{"id":69887,"date":"2018-09-21T12:00:40","date_gmt":"2018-09-21T11:00:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/?p=69887"},"modified":"2018-09-20T20:35:44","modified_gmt":"2018-09-20T19:35:44","slug":"video-premiere-thick-skin-43","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/video-premiere-thick-skin-43\/","title":{"rendered":"Video Premiere: Thick Skin – 43"},"content":{"rendered":"

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As anyone who has been following Already Heard for quite some time will tell you, we take great pride in introducing exciting, new talent. And today we’re doing just that as we’re premiering the video for the debut single from Leeds four-piece\u00a0Thick Skin<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

The band is the brainchild of Jason Blackburn. Having previously played guitar\u00a0in defunct Leeds-based bands Calls Landing and These Minds, the idea behind Thick Skin<\/strong> can after he left WSTR last year. Jason was soon joined by former bandmate\u00a0Jordan Hill (guitar) with Matty Maycroft and Luke Hudson (both formerly of Hinges) completing the line-up.<\/p>\n

Thick Skin<\/strong>\u00a0<\/strong>sees its member hone in on an emotive alternative rock sound that is reminiscent of bands like Citizen, Balance & Composure and Wallflower. It\u00a0also sees Blackburn taking up the role of vocalist yet as their debut single ’43’<\/em> shows, Jason’s direct and personal lyrics justifies the change to frontman.<\/p>\n

With their first show (supporting Culture Abuse) happening next month and studio time with Bob Cooper (Kamikaze Girls, Catch Fire, itoldyouiwouldeatyou, Nervus) booked, this is just the beginning for\u00a0Thick Skin<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

In addition to premiering the video for ’43’,<\/em> we spoke to vocalist\/guitarist Jason Blackburn about the track,\u00a0Thick Skin<\/strong>‘s formation, the influence of previous bands and more.<\/p>\n

AH: Hi Jason. Today we’re premiering the debut single from Thick Skin. What’s the story behind the band coming together?
\n<\/b>Jason: I\u2019ve been slowly building this band over the last year of my life. I parted ways with my position in WSTR around this time last year to focus on a project I\u2019d been working on in my spare time. This project eventually became Thick Skin. After around four months of constantly writing, I had a strong collection of material and I brought in one of my closest friends, who also happens to be one of the best guitarists I know, Jordan Hill. We\u2019ve shared the stage many times before in Calls Landing and Beach Head. <\/i><\/p>\n

After speaking about where we wanted to take the band, we decided it was time to\u00a0move the project into a practice space, which meant we needed to complete the lineup. Matty Maycroft and Luke Hudson are some of the most passionate dudes I\u2019ve ever met in the scene and had known for a while that I was interested in getting them to fill the positions. Luckily they were both game for it, which saw Thick Skin\u2019s line-up finally complete. <\/i><\/p>\n

AH: Some people may recognise you from your time in Calls Landing and These Minds and briefly with WSTR. Have those experiences influenced Thick Skin in any way?
\n<\/b>Jason: Definitely, I feel like Thick Skin is the perfect natural progression from what I\u2019d been previously writing, especially in These Minds. Towards the end of These Minds, we were experimenting with a different sound, one that I\u2019ve definitely captivated on in Thick Skin. If you were into the things These Minds and Calls Landing were doing, you\u2019ll hopefully be impressed with the Thick Skin stuff. <\/i><\/p>\n

AH: When it came to starting the band, was there a particular sound you were looking to capture? <\/b>Jason: I kind of wanted to move away from the whole \u2018pop-punk\u2019 thing. I\u2019d been doing that since 2011 in various bands and whilst it was fun while it lasted, I feel like I\u2019ve expressed everything I can in that particular scene. With that said, there are definitely elements of that sound that I\u2019ve brought over to Thick Skin but I\u2019ve had a sound in my head since the end of Calls Landing, These Minds and Beach Head that I\u2019ve spent the best part of a year trying to turn into a reality. I\u2019m not trying to reinvent the wheel here, just express my thoughts onto paper and share it with the world and if people like it, I\u2019ll gladly take them along for the ride. <\/i><\/p>\n