Time : 19:30 415467358110328
On Thursday 12th December at the infamous Hope and Anchor in Islington (207 Upper Street, Islington, London N1 1RL Tel: 020 7354 1312 www.hopeandanchor.info/ ) everyone’s favourite Southern rockers The Snakeoil Rattlers will join forces with their good friends Star Circus and Beth Blade.
Star Circus is the brainchild of Dave Winkler (Trophies Of Man, Ryan Hamilton, Annabella’s Bow Wow Wow, Renegade Playboys) and are a London-based rock band influenced by Queen, Thin Lizzy, Cheap Trick and Def Leppard to name a few. They’re a lot of fun and are making a big impact on the London rock music scene.
Beth Blade will also be giving a special solo acoustic performance, sharing songs from her many albums with her band, Beth Blade and the Beautiful Disasters. With her incredible voice and captivating presence, you won’t want to miss her set.
Both The Snakeoil Rattlers and Star Circus will be playing full headline sets, and Beth Blade will get the party started. There will also be some merchandise available if you want to show your love ones how much you love them this Christmas.
As always, Ken will greet you at the door. Come on down and get festive with us!
Tickets are on sale now for £10 advance, or on the door (cash and credit cards accepted).
Get yours today at TicketSource (https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/whats-on/207-upper-street/hope-anchor-islington/the-snakeoil-rattlers-star-circus-beth-blade/2024-12-12/19:30/t-ojrvenl).
We can’t wait to see you there!
The Snake Rattle & Roll Team
Bios:
The Snakeoil Rattlers
The Snakeoil Rattlers have continued to work tirelessly to cement their place in the UK Southern Rock and Americana scene both as a headline act and opening for US bands such as Skinny Molly and Hogjaw. The strong narrative of their songs often finds them compared to songwriting notaries including the Drive-by Truckers, Townes Van Zandt, and Steve Earle, but with a sound distinctly their own. The Outlaw Punk Country Radio Show described them as having “Smooth rural southern lyrics and native hymning” .
The five-piece line-up includes twin electric guitars and lap steel and has led them to being proclaimed by ARFM radio as “Quite possibly the greatest country, bluegrass and rock fusion the South never had”. And with the release of their debut album ‘Backwater’ the band shows no sign of slowing up.
Song writer Barry Warren says “The songs are written about a nation’s constantly changing landscape and I sincerely believe that literal realism is what we’re trying to achieve. It’s been remarked that some of the songs have death rates higher than a disaster movie or that they’re like mini soap operas, but I don’t think it’s just the lyrics but the music also. The Rattlers are lucky enough to be endowed with musicians that can both portray not only the dark urgency that some songs require but also delicate phrasing in the lighter moments. There’s some love stories in there too. They just don’t all have a happy endings.”
Their debut album ‘Backwater’ is instantly pertinent as a 21st century Americana/Southern Rock opera that reached #1 in the 365 Radio Country/Americana Album Chart featuring the #2 single ‘Devil’s in My Rearview’.
Barry Warren’s interview on the Spirit and Roots Radio reached #1 in the MIXCLOUD Southern Rock Chart.
Unlike the snake oil salesmen of the past The Snakeoil Rattlers will never sell the ladies and gentleman of the audience short, but still share the cure-all-ills remedy of raw entertainment.
Where the swamp meets the road you will find The Snakeoil Rattlers.
“Brilliant, brilliant, brilliant! I was blown away by it (‘Fire in the Hole’). Worthy of a John Peel moment. I’m playing it again. A grass roots band really going somewhere”
— Stephen Lowin, Storm FM
“Marvellous Stuff from the Marvellous album ‘Backwater'”
— Mark Worden, Wordy’s World, Hard Rock Hell Radio
“If you like Southern country rock, authentic sounding whiskey driven rock you want to get to know them, definitely.”
— Natasha Strange, Strange Country Show, Radio 365
“One of the best records of 2022”
— Dan Raza, Spirit and Roots
web: www.snakeoilrattlers.co.uk
twitter: @snakeoilrattler
facebook: www.facebook.com/snakeoilrattlers
Instagram: www.instagram.com/snakeoilrattlers
Star Circus
Star Circus is the brainchild of Dave Winkler (Bordello Rose, Renegade Playboys, Trophies of Man). After a detour playing guitar and touring as a hired gun for acts such as Bow Wow Wow, Johnny Lima and Ryan Hamilton, in late 2019 the band materialised out of Dave’s passion to create an album focused around his own material.
It wasn’t long before Winkler’s own songs started catching the attention of the music industry, including Total Rock and Radio One Rock Show legendary producer, Tony Wilson.
“Dave played me the demos and I was blown away by them – song after song crammed with catchy riffs and commercial hooks. I knew straight away that I’d love to work on this album and bring these fabulous songs to life.” – Tony Wilson
Alongside Tony handling production duties on ‘Separate Sides’, the debut album was mastered by Ade Emsley at Table of Tone Mastering (Iron Maiden/Alison Moyet/The Treatment); all of which adds to the potency of the song writing on offer here and equates to an euphoric collection of music that fans of melodic rock will enjoy over and over. Rock pop smarts? Check. You simply cannot miss the melodies, Winkler and co. have equipped themselves with great darts, and are taking aim.
From the infectious dark hooks of ‘Save Your Life’, the melodic uplifting sonics of ‘Just Like In A Movie’ and Love Is The Enemy’, to the melancholic yet anthemic delivery of ‘Bridges’, throughout this long player there’s a real sense Winkler’s true vision and inimitable style which gloriously celebrates the best of 70s/80s rock music. While the songs will sit comfortably with fans of classic style rock, Star Circus aren’t afraid to look at the here, now, and future of their musical direction. They’ve succeeded in delivering a body of work that truly makes this album their own.
“Possessing an eclectic range of influences stretching from classic hard rock, through AOR, ’80s Glam Metal, ’90s American power pop… these fuse faultlessly to form a sound that is stacked full of infectious melodies, grandiose vocal and instrumental harmonies plus colossally catchy choruses. It is this musical melting pot that makes Star Circus so fascinating.” – Sophie James (MetalTalk)
“A stunning debut album… top notch rock-pop, it’s a real peach.” (8/10) – ERB Magazine
“To say it’s a special album doesn’t do it justice. ‘Separate Sides’ is one of the classiest, most heart-stopping albums you’ll hear.” (10/10) – Rock Queen Reviews
“Superb, infectious fun. It’s absolutely chock-full of melodies that earworm their way into your head, set up camp, and refuse to move out again.” (8/10) – Powerplay Magazine
“Star Circus are onto a winner with this album… A dose of power-pop makes for a fine debut.” – Get Ready to Rock Blog
“Hearty slabs of rock and poppy goodness… Star Circus have much to share and enjoy, ones to keep an eye on.” (4/5) – Black Velvet Magazine
“Catchy ditties like ‘Save Your Life, ‘Something and ‘Just Like In A Movie’ suggest bags of potential.” (7/10) – Classic Rock Magazine
“The future comes with the knowledge that this is the band’s debut and if there is more of this sumptuous pop rock to come then the world will be a better place for it.” (9/10) – My Global Mind
“This band seems tipped for success and after many listens of ‘Separate Sides’ I can understand why!” – Fireworks Magazine
web: starcircus.co.uk
Twitter: @StarCircus_band
facebook: www.facebook.com/StarCircusBand
Instagram: www.instagram.com/starcircus_band
Beth Blade
Beth Blade and The Beautiful Disasters are a Hard Rock band based out of Cardiff, South Wales. The four-piece provide monster riffs, huge choruses and a dose of old school rock and roll attitude. With aggressive muscle and melodic sensitivity, this band is reigniting the flame of British Hard Rock. They have an unmistakable modern presence whilst keeping the spirit of old school rock and roll alive.
The band have been a non-stop force to be reckoned with, building a strong pedigree touring with Marco Mendoza (ex-Whitesnake, Thin Lizzy) and The Electric Boys, and have supported old and new legends such as Kee Marcello, Y and T, Doro Pesch, Dan Reed and Danny Vaughan (Tyketto), Ricky Warwick and Damon Johnson (Thin Lizzy), Massive Wagons, Those Damn Crows, The Dead Daisies, Graham Bonnet (Rainbow), and Thundermother. They are no strangers to festivals either having performed at Hard Rock Hell, Planet Rockstock, Planet Rock’s Winter’s End Monsterfest and most notably with KISS on the globally renowned KISS Kruise in the USA.
The band’s first two albums received glowing reviews across the rock press (each album crowdfunded by their fans in judging their upcoming release) and resulted in international radio airplay including rotation on major networks in the UK. Beth herself, who is often likened to a mix between Lzzy Hale and Suzi Quatro, has sung backing vocals on 2 albums with British Rock legends Thunder, one which reached number 8 in the UK Top 40 Album Chart and the most recent hit number 1 in the UK Rock Chart in March 2021.
Their latest album ‘Mythos, Confession, Tragedies and Love’ was released on July 8th 2022, receiving rave reviews from all corners of the Rock scene’s media. The album itself leads the band down a musically intense path, going darker and deeper than ever before.
The lead single ‘Sin Eater’ has been received well by radio. It was included in Classic Rock Magazines ‘Tracks of the Week’ where it was voted #2 overall in the poll, which included songs by legends such as Thunder and Joe Satriani. Second single ‘Tonight I’m With You’ was released on May 26th and received much acclaim, being played multiple times on Planet Rock Radio, while their third single, ‘Persephone’, was released 24th June, was played on BBC Radio, Planet Rock Radio and more, and continues that strong momentum.
The band is fiercely determined and has the grit to surpass their previous accomplishments through intense live performances and a passion for rock and roll that is unrivalled.
Paul Sabin, Fireworks Magazine –
“Beth Blade and the Beautiful Disasters have evolved into a harder hitting outfit and their ability to write killer, lyrically brilliant songs has progressed greatly. With contrasts of light and dark, Show Me Your Teeth is a definite success. It won’t be long before the arenas will be beckoning.”
Powerplay Magazine –
“Clever this. The simple garage sound, the rough riffs and bubblegum choruses; very nice. Beth has just been on the Kiss Kruise and it’s only her second album. Must be doing something right eh? Beth isn’t reinventing the wheel here, she’s hitting it ’til it bursts and then laughing maniacally. Very well done: this isn’t a Disaster, far from it.”
Classic Rock Magazine –
“Taking a leaf out of the Joan Jett/Lita Ford school of chick rock, Cardiff based Beth Blade and her beautiful Disasters have done their homework. And they crowdfunded their debut album so successfully that they even got to record some of it at the famed Rockfield studios, where the ghosts of some of Blade’s illustrious predecessors seeped out of the walls and into the grooves. It helps to raise a fairly standard set of rockers up several notches, aided by Blade’s straining vocals that add a sense of urgency, backing up the steady flow of guitar riffs. But it’s the power ballad Poster Girl For Pain that impresses most, with its original style and delivery. It augurs well for the future. It’s all summed up in the final, autobiographical Legends Never Die, where Blade discovers her dream while watching MTV at the age of seven. Rock on girl.”
Metal Gods Meltdown –
“Next we had Beth Blade and the Beautiful Disasters, all the way from Cardiff , they have been on the road supporting Marco Mendoza’s tour in the UK. Well to say we were blown away is an understatement as the Red Haired Vixen Beth ,and her Disasters launched into “Hell Yeah” the room stood transfixed taken aback, enthralled by these Cardiff rockers enthusiasm and Metal verve, fuck, this is the best up and coming band we have seen in many a year they totally rocked Bannermans, the raunchy “Kisses” had me personally spellbound as the band weaved their magic, they commanded and rocked the small stage.”
Battlehelm –
“This is party music. My kind of party music. There is nothing like a really fat groove. A groove that you feel all the way to your spine. “Bad Habit” has that groove. This is the kind of hard rock that puts a smile on your face. The kind you want to dance all night to. The kind you don’t want to ever stop. And that to me is what music should be all about; an escape from everyday life. And this is just that.”
web: www.bethbladeandthebeautifuldisasters.com
Twitter: @BBATBDOfficial
facebook: www.facebook.com/BBATBDOfficial
Instagram: www.instagram.com/BBATBDOfficial