“Three bands graced the inaugural night of 'southern live', or as one of the comperes said 'the first in a series of probably one'. What was most impressive was that the three covered a wide variety of musical bases. Anglo-Canadian openers the Snake Oil Rattlers took me by surprise with traditional instruments such as mandolins and dobros to the fore, in preference to much electric guitar. They peddled a brand of outlaw country with some bluegrass mixed in, influenced by Steve Earle and Townes Van Zandt, and including a cover of Skynyrd's Made in the Shade, in a set that got rockier as it went along.”

“Opening up were the Snakeoil Rattlers (www.myspace.com/snakeoilrattlers), whose witty boast that ‘where the swamp meets the road you will always find the Snake Oil Rattlers’ could only mean a sorta cajun/bluegrass sound. The Rattlers have been knocking around since 2004, playing around The Swamps of London Town, and have built up a dedicated following judging by the cheering as the band launched into Road Tales, full of delightful chicken-scratch guitars, courtesy of Messrs. Barry Warren and Ryan Carr. Elsewhere, Slow Train To Georgia and Nothin’ To Confess showed just what a tight unit the Rattlers are, and was that Made In The Shade, the ol’ Skynyrd classic? Hell, yeah. I will be checking this lot out again.”

“The Snakeoil Rattlers started the set by raising the bar and setting very some high standards for the night, with chief Rattlers Barry Warren delivering his unique low hushed southern tones with some of his more relaxed more introspective southern blues and country foot-tapping music. The night saw such live tracks performed as “Road tails” “Slow train to Georgia” “Heavy Wine” and “Nothin’ to Confess” and a Lynyrd Skynyrd balled cover whose name completely escapes me, but it was really excellent! “The Rattlers” set a late sundown tone to the evening backdrop, for what turned out to be a highly charged and very expectant “He Haw clapping, foot stomping shouting crowd”, which paved the way for a night that started well and as it went on just simply got better and better!”

“The Snakeoil Rattlers took us back to the Deep South with their home-grown swampbilly stories of trial and retribution.”

“Coming from the bayou to pedal their wares are The Snakeoil Rattlers. With bottleneck guitar and mandolin in hand they sing the songs of the whiskey soaked renegades of this world. These guys are so darn authentic they rooted down on the stage like they could have been there for a hundred and fifty years. Fetch your six shooter and saddle up. The Rattlers will take you all the way out west.”