Saturday, August 23, 2025

Star Circus’ Masquerade

Star Circus, the London-based rock band led by Dave Winkler and Sophie Aurelia Young, has their new full length album, From The Wreckage, out now, through Renaissance Records, and so too, new single, ‘Masquerade

It is the band’s first track to feature bassist Young stepping up to lead vocal duties, and also her first solo writing effort.

Explaining how the song came together, she said: “‘The Masquerade‘ is a metaphor for feeling like you have to hide a part of yourself in order to be accepted. The lyric ideas came from my own experience of spending my youth feeling like I should try to fit in, and never really finding a place where I felt accepted”,

“The song ends on a more positive note as I did eventually find my people; my partner Dave and friends on the London rock scene who are unapologetically themselves and encourage me to be the same. I wanted the outro to keep a melancholy and slightly ominous feel as a reminder that life will always inevitably consist of both highs and lows.”

Regular frontman Winkler commented on the new album: “Feeling invigorated following the positive response to our first album and many national tours, we set aside the first half of 2024 to write and record our second album as a band. However, most of last year proved to be a challenging time for us. Cancellations, lineup and management issues plagued us, along with fear and disbelief at the state of the world in general.

“As a consequence, From The Wreckage is definitely a heavier, darker and more aggressive beast both lyrically and musically than it’s predecessor. On the other hand there’s definitely both light and shade, and a positive outlook depicted in the title; that we’re coming back stronger than ever. First and foremost, we’re really proud of all the songs, but it’s also a landmark in our evolution from our little project into a fully-fledged rock n’ roll animal!”

Influenced by classic rock artists including Queen, Thin Lizzy, Cheap Trick, Def Leppard and Alice Cooper, the band was formed in 2019 by frontman Winkler, whose songwriting caught the attention of radio legend Tony Wilson. The pair worked together on creating the debut album Separate Sides which Tony produced, and was released in December 2022 to an overwhelmingly positive critical response.

Following the album release and several UK tours supporting a host of international acts, the Star Circus lineup has now become a collaborative band-project, with other musicians contributing to the songwriting. As well as the added influences of other songwriters, the new album also features various accomplished guest guitarists including Tom Draper (ex-Carcass, Spirit Adrift) and Ritchie Mohicano (Dobermann), and the notable addition of Sophie’s vocals (including lead vocals on ‘Masquerade’).The band also landed a global distribution deal with the Arizona-based record label Renaissance Records. Their sophomore album From The Wreckage is due for release in summer 2025, and will be available on all the popular streaming and download platforms, on CD and vinyl.

Following on from the release of their earlier singles ‘Chained To You‘ and ‘Turn The Tide‘ late in 2024, Star Circus released ‘One Hit Wonder’ in April, then followed it with Two Odds Make An Even‘.



Winkler commented on ‘One Hit Wonder‘: “With everything happening on the news recently, you would be forgiven for thinking the lyrics to ‘One Hit Wonder’ are about any of the world’s most toxic and slimy politicians, or narcissistic celebrities who have been caught abusing their power. I think the aggressively sarcastic tone is relatable that way. In reality, it’s about someone I worked with in the music industry a few years ago. 

’One Hit Wonder’ tells a story from the perspective of a hired gun who has been used and discarded. The song delves into themes of exploitation and manipulation from an ego-driven individual, hiding behind a saintly, heroic persona, a man of the people mask. It’s sad, people turn to musicians, rock stars, popular culture figureheads as an alternative to the political figures who we find dishonest and often unrelatable. I still think there are beautiful artists out there making a difference, but the a**hole this song is about isn’t one of them.”

STAR CIRCUS LIVE SHOWS
3rd October – Cornwall Rocks Festival, Tencreek Holiday Park
14th November – Rockmantic Weekender, Yardbirds Grimsby

Paul H Birch
Paul H Birch
RAMzine Senior Writer - Writer of fiction, faction and fact, has edited several newsstand magazines. He declares himself a hack for hire but refuses to compromise on the subject of music.

Our site contains articles about Gambling. If you or someone you know is struggling with gambling-related problems, contact the National Gambling Helpline on 0808 8020 1333. Free of charge, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Please Gamble Responsibly.

Related Articles

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

3 × two =

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Our Bloodstock. Our scene. Our heavy metal. 

If you were to ask any random metalhead, “What is the holy land for metalheads in the UK?”, the majority would say Bloodstock Open...

Latest Articles