Formed in Vancouver, British Colombia, but now based in New York, Polka Pit<\/em> is their eighth album, and their first for Ohio label Punkerton Records.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Mixing traditional European folk music with modern street-punk, they carry on the heritage of bands such as The Pogues and Gogol Bordello.<\/p>\n\n\n\n They trailed the album at the end of May by releasing title track Polka Pit<\/em> as the lead single, and it’s the lively opener here, sure to get your feet tapping long before the end.<\/p>\n\n\n The upbeat Dark Sleeper<\/em> is the first of three instrumentals, giving the band the chance to show their impressive musical prowess. The pick of them is their take on Brahms’ Hungarian Dance<\/em>, which adds guitar, bass and drums to the accordion, fiddle and mandolin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Elsewhere, there’s a fine trio of seafaring songs; the sea shanty Sierra<\/em>, wartime tale The Torrid Brine<\/em>, and, best of all, The Good Ship Mary Robinson<\/em>, about a Californian clipper which tragically sank after being grounded on a reef with 1,300 tons of batshit onboard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Tarantella Bang Boom<\/em> is a quick Italian folk dance, while The I’m Going To Fight Jim’s Girlfriend Polka<\/em> sounds like fellow Celtic punks Dropkick Murphys, and invites us to “drink until you don’t know who you are”. Sounds like a plan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"dreadnoughts\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ipamusic.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/the-dreadnoughts.jpg?resize=640%2C427\")
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