Press Kit

Pressgang Mutiny

Toronto's "delightfully unhinged and uniquely talented" shantymen — musicians and sailors whose latest album Departure draws on hip hop, soca, ska, and dancehall to restore sea shanties as the multicultural, living global form they've always been.

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"Delightfully unhinged and uniquely talented"

Audience member — Swansea, Summer 2026 UK tour

Biography

Pressgang Mutiny are Toronto's "delightfully unhinged and uniquely talented" shantymen — a group of musicians and sailors dedicated to challenging conventional understanding of sea shanties from a place of deep immersion in their roots. They've travelled the globe to discover where this work song tradition really came from, who sang it and why, and what it still has to say. Along the way they discovered that sea shanties share musical roots with other popular forms such as hip hop, soca, dancehall, and ska. Those roots are an often-erased history the band has an opportunity to shine a light on.

Their latest project, Departure, aims to do just that by drawing connections with the genres that share the same social, rhythmic, and communal roots. It features collaborations with Carl Harvey of Toots and the Maytals, Al Cross and Terry Wilkins of Big Sugar, Toronto hip hop artist Matt Somber, reggae MC Sunray Grennan and many other great musicians they're privileged to share a city with. Departure represents a first step in restoring the tradition's multicultural, trans-Atlantic origins and showcasing sea shanties as a living global form rather than a museum piece.

The band has toured and performed at major festivals across North America and Europe as well as the Caribbean, and was an official Showcase Artist at the Folk Music Ontario Conference in 2023. Summer 2026 took them across the UK, with performances at Sidmouth Folk Festival, FolkEast, Whitby Folk Week, and Shrewsbury Folk Festival.

Pressgang Mutiny are Richard Kott, Josh Ludy, James McKie, Michael O'Grady, and Stefan Read.

Toronto's "delightfully unhinged and uniquely talented" shantymen. Musicians & sailors challenging conventional understanding of sea shanties from a place of deep immersion in their roots. Their album Departure draws connections between shanties, hip hop, soca, ska, and dancehall so shanties become a living global form, not a museum piece.

Showcase artists at the 2023 Folk Music Ontario Conference and Folk Alliance International. Toured the UK in Summer 2026 — Sidmouth Folk Festival, FolkEast, Whitby Folk Week, and Shrewsbury.

Pressgang Mutiny are Toronto's "delightfully unhinged and uniquely talented" shantymen — musicians and sailors who've toured festivals across North America, Europe, and the Caribbean, and whose latest album Departure draws on hip hop, soca, ska, and dancehall to restore sea shanties as the multicultural, living global form they've always been.

Pressgang Mutiny — live on the festival main stage

Live — Main Stage

Pressgang Mutiny — live with festival crowd

Live — With Crowd

Listen

"Sally Rackett" (2026) — played by 132 stations and DJs across 30+ countries. Also on Spotify and Bandcamp.

Press Quotes

"If you enjoy the likes of Kimber's Men, you'll have an absolute whale of a time"

Graham Hobbs — Shire Folk
"Now here's a crew I would sign on with"

David Francey
"Their singing is perfectly suited to their material"

Gordon Potter — Living Tradition
"Departure shows that sea shanties are not just historical artefacts that belong in museums"

London Celtic Punks
"Brilliant 90's dancehall sound!"

Cut La Vis — radio DJ, Brighton, UK
"A pure summer heater right here"

40hz Sound & Radio Show — Toronto