About Us

The Shank Painters are a pirate-themed folk music band based in Portland, Maine. The band's repertoire consists of Shanties - a variety of mostly nautical classic folk songs with catchy sing-along refrains, beloved by children and rowdy drunks alike. These works are treasures of history, preserving the travails and spirit from centuries of seafaring culture.

Formed in the Summer of 2016 between high school art friends, Shank Painters began as humble street performers, and have since performed at festivals, parties, venues, and bars all over the Northeast. Bringing together voices, accordion, fiddle, banjo, guitar, and percussion, the Shank Painters bring the past alive with their mixture of playful, rollicking, heartbreaking, and hilarious songs.

Meet the Crew

"Trouble" von Bellows

Vocals, Guitar, Percussion

Faire B. Rapscallion

Vocals, Banjo, Flute, Penny whistle

Captain Nobeard

Accordion, Percussion

Zetara of the Northern Isles

Fiddle

A tall ship deckhand and shipyard worker for several years, Zoe Pancic's passion for music and sailing found its place easily in the Shank Painters. Post-undergrad, she sailed along the East Coast, learning the trade and documenting the experience while sharpening her fiddle skills.

Living on land again, her main role turned to arts administration for the Portland Symphony Orchestra and Portland Ovations. Her musical repertoire includes classical, Irish/Celtic, old-time Appalachian, and traditional Balkan.

Zoe is currently on a year-long hiatus from the band to pursue her Master's Degree in Conducting in Bulgaria.

Charlie Swerdlow is a freelance illustrator, painter, concept artist, and designer, specializing in history. He has worked in publishing, entertainment, theater, gaming, film, television, advertising, fine art, and more. In addition to visual arts, Swerdlow is a writer, poet, and songwriter.

Please visit HistoryDepicted.com to enjoy, shop, or connect!

As a bonus, please check out his webcomic at CricketComic.com

Fairen Stark is an art teacher, illustrator, farmhand, and proud parent to 4 cats. Her artwork is inspired by nature, plants, community, and magic. She loves playing folk music, and is personally very inspired by the pirate way of life.

Fairen grew up in Vermont, and found her way to Maine while attending Maine College of Art & Design. She lives in Portland with her partner, and when she is off-duty from being a pirate she can be found foraging in the woods or playing Stardew Valley. She joined the Shank Painters in 2020 and has been causing mayhem ever since!

Captain Nobeard started playing piano at age 4, and played trumpet throughout grade school and college. They also play guitar and drums. Their musical repertoire on accordion includes sea shanties, Middle Eastern music, and Balkan music.

They first discovered their love of sea shanties in the video game "Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag," a historically-based pirate game where sea shanties are part of the gameplay.

They currently teach music lessons to all ages, and they do accordion repair and restoration. If you're interested, reach out at nyxaccordion@gmail.com.

Sebastian the Shipwrecked

Mandolin, Banjo, Vocals

Antonio Alcorn