The debut EP from UK-based Gothic-Western rockers FangSlinger, ‘We Are the Night’, features 5 haunted tales from the Lost Souls Saloon told through FangSlinger’s unique blend of Hard Rock, Western Blues and Gothic Atmospherics. Benny (co-editor) loves these guys, but have all become fans! This piece features an interview between us and these night dwellers before Anna-Louise delivers her review of the EP.
FangSlinger Are:
FangSlinger Himself – Lead Vocals
BloodRose – Vocals, Harmonica & Percussion
HangMan – Guitar & Vocals
Let us introduce this band of creatures of the night –
FangSlinger are 3 undead outlaws from the Old West taking souls through rock n’ roll.
FangSlinger: made a fortune in the California gold rush and lost it all gambling. He spent a year wandering the desert and stumbled across an ancient evil in Death Valley. This ancient evil gave FangSlinger vampire-like powers and eternal life and riches in exchange for souls which he now hunts through making music and luring in fans. FangSlinger is the lead singer in the band.
BloodRose: BloodRose was accused of witchcraft in the Old West and fled to New Orleans where Voodoo was very prevalent. She was captured by religious puritans and was to be executed by burning but Fangslinger was riding through town and took her under his wing. She is gifted with visions of the future so became a powerful ally. She sings and plays percussion and keyboards in the band.
HangMan: As the name suggests he was about to face ‘justice’ on the gallows in Dallas, Texas for a crime he did not commit. BloodRose sensed a great injustice from FangSlinger’s camp just outside the city so they rode in to save HangMan, who now delivers justice through similar means. HangMan plays guitar for the band.
All three now share the curse and debt for souls. They formed the band after seeing people willingly give their souls to rock music. For new initiates, think a heavy Bon Jovi around “Dead or Alive” mixed with Kiss around “Asylum” and some gothy/country touches.
THE LEGEND CONTINUES…
These three undead outlaws of the Wild West roam the wastelands, bound by a sinister deal with the Devil himself. Condemned to eternal life, cursed to collect 100,000 souls—they ride on, taking what’s owed. Some give willingly… others are taken by force.
So…onto our interview. It is so interesting to actually talk to a vampire, one so rarely gets the opportunity nowadays. We began by asking about how this group of disparate night dwellers set about kicking musical ass.
FangSlinger: Remember we have over 150 years of practice! So that means we have lived through the greats, the rock n’roll era, the blues and jazz eras. We pulled melody from there and we have a wealth of influences and ideas to pull from.
One of our friends here, BB King’s daughter, Shirley King, noted that as we get older (and let’s face it, 150 years is older) then the blues begins to have more of an impact in our music. The stories we tell will influence us more. Given the passage of time Fangslinger have experienced, have they found a truth to that?
Fangslinger: 100%. Hangman here should take this one.
Hangman: For me, blues has always been a huge influence. BB King is a favourite of mine, Stevie Ray Vaughan another one. So that kind of music is an influence on me, and the things we have seen and experienced, that is what ties our music together and brings it together.
We wanted to ask BloodRose whether the accusation of witchcraft she had suffered from in the past was a valid one? Also, we wanted to delve into how apart from a standard CD version, the British trio have also launched Special Editions: The FangSlinger, BloodRose and HangMan editions of the EP feature a gift with a personalised perk and handwritten letter from the band. Perks include (but not limited to): a Cursed Playing Card which entitles you to a game of black-jack with the band (whiskey included), a Tarot Card which invites the recipient to a Tarot card reading with BloodRose herself and a miniature noose from the HangMan which provides free entry to shows and meet & greets for life (and possibly the afterlife too!). Great idea!
BloodRose: As it is 2025, I think I can safely say that -yes- I am a witch! At the time it was frowned upon and I was afraid about what would happen, and obviously it was pretty bad for me then. But FangSlinger saved me, and I joined the gang. But tarot is part of my life and I wanted to connect with people who get the EP in physical form. I will pick the card from the tarot deck and it is what I feel for them. I picked the card based around that and I wanted them (the buyers) to know that I was thinking of them. I wanted to connect to our fans in a different way; they will get a reading as well.
In the vinyl era there was so much excitement when you bought an album, looked at the cover, opened the album to read the inner sleeve etc. Bands would sometimes put things inside the albums too, posters for example. So we really like that you are doing this.
FangSlinger: There is a standard version which is just the CD, but we want to hark back to that era you mention where people were excited about buying music as a product. Also we wanted to make a special ride for people, we didn’t just want to stream. There are different levels to things, and if you just want to stream and have a listen then that is fine. But if you want to get in deeper, then the hangman’s noose, the playing card or tarot card are all there in the special editions and will get you more. If you want to be a part of the story, then you can be. You won’t know what is in there until you get one.
We note there is no drummer in the band, but some tracks like “Bare Your Teeth” have a terrific drum sound. Do you bring in some poor lost soul for drumming duties, or do you have a regular? What is the drumming situation?
FangSlinger: You hit the nail on the head with the lost souls. That is exactly what we do. We have a lost soul on tap for sure! But, we like to keep it clean and with the three of us to keep the band pure. Let’s face it, there are not that many vampire outlaws out there so we have to make sure we keep things pure in that respect. If you read the original Dracula then he has Renfield who does his running around and collecting victims. We have those victims playing bass, drums and so forth.
Minions in a different form! We are open to recruiting some of them for the magazine.
FangSlinger: Our Minions are not yellow…
Turning to the song “Bloodcurse“ it starts with that acoustic feel, it has that outlaw look and a powerful link to the video. Are the videos creations of the band within the band, or do outsiders help create the atmosphere.
FangSlinger: It is collaborative. A few of those lost souls are helpful in that regard. We have a guy called Oliver Collins and another called Dominic Gregory and the three of us work with them, and some others who will throw ideas around over a whisky or two.The visual side is so important for us, it is a massive side to who we are. You mentioned Kiss earlier and that is a massive side to things, you have to believe what you do. We have had a long time to think this all through and we have no desire to be a flash-in-the-pan. We have a long journey and the audio and visual both combine closely to tell the story. There is so much more to come as well, we are sitting on it all, but there is so much more coming.
You have to have music with passion for sure. Turning to Hangman- Hangman is different to the other two here as the witch was a witch, FangSlinger sold his soul when in trouble. But Hangman was an innocent man, falsely accused. So how did he get hooked into this?
Hangman: It was basically thanks to these guys who came and rescued me as I was done for without them. I was just living through the times as we do and experiencing those times. My life was cigars and whisky.
FangSlinger: You see, when violent acts are committed people look to the biggest guy around and think he did the crime. I still have an open mind whether he was innocent or not, but we want no knocks on the door!
And does Hangman cover all guitar work?
Hangman: Yes I cover all guitars, but a lost soul will do bass. But we like to keep it close knit, so we keep it close to who is on the recording. This means all rhythm and leads are me; highly influenced by these guys as well. BloodRose is on keys.
BloodRose: And harmonica as well.
Turning to the EP, what can be shared? It is a mix of some released and some non-released music we think.
FangSlinger: Correct. All currently released singles are on there, but “We are the Night” is on there too, a big, epic, number. It’s not a ballad as such but it took a lot of orchestration and effort so I really hope people like that. The EP as a whole flows nicely and it has a secret on the physical editions, I won’t say what that is! But a lot of vision went into it. With The Beatles, for example, they all sing and their voices all come through. It is like that with us. I may do a lot of the talking, but there are three front people in this band. Everyone can sing some lead and everyone can sing some backing vocals. We have country and blues influences, we have an occasional pop princess with BloodRose! I can sound like I smoke too much, which is possibly true…it is an eclectic ride and I hope people like it.
Listening to the EP it is a fluid mix. One of the things we love about Queen is how they could move fluidly between genres on an album, never constrained in a box with people telling them what to do.
FangSlinger: The thing with Queen is the timelessness. You can put on a record and it still holds up. There is a closeness we have to Queen in that mentality that they didn’t care, they did as they wanted. We feel the same. I am a huge Queen fan. We have a bathroom decorated with Freddie Mercury! But people may think ‘what kind of a saloon is this?’ Yet we lived through it all! We saw those classic albums come out. This is only an EP at present, but it feels to me like part of the journey and it is eclectic, but all us. That is what Queen was, you always knew it was Queen, no matter what the genre.
Although we may change in our listening tastes as we get older, a good song will always be a good song. A good song will last the changes of time. You hear Nina Simone and who cares if you are a fan of that genre, it is just a great song. It is a melody, it is a hook and it is something that connects. FangSlinger has the riffs, the melody and great chorus that you come away remembering.
FangSlinger: Melody, hook and then the way the melody interacts. I’m not comparing us to The Beatles, Elvis, BB and the greats, but we have studied them. We look at how that worked, and we have a great producer in the UK, and he is a fiend for the hooky chorus. He will beat us until we have a great chorus. There have been moments when I thought we had a chorus but he has gone ‘not good enough.’ That discipline resonates and you have to tick the box of expressing what you need to, but you must hook in other people or you may as well do this in your bedroom for yourself.
BloodRose: That is important. And you noted how as you get older then your tastes change, I think there aren’t that many people around who are as old as us – our producer he will tell us when something doesn’t work. That is so important as we are trying to make music for people a hundred years younger than us!
Fangslinger: Perhaps we should all have proper jobs by now. Surely we are too old to be doing this still!
But being a vampire means that the work will be extensive at night time we suppose?
FangSlinger: It can be hard being around people too much as it’s easy to get a taste for blood. The stage is a good barrier, but in an office we would just end up wanting to rip those jugulars. The thing is we need to do those live shows as there are souls we owe, we need to get out there and take souls and the only way we know how to do this is to rock n’roll. We owe 100,000 souls and we only have about 10 so far! We need to get collecting.
Two quick fun questions to finish on. The last album you listened to, and did you enjoy it?
BloodRose: Mine was Rival Sons with “Great Western Valkyrie,” I listened to that in full today and it gave me inspiration for new material.
Hangman: Mine was “Pawns and Kings” by Alter Bridge, a favourite band of mine and Mark Tremonti is a favourite guitarist of mine so that played heavily into my song writing. When I hear their music it takes me on a journey, they use riffs and melody. You break it down and digest it all and it has everything that makes a great song. That is why they are a huge influence on my songwriting. They have no generic song, as we were saying with Queen.
FangSlinger: The last album I listened to was “Abbey Road.” I was driving. Of course I enjoyed it, but with those albums you almost study it, you look for what you feel. We try to put across what you feel and we look for that in other songs. For me, a lot of the current top 40 writers are writing around Tik-Toc and they are writing these 40 second segments and I worry that is a weird place for music to go. It is delivering a short attention span, disposable music, and I worry about that direction.
And today you get artists doing covers of tracks that they know will get loads of streams. But they point to all these streams, yet this doesn’t mean they are popular, it just means people who like a particular song will check out their version, a dip in and out.
FangSlinger: Like the old tin-pan alley where a load of different artists would all record the same song, and they would throw it out to see where it landed. So things are cyclical.
And with 150 years to choose from, best gig?
BloodRose: I would say, even after all the music I have been to over the years, we actually went to see Muse in 2023 and that was the best show I have ever been to, they were incredible.
Hangman: For me it has to be the Black Sabbath farewell that was so recent. We all get older and feel different things, but those songs still hit and it was so great to be there as Ozzy said farewell. That was me in awe of the guy, and all those people shared a wonderful show.
And they raised so much for Parkinson’s too. We raise our hat to that, Parkinson’s is a horrible illness, lost my father to it.
FangSlinger: I would say Woodstock, but I fed off a hippy that day and so spent Woodstock watching my eyelids! So I remember it less, so I’ll go with Muse as well as they were amazing. We saw Ghost as well this year, and their show was insane.
And that ends a fascinating interview with this band of the night….
The review – by Anna-Louise Burgess.
I will note how this is a visual treat as much as a musical listen, this most visual of bands has a video for each track on the EP. It was very cool in my press pack being able to watch the videos along with the music (O.D. Collins directing).
“We Are The Night” has a gothic, choral feel with this layered vocal and an emotive connection between the band and the music. They may look country outlaw, but they know how to rock and hangman’s guitar has this heavy bluesy riff hanging in the air. We celebrate the children/creatures of the night!
“The Lost Souls Saloon” has a big chorus, catchy harmony, rock radio friendly classy hard rock. “Lost Souls Saloon” continues the story and includes a great guitar break. I listen to this and want to walk the night, I would definitely drink a bourbon and coke at this bar!
“Bare Your Teeth” – you know when you get this really exciting drum sound (think “Ant Music” by Adam and the Ants)- this one has a solid drum sound to kick in the track.This one has been out a couple of months. BloodRose shares vocal duties on this one and gives a sultry style of dark vocal delivery running tandem to FangSlinger’s harder edge. The introduction of the harmonica works well too, it gives an interesting instrumental twist to the track.
“Blood Curse” tells the story of FangSlinger, the blood curse and the mission ahead. It hits hard, music of the wasteland, gothic and heavy, but with a souring chorus and the dual vocals that work well for the band.
“Bloodsucker Blues” is my favourite track! I mean if you love Bram Stoker’s Dracula, then this one is for you! Sink your teeth in! Great vampiric rock, if such a genre exists! It is catchy and finger clicking, commercial rock.
So, does this band have the capacity to squeeze the lemon of success? Absolutely, get out the garlic now! With an aesthetic that’s part Hammer Horror, part spaghetti western, and all heart, FangSlinger have managed something that’s genuinely rare in the modern rock landscape—they’ve made their world matter. You walk through saloon doors, lock eyes with undead outlaws, and feel the dry heat of Death Valley in every riff and chorus.
More than just a gimmick, FangSlinger is a concept forged in talent and tempered with a love for rock history. They respect their influences while conjuring something distinct and cinematic. With compelling visuals, rich storytelling, and powerful musical chops, this band isn’t a throwaway novelty—they’re a cult in the making. If this is what they’re offering with just five tracks, we can only imagine what full-length darkness they’ll unleash next. So pour yourself a whiskey, sharpen your stakes, and keep your ears open—because the night belongs to FangSlinger, and they’ve only just begun to collect.
And we hope you liked the feature, dear reader! If you did, please check out the other pages of the magazine; we have many great features, merchandise pages, shops, editorials and even a poetry page. Content is free here, but we work hard for you, and to support the magazine, please show your appreciation on the support button below and buy me a coffee!
You can stream music by FangSlinger here
Band website here
By Mark C. Chambers,
Harry CC,
and Anna-Louise Burgess
I have just bought the EP from Fangslinger website, absolutely loved it – support these guys as I believe they will make it. Loved the feature too guys. Always like dipping in to this magazine.
OMG love this band, just wanted to say that!