SNAKEMILK EP Launch at Voodoo Daddy's Showroom, Norwich

SNAKEMILK Launch New EP 'Into The Snake Pit'

Voodoo Daddy's Showroom, London Street, Norwich

Friday, 11th July 2025

Photograph copyright Gordon Woolcock

“I am looking for something a bit different.” says a man you don’t meet every day, Robin Evans, esquire.  This is certainly the case when you get to see and hear the duo Lassie embark on the opening act, who he has invited to open the launch party for SNAKEMILK's first EP, Into the Snake Pit .  The wild, flame-haired Emily Winng and sleek Camille Davila present psyche-folk in its simplest form, with tub-thumping drum and scratchy electric guitar. The two women command full attention from the audience, visually and aurally.  They produce an enjoyably different set, spiced with light humour and present it in fine style.

 

Dog At The Opera follow. This was only their second stage performance and at times it showed, but there is something very interesting about this group, not least when they move on from the shaky lyrics to their psychedelic-rock-inspired groove.  They played a couple of long tunes and they were very well received by the crowd.  

 

After the first two acts, Evans puts on his stage gear and switches from his mild mannered, sociable daytime self, into a scowling side-kick of the Fallen Angel.  He grows from a precise, clean-picking, the one and only, solo Yar River Delta Bluesman into the snarling beast leading a hard rocking trio that batters the hell out of their tunes – in a good way.


SNAKEMILK at Voodoo Daddy's Showroom. Photograph copyright Gordon Woolcock




Distortion of the mic messes the vocal, making Evans sounds a little like an angry Tom Waits might, but comparisons are unfair.  Evans is set on creating a dark mood.  A dirty sound to complement the threatening, bleak content of his songs of murky deals with the Devil, death and a general sense of dark. This rabble-rousing racket is reinforced by the drumming of Joe Wilson and Jack Gascoigne on the keys of a bass synthesiser.

Jack Gascoigne, keyboards & jokes
(Photo copyright Gordon Woolcock)












Joe Wilson, the dirty beating heart of SNAKEMILK
Photograph copyright Gordon Woolcock








Tonight’s set and the EP contain new songs, the recent single and dramatic reworkings of some earlier solo work from Evans and a classic blues number, St James Infirmary Blues. The Band present a simple set up with the tall presence of Gascoigne with his long blond hair dangling over the synth, to the stage left, the black vested Wilson and his soul-shaking drum kit stage right, leaving Evans in dark US Cavalry jacket and DA slicked hair, the looming centre-piece.

The set, after a bit of a false start, recovers from the stall, leads off with Midnight Radio, a bleak journey through the Broads.  Late at night, alone in a dodgy vehicle, through the gloomy, watery wastelands of East Anglia, what could possibly go wrong?  This rock-a-billy intro is followed by Building A Plane, (a stir-crazed prisoner plans his escape), Stop Drop & Roll and that Devil’s deal in Oregon (previously released by Evans as a solo single) follow at pace.  This is a great set. 

 

Switching to a slide guitar, Evans launches into Dustbowl, another one of his great self-penned tunes.  Gascoigne’s synth work brings vital grit to the reworked number before the disturbing plea, Devil Come Take Me Away mounts an unrelenting assault on the soul.

 

Humourous interventions by big Jack during Evans’ two guitar changes, add a light touch to the show, underlining the tongue-in-cheek nature of the dirty mood music being spewed from the speakers.


Possibly the most talked about song of the night is the filthy cover of St James Infirmary Blues.  Those unfamiliar to the song were knocked over by it, those who know the song, loved the SNAKEMILK version. 

 

I am always grateful to bands who refuse to play encores.  The encore charade can go horribly flat, not that this evening’s would have. However, letting the near-sold out crowd know two songs from the end that we have reached the penultimate number is just as effective in raising the roof.  This storming set came to a crashing conclusion during Badger Milk, with Wilson getting to smash the holy smoke out of his kit in a thumping drum solo and Gascoigne getting a final twiddle on the synth, before his departure from Snakemilk for his main project Mama Oh No.  The show has been rocking great fun, but it was sad to see Jack announce that he is moving on to his pet project. I wish him well with that.

 

Add punk, to messy rock’n’roll, to rock-a-billy, to psycho-billy, to dirty Delta blues, to garage rock, and what do you get?  SNAKEMILK.  Buy the EP Into The Snake Pit from Bandcamp, or if you have the technology to play it, buy a copy of the beautifully designed tape cassette, direct from the band. I can assure you that you'll love it - if you're into this kind of thing! 

 

Words and unattributed photos by Spencer Ide

12th July, 2025


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