 29 via Napalm Records. With their mix of pub tunes and punk rock accompanied by Celtic accents, Paddy And The Rats welcome the listener into a blustery world of pirates and sailors abound with their new offering. From Wasteland To Wonderland builds upon the energetic mood of its predecessor, Riot City Outlaws, resulting in a mighty seaworthy successor.
Before taking to the high seas though, the pirate gang puts their first boot forward by showcasing their most vulnerable side while telling of one of the most difficult periods in their band history. The band’s new single, “After The Rain”, is a heartfelt dedication to accordion player Bernie Bellamy (Bernát Babicsek), who sadly passed away at the start of 2022 – just months before the upcoming release of From Wasteland To Wonderland, which they had worked hard on and looked forward to releasing together. The ballad celebrates Bellamy with a longing melody accented by violin elements, ensuring that he will sail forever in our hearts.
Today, Paddy And The Rats have released a lyric video featuring precious memories of Bernie, which will be followed by an official video to be released next week on March 9.
Paddy And The Rats on “After The Rain”: “This album became very important to us because this is the last thing that Bernie recorded in his life.
We’d like to dedicate the first single of the album to Bernie and to express all our emotions through the song we release first. That’s why we’ve chosen ‘After The Rain’. It’s a sad song but it also has a fully positive vibe. Sadness and desperation are there through the whole song, but meanwhile, you can feel something powerful when the pipe and the accordion come in at the drop. It conveys the feeling that you have to be strong and you have to move on. The last line in the chorus says: ‘After the rain, sunshine will never be the same’. I think this is the essence of the song. The absence of Bernie will be more endurable with time, but nothing will ever be the same without him.”
Watch the lyric video for “After The Rain” below.
With their six full-length, Paddy And The Rats serve a top-notch pirate party fueled by a heavy dose of Punk, Polka and Folk, turning the world into a giant pub. This Irish influenced sound will assuredly bring up the urge to slam down a cold one while swinging happily along arm in arm to the beat. Formed in 2008 by singer and songwriter Paddy, the untamed unit have built a respective name within the scene due to hard work and extensive touring all over Europe – with more than 400 shows including at the world famous Wacken Open Air and the Sziget Festival. For the new album, they teamed up once again with producer Zoli Baker. The artwork was designed by Jill Colbert, who has also worked with bands like Alestorm, Exodus and Wintersun.
On a rousing 13 tracks, the Hungarians magically pull one stirring song after another out of their pirate hats, featuring a great variation of instruments like accordion, fiddle, banjo and bagpipe. The Celtic punks sail off on exciting adventures with their opener “Wasteland”, offering a longing duo of mandolin and vocals accompanied by violin injections. The spirit is incited with “Ship Will Sale”: The rousing track hits like a wild wave and invites the listener to join the party, swaying and stomping with them. The full-length pushes forward with “Party like a Pirate”, where they delight their shipmates with an eager party hit featuring a sweeping sing-along chorus. “Everybody Get Up” offers another power boost and slowly prepares for the end of the adventure, with its punkier, energetic sound. The last stop of the journey with the Celtic Punks is “Wonderland”. This emotional ballad provides the perfect note on which to end the album. With From Wasteland to Wonderland, Paddy And The Rats deliver a seaworthy adventure that fills the listener with addictive energy and simple happiness.
From Wasteland To Wonderland is available in the following formats:
- Jewel Case
- Jewel Case + T-Shirt Bundle
- Digital Full Length Album
Pre-order here.
Tracklisting:
"Wasteland"
"Ship Will Sail"
"Party Like A Pirate"
"After The Rain"
"Northern Lights"
"Matadora"
"Standing In The Storm"
"Everybody Get Up"
"Hometown Kid"
"Heartbreaker"
"Rumble Outta Here"
"The Last Hunt"
"Wonderland"
"After The Rain" lyric video:
Lineup:
Paddy O'Reilly – Lead Vocals, Acoustic Guitars
Sam McKenzie – Fiddle, Bagpipe, Banjo, Whistle's
Bernie Bellamy – Accordion, Backing Vocals †
Joey MacOnkay – Guitar, Backing Vocals
Vince Murphy – Bass, Backing Vocals
Seamus Conelly – Drums
