The Apple Tree has been floating around the minds of The Sea Wolf Mutiny for a long time now. They released “The Last Season” in August and had some extra songs lying around that just needed a little more work and didn’t exactly fit on that record. After their CD release for The Last Season they had toyed around with the idea for another short EP. While rehearsing songs for Christmas and finishing a new song of their own, it was time for that release.
Cue The Apple Tree. “Iceburg Tip” is the opening track and is the lone original that made it on the EP that is being coined as a Christmas EP. The opening track is one of The Sea Wolf Mutiny’s oldest songs and is one that they played at their first show in 2009. This is one of the tracks that needed extra work and with a couple of changes in time signatures, has turned into one of their finest songs to date.
“Jesus Christ the Apple Tree” is the second track on the EP and is a Christmas song that most people will be less familiar with. It is an old New England poem, set to music and has been basically rewritten by The Sea Wolf Mutiny. They broke both “Jesus Christ The Apple Tree” and “Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence” down to their most basic acoustic guitar parts and rebuilt them to sound more like Sea Wolf Mutiny songs. “Jesus Christ the Apple Tree” was debuted this year at Christmas at Redbank and “Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence” was debuted last year at Christmas at The Watershed.
The three tracks on The Apple Tree were recorded with Kenny McWillians at Archer Avenue Studios, where The Sea Wolf Mutiny recorded “The Last Season” earlier this year. This EP and these adaptations are all songs that meant a lot to the band and recordings that they have been looking forward to releasing to the public. Fans and listeners have responded well. All recording costs are already recouped.
These three songs seem to stretch pretty far. They are solid and I would argue more than just good Christmas music. Thanks for covering the release. Seawolf Mutiny deserves it.