The Longest Johns

The Longest Johns bring their Bristol-born sea-song craft to Montréal on July 11, 2026 at Théâtre Beanfield. Formed as an a cappella quartet, they’ve grown a sound where close harmonies lead the way, propped up by spare percussion and acoustic folk textures. Live, they move between traditional shanties and original writing, trading verses, stacking choruses and pulling the room into call-and-response refrains.

Expect the cadence of work songs, the sway of coastal ballads and a present-day folk edge. Wellerman, which carried them to a wider audience, sits alongside staples like Bones in the Ocean, with newer cuts from Smoke & Oakum threading stories of crews, storms and shore leave. The set pivots on voices—unison bursts, layered parts, and those communal hooks that invite the crowd to sing—while banjo, guitar or bodhrán sketch the rhythm.

From early uploads to festival stages and gaming crossovers like Sea of Thieves, The Longest Johns keep the focus on choral storytelling and shared choruses. In Montréal, the theatre turns into a ship’s deck for a night, songs working the room like a crew.