Agatha Harkness’ The Ballad of the Witches’ Road: A Kick Ass Sea Shanty for Aspiring Witches

Kathryn Hahn, Sasheer Zamata, Ali Ahn, Patti LuPone and Debra Jo Rupp not only act in Marvel’s Agatha All Along, but also show off their harmonising in one kick ass witches’ folk shanty. I usually don’t write about original music from TV or movies on this site, but every so often something demands my attention. Ryan Gosling with I’m Just Ken hit that mark, as did Michael Giacchino’s The Batman score. Agatha’s The Ballad of the Witches’ Road just hit me and demanded to be reviewed.

Musically, you find yourself in a jazzed up sea shanty. That is, the first half is mainly harmonising with very little instrumentation at all. In a classic sea shanty you may get some hitting on a table or drum to keep the beat, while our witches’ shanty uses a bell to seperate the verses. However, the back end of the track is where strings, bass and probably syth join in to give the track some added urgency. Even though these instruments, maybe not the synth, are not foreign to a traditional sea shanty, their use in this track is to give the song a more modern feel. Having said all of that, the track itself has that old timey folky vibe that I just love. The instrumentation itself is rather paired back and is really there to underscore the drama in the vocals. Now…the vocals…that’s where these witches really shine.

First of all, I have to give it to all the actors for really belting out this track and sounding great. They don’t sound like professional singers, but they sound great and the fact that they are singing the track gives it a natural feel. This track’s spell….see what I did there…are the harmonies, which are impeccable. Key changes, timing, pitch and vocal range are all fantastic. To a trained ear they may sound a bit pitchy in one place or flat in another, but it gives the track this raw shanty vibe. We don’t love sea shanties because they are in perfect pitch, but because we feel like we are on the open sea and we can belt it out along with our pirate friends. The reason I love The Ballad of the Witches’ Road is because I can belt it out and be part of the coven.

The witch themes and shanty vibe is a cross between 1970s Led Zeppelin imagery and something you sing as you are sailing the North Atlantic. I love this song and if you are a sucker for harmonies, like I am, you will love it was well. There is something to be said about the timeless acapella folk / shanty song structure that continues to permeate music. Even though this is a modern Marvel show, this archaic and traditional folk track will save your soul….see…I did it again…

Listen to The Ballad of the Witches’ Road