Serendipity and chaos.
Why did it have to be Snakes?
Text & Photography by Wayne Bordoli Photography
What’s in a name? Snakes with Tits is a marketing gem. It defiantly attracts interest and definitely adds a bit of mystique to the band and raises sniggers and questions the legitimacy of censorship and the prim disapproval of the Nanny state. Their Fans revel in being called “Tits” and their occasional hilarious blogs on social media are referred to as “Tit Talks”. Kim explained it was a kick back at the (hard to imagine it’s still a thing) misogynistic and infantilized attitude to female musicians and their body parts.
“You do what?! Yes, I play drums, and I manage this with my little lady brain”. They foremost want to be seen as musicians. Snakes with Tits was first conceived from a chance dancefloor meeting between bassist Shellie and drummer Kim. Would you like to be in a band? That was three years ago. Kim says “I’d just started playing drums and didn’t feel able to commit to a band until I felt more accomplished”. April 2023 was the point Shellie, Kim, and friend of 20 years guitarist Scott formed the nascent Snakes With Tits, and their reputation has gathered momentum ever since. The recent addition of second guitarist, Doctor Who fedora and long coat wearing Ben has equalised the gender balance. Ben is beyond happy to join the band and refers to the serendipity of meeting and being immediately accepted by like minds as a creative equal, and the acceptance into the chaos of a non-hierarchical mini society that manages to confound the preconception that lack of leadership stifles productivity and creativity by producing some very interesting and challenging and thoroughly exciting productions. The band call themselves ‘genre resistant’ and I can see why – it’s misleading to hear a snatch or fragment of song and assume that that is the sum sound of the band. A snapshot would reveal influences from Shoegaze, punk, classic rock and blues often in the same song. Such is the egalitarian nature of the band where all have an equal creative input into their songwriting process. This doesn’t happen in many bands. They switch from ethereal shoegaze intros into blistering, exhilarating punk or thunderous rock in a fashion they call Mamgaze, or Radgewave, but one thing is for sure it’s definitely not middle of the road dad rock.
They list influences like an encyclopaedia index, but specifically name check such as My Bloody Valentine, Ride and Black Sabbath, especially referencing Toni Iommi, Bill Ward and Geezer Butler as individual inspirations with guitarist Scott offering the tantalizing list of Dick Dale, Link Wray, Rory Gallagher and Alvin Lee.
The single tyranny was released first of September and is a pulsating mad, slice of Surf Punk the sleeve artwork by North Shields artist, Chris Cook is as darkly comic as the band.
