The moment hard rock fans had been waiting years and years for had finally arrived: Shaman’s Harvest and Blacktop Mojo were making their UK debut at the O2 Academy Islington, with local support from The Virginmarys. It was a night of blues, sweat and tears, and dreams fulfilled both on and off the stage.
Shaman’s Harvest – Blacktop Mojo – The Virginmarys
O2 Academy Islington – 7 March 2025
Words: Lucy Dunnet
Photography: Gina Smith
Shaman’s Harvest
The night many Shaman’s Harvest T-shirt-clad fans had been dreaming of for 25 years had finally arrived. Having overcome every obstacle thrown their way, the Missouri rockers Shaman’s Harvest travelled across the world to fulfil dreams and live out their own, and we couldn’t have been more excited to witness this historical moment.
The atmospheric prelude, Red Hands Black Deeds, diffused its way off the stage with a sizzling power that heightened the anticipation of the whole O2 Academy Islington crowd. Shaman’s Harvest had barely been on the stage for two minutes, and the crowd was already intoxicated by their coolness and enchanting hard rock energy. 
Singer Nathan ‘Drake’ Hunt juggled not one but two microphones; his sultry, deep vocals exceeded expectations of what his incredible voice would sound like live. Guitarist Josh Hamler had told MetalTalk that all their perseverance as a band had been worth it: their musical collective combined with Drake’s voice was something special.
The Come Up and Dangerous roused the adoring fans’ to fill the air with their fists and vocals, as Shaman’s Harvest alternated their looks of intense concentration with impossible to hold back grins. Bassist Cord Bishop and guitarists Derrick Shipp and Hamler teased their own mics and joined Hunt in Bird Dog with steamy harmonies and breathy backing vocals that utterly enraptured the crowd. When drummer Adam Zemanek wasn’t stood up leading the clap-along, he was filling the Shaman’s Harvest soundscape with tight bluesy beats.
Shaman’s Harvest had the power to make you feel like you were the only one they were playing for one minute and part of the most like-minded, high-spirited crowd the next. When they announced they were going to shoot a video for the next song, their latest single, Rock ‘N’ Roll Queen, the crowd immediately stood to rocked-up attention.
The blues rock infusion of heaviness that was born from the bendy “do do do” intro melody, Hamler told MetalTalk, was the tribute to “that fine young woman” that Shaman’s Harvest promised us it would be, and more. The old rock soul shook through the O2 Academy Islington, and the crowd cheered, clapped and jammed from start to finish. 
Rocking harder and sweatier as the night went on, Shaman’s Harvest never let up for a second. The love and energy they received from the crowd was immeasurable.
Shaman’s Harvest had played some hard rock tracks. They gave us some bluesy tracks. It was time for something Country As Fuck. “It doesn’t matter if you don’t know the words, you’re gonna sing along.” And sing along, scream along, bang along, the crowd did. To complete their repertoire, Shaman’s Harvest had to deliver an acoustic number: Silent Voice showed the depth of emotion and melody these hard rockers are capable of. 
“Got your callisthenics done for the evening,” Hunt commented, following the intense reaction to US rock hit In Chains, which saw fans on shoulders and whole body head bangs – the only way to appreciate the hard rock slam of this chorus. Hunt responded to a “fucking love you” from the crowd with: “We love the shit out of you guys too.” Dragonfly concluded what was one hell of a night with a final uproar of love and rock-fuelled energy.
Shaman’s Harvest hope that by showing the world their successful venture in the UK and Ireland, it will be worth taking a shot on them elsewhere. “We want to travel anywhere you can stream our music,” Hamler said. We hope the rest of the world is prepared because the Shaman’s Harvest fire is positively ablaze.
Blacktop Mojo
The first debuting headliner of the night were the Texan rockers Blacktop Mojo. “It’s absolutely heaving,” admired one fan as Blacktop Mojo hit the stage, and we realised the O2 Academy Islington was, indeed, fit to burst with rock fans who had been waiting decades for this night.
“Let me hear you scream,” demanded vocalist Matt James as he stuck his tongue out at the screaming fans before him. Bassist Matt Curtis demonstrated his equally cheeky nature when he used his fingers to say, “I have my eyes on you.” Blacktop Mojo eased us into their set with Burn The Ships, ensuring the crowd knew how to clap to their addictive drum beats. 
Not even two songs in, Matt James was conducting the crowd in some vocal exercises, but instead of the conductor’s hands, he used his swaying hips to encourage the masses. The band was clearly impressed by London’s vocal skills and volume, as grins were plastered across all their faces.
“If the world ended tomorrow, this is where the fuck I’d want to be,” declared Matt James, giving off hard rock Thor vibes – if the god of love and thunder was from Texas. “Be kind to each other because it just might,” he instructed before kicking off The End Is Gonna Come to a thunderous applaud. 
“WE BROKE IT!” Blacktop Mojo’s mojo was too powerful for the O2 Academy Islington’s sound system, but the band and the crowd took this in excellent humour. “I want me fucking ears ringing!” responded the crowd. It was a good thing it was time for some acoustic tracks; Blacktop Mojo’s cover of Blind Melon’s No Rain was not only a superbly eargasmic rendition but had the magical effect of bringing an excess of sun to London over the weekend.
Next up was a song about your ex-girlfriend: Wicked Woman. After throwing more eccentric vocal exercises at the crowd, Blacktop Mojo ripped into this fiery, hard rock track. The guitar solos from Malcolm Booher and Ryan Kiefer were absolute rock ‘n’ roll filth, and the final straw in convincing the crowd that it was a marvellous thing to be a wicked woman.
“One of our dreams was to come and play in London,” said Matt James, ahead of Blacktop Mojo’s next song, which was about “chasing dreams.” While this night meant so much to the dedicated fans, it may have meant much more to the band: Matt James choked up on the intro to the powerfully emotional Prodigal. It was an extraordinarily humbling and beautiful moment, and the crowd erupted into the night’s loudest applause.
“Being from Texas,” Blacktop Mojo would not dare leave without playing a blues song, so they decided to “have a little fun before we leave.” It Won’t Last was a roaring blues number that showed off the addictive musicality and charisma of this hard rock five-piece from the beating heart of Texas.
The Virginmarys
In the time it took for The Virginmarys to sneak onto the O2 Academy Islington stage, stare intently at each other and launch into their room shaking set of whoop-eliciting rock, we had barely managed one sip of beer. This Macclesfield-based rock duo had the sound, the look and the energy of all your favourite punk and rock bands squashed into two very talented individuals.
Danny Dolan on the drums was a sight to behold: his stool was barely necessary as he jumped up to play his kit with his entire body, grabbing symbols with one hand and smashing them up with the other. The gravelly vocals of singer-guitarist Ally Dickaty, whose braces made it hard to distinguish where he ended and his guitar began, tore through the crowd as he belted out The Virginmarys’ abundance of catchy choruses.
The carnage they caused on stage left Dickaty having to retrieve one of Dolan’s symbols for him, but fortunately, the cowbell that was a part of the drum kit remained unscathed. The feral riffs and aggressive punk beats in You’re A Killer and Where Are You Now had the crowd bobbing and grooving, impressed by Dickaty’s ability to play his guitar so close to the ground. 
The concentration on The Virginmarys’ faces one minute morphed into unhinged emotion the next. When The Lights Go Down showed a slightly calmer side to the pair, following the teasing tickle of an intro. So in sync were Dickaty and Dolan that you could see them communicating telepathically as they bounced off each other. There Ain’t No Future was a sensational bit of hard rock punk, with all sorts of magnificent noises coming out of Dickaty: how the heck does he sing like that every night.
