The Scarlet Rebels/Kris Barras And The Hollow Souls/The Virginmarys/
Marisa And The Moths/Juliet's Not Dead -
Castell Roc, Chepstow Castle, Chepstow, Friday 21st August 2026
Juliet's Not Dead open up the festival who feature Stevie Stoker (Lead Vocals/Guitar), Dan King (Guitar/Vocals), Niall Whittaker (Bass/Vocals) & Jack Corbett (Drums/Vocals).
This was my first time seeing this band from the Newcastle. Singer, Steve Stoker made an immediate impression because of his big hair borrowed from 80's singer, Robert Smith of The Cure with some hair dye thrown on to disguise it!
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I hoped his voice is as impressive as the hair! Well not only could he sing but he had a rapport with the crowd. He is extremely engaging and energetic. Getting the crowd warmed up who were clapping and singing along.
Dan and Niall were clearly having fun. Both smiling and headbanging along to the songs. Jack on the drums doing the same. A very tight unit, lots of fun and energy. A great start!
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Second up, Marisa And The Moths are a unit comprising of Marisa Rodriguez (Lead Vocals/Rhythm Guitar), Liam James Barnes (Bass Guitar/Backing Vocals), Alex Ribchester (Drums) & Alez D'Elia (Lead Guitar).
I have been desperate to see this band ever since I first listened to them in 2025. What I got was infinitely better than I expected. Marisa has everything: the voice, the look and those giant boots! A large part of her performance made me make the comparison of Lzzy Hale of Halestorm. She is an absolute power house!
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Liam tried his best to steel the limelight. He was all over the place since not many Bass players play like a lead guitarist. He was outstanding as were the band. An emotional tribute for their Guitar Tech, Dave who sadly left this world back in February. It gave the performance that extra feeling: very touching.
Marisa came down to the crowd front and sang to her fans, up close. A lovely touch to round off a dynamic powerhouse performance. I can't wait to see them again.
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Third on were The Virginmarys made up of Danny Dolan (Acoustic Drums) & Ally Dickaty (Guitar/Vocals).
I love this band, absolutely love them so this review might be a little biased. I actually had the pleasure of interviewing Ally while he was stuck on the M25, find it on my YouTube channel. Dales Rock Interviews.
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Just two people, a drummer and a singer who plays the guitar. So don't expect a dynamic performance. There's no 'running around the stage' sort of performance. What you get are two talented musicians, who write excellent songs and make a lot of noise!
As usual it was a perfect performance. 'White Knuckle Riding' was definitely the highlight of the whole day for me. Ally sings with so much heart and emotion but it's hard not to watch Danny on the drums. A performance full of heart and soul.
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Kris Barras and the Hollow Souls are next up and comprise of Kris Barras (Guitar/Vocals), Phoebe Jane (Lead Vocals), Josiah J. Manning (Multi-instrumentalist), Joe Harris (Drums) & Leighton Allen (Bass).
I got to see this band at the recent Steelhouse festival so I knew what to expect. Phoebe Jane has a fantastic and very powerful voice. She is also great to watch with her outfit looking like she has wings as she moves across the stage. Josiah was equally mesmerising how he moved from the Guitar to the keys. But it is all about Kris on that Guitar.
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His band is made up of excellent musicians and their only purpose is to provide back-up sounds for Kris so he can indulge us with that sound! His guitar has a beautiful soulful tone. The low ends of the sound with the added bass and drums of the rhythm section made your body reverberate with the sound.
As much as the band and the incredible singer tried, it was hard to take your eyes off Kris when he stepped forward for another solo. With a few covers included for good measure, the set flowed, the crowd danced and loved the whole vibe.
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I like Kris's Barras guitar playing. It is his band made around him so it was a little self indulgent though but he is good enough for us to let him off with that. A good performance.
The headliners, Scarlet Rebels finally came on at this perfect castle venue who are made up of Wayne Doyle (Lead vocals/Guitar); Gary Doyle (Drums); Carl Oag (Bass/Vocals) & Chris Jones (Lead Guitar/Vocals).
The sun has disappeared and all that was left were the lights and sound. All more miraculous was the forecasted rain didn't make an appearance. Everything was perfectly in place for a really memorable event.
So this is happening now! That was the perfect song to start the final set. One from the new album 'Flawed by design' yet to be released. The castle was now full of Scarlet Rebels fans. Wayne is a perfect front man, excellent voice and he manages to easily engage with the crowd.
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The light show and energy from the front three was making this performance really enjoyable to watch. Now I gotta admit that the light show looked awesome from every area of the castle. A few fan favourites were played out like 'Save Me', 'Take You home', new single 'Don't Look Down', 'Im Alive' and 'Grace'. The crowd lapping up every part of the show.
Another new song 'Chains' fitted in perfectly. The fans are loving the new material. While coming to the end two more songs the fans are familiar with ended the show: 'Secret Drug' and 'It Was Beautiful'. They nailed it, Scarlet Rebels were home! Literally, as they are from just down the road at Llanelli, South Wales.
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But it wasn't the geographics of the Gig, it was the fans. They are family and that made the gig all the more exciting. It was a perfect display of a band at the top of their game.
A brilliant event all round.
By Dale Holford