The Chosen Few: an interview with Rock’ndaal headliners, Nathan Evans and the Saint Phnx band

Most creatives who endeavour to make it big spend years knocking on the doors of those who hold the keys to fame: agents, managers, record companies, and producers. It’s an unwritten rule of sorts that one must sacrifice their ego again and again on the metaphorical altar of the Greek Muses, Brigid, Saraswati, or (insert preferred deity of creativity here) before being granted the right to enter the land of Internationally Acclaimed Artist. Once in a while, however, talent combines with timing, and destiny swoops in to lift an unsuspecting artist to the heavens. Nathan Evans is one of those chosen few.

In 2020, Evans was a postal worker who dedicated his evenings to his music and posted his renditions of pop and folk songs to TikTok from his living room. He’d been reluctant to join TikTok at first but amassed thirty-thousand followers in just six months, and begun asking his followers what songs they’d like to hear. In July 2020, he posted his first sea shanty per request: “Leave Her Johnny”. They loved it. The request for sea shanties – most of which he wasn’t familiar with – began pouring in. “Wellerman” made it to the top of the list and in December he posted a video of himself singing the New Zealand sea shanty. It exploded. By January, the video had eight million views and Evans had 1.3 million followers. 

“It was absolutely mental. I uploaded that video as a postman and within 10 days, I had quit my job, signed a management deal, signed a record deal, had a lawyer and a full team behind me.

“Wellerman” kicked off a TikTok trend known as ShantyTok and inspired numerous others to duet and remix the song – including Andrew Lloyd Webber, Jimmy Fallon, and Stephen Colbert.

Evans’s continued rise to fame didn’t happen alone, though. Alongside him, with their own intriguing origin story, is Saint Phnx – a duo made up of brothers Stevie and Alan Jukes. The pair credit their father for their love of music and fondly remember him singing along and strumming the air guitar to Country Roads and Leaving on a Jet Plane. Stevie was the first to catch the fever, picking up the bass guitar at 14 and playing Oasis covers at lunchtime with his band. He soon moved on to a drumkit, then singing and songwriting. Alan followed on the drums and formed his own band.  

“We were called ‘Wet Pilot’,” Alan remembers with a shake of his head. “They had some promise,” Stevie recalls, “but they didn’t have any good songs.” Stevie, who was gigging weekly at the time, began writing songs for Alan’s band. Their music began to earn radio time and they were starting to make a name for themselves.  

“Then they chucked Alan out of the band. They kept playing my songs so I decided – to spite them – I’ll start a band with Alan and we’ll play those songs. So that’s what we did.” That was their previous band, Vigo Thieves. In 2016, they decided to develop a more distinctive style of music and formed Saint Phnx. Their single, King found airplay on UK stations. In 2017 they supported Imagine Dragons and in 2019 they played at the South by Southwest Festival and supported Yungblud on his European and North American tours – all of this without a record deal.  

Working together as siblings doesn't come without challenges, but brotherhood seems to be the key to their success and the spirit they bring to their music. “We’re with each other every day. If it’s not with the band, it’s with the workshop or writing sessions, and at the end of the day, you go up to your mum’s and have a family dinner,” says Stevie. “We’re an absolute constant in each other’s lives, but truth be told we wouldn’t have it any other way.” 

Their Happy Place Workshop is one Alan and Stevie take to local schools. Designed to create a safe space for children to express themselves through art and music, the workshop’s purpose is to promote mental health awareness and empower young people to find their own happy place. 

Saint Phnx and Nathan Evans came together in 2021 after Saint Phnx signed with Atlantic Records. Evans was looking to work with Scottish songwriters and it happened that Saint Phnx had the same management and lived just up the road in Glasgow. Management put them together. “That’s when we wrote Told You So, and it just kept getting bigger and better,” says Evans. 

The group toured Europe and the UK together this spring, from Vienna and Paris to Manchester and Cork with multiple stops in between – more than half of them sold out. “Half of Europe is Scottish, by the way,” jokes Alan. “They’re all wearin’ kilts...singin’ the words back.” 

“You’re playing all these shows in completely different countries, mostly non-English speaking, says Evans. “They’re all comin’ to shows, sellin’ it out, and singin’ the words back. Especially when you do Scottish folk songs – they’re blowin’ the roof off, singin’ every word back. What a feelin’, honestly. It’s so surreal. It’s a proper Scottish show – an all-around good time. As soon as you walk in, you leave everything else at the door. You’re comin’ in to just enjoy the night, enjoy the moment, enjoy the music, and make friends.” 

“We’ve created the world’s greatest and most famous pub – that's basically the stage set,” adds Stevie. “We try to amplify that when playing the songs. It’s great that we’ve developed something where you can sit and drink whisky during your show.” 

As much as the three have enjoyed touring Europe, there’s nothing like playing at home. Their Barrowlands show sold out so quickly they added another to their schedule a few days later. Within five minutes it too was sold out. “All the Scottish shows when they went on sale sold out in the first minute,” Nathan tells us. “10am on sale, by five past, maximum, they were all gone.”

This year will be Nathan Evans’s first Rock’ndaal appearance but Saint Phnx are veterans, having taken the roof off Rock'ndaal 2024.

Stevie admits he didn't know much about single malt whisky before last year’s Rock’ndaal, but now: “I’ve got right, right, right into my single malts ever since because of that.” He’s been converting Alan and Nathan ever since. They chose the Classic Laddie Sherry – alongside Port Charlotte 10 – for their on-stage bar at the London show. But the three are saving a special bottle for their Glasgow Barrowlands show: Bruichladdich’s Thirty Aged Years. 

Next up for the trio? A U.S. tour, Scottish festivals, a joint album, and of course Rock’ndaal 2025! They're just getting started on their mission to bring good vibes and a classic Scottish pub experience on stage. So if you can’t catch them at Rock’ndaal this May, you’ll have plenty of opportunities in the future.