Blitz is a top notch three-piece rock n' roll group, and is
one of the fastest rising bands in the underground today.
Stuart: Let’s Blitz this
Mat: Running late and sounding great
Awesome. Can I get you guys to start by saying your
name and role in the band?
Mat: Mat Davis, Drums and backing vocals
Kevin: Kevin Simpson, Guitar, Piano and backing vocals
Stuart: Stuart Corden, Bass lead vocals
OK, so for those who have never heard the band how
would you describe your sound
Kevin: Stuart its all yours
Stuart: Imagine the majestic sound and arrangements of Queen
with the edge and hard hitting sound of
Metallica with the theatrical twist of Kiss, Alice Cooper.
Awesome! and would you consider those bands to be your
main influences?
Kevin: Yes among others. For me its: Queen , Kiss , Ozzy ,
Metallica, Motley Crue, Slayer, Slipknot, Rage against the machine , Rush ,
Dream Theatre etc
Stuart: Musically we appreciate anything that is good at
what it is and well crafted, I am a big Prince funk fan as well as hard core
metal, goods good to us
David Bowie, Even country music.
cool, and how did you guys meet?
Kevin: I met Stuart when i worked in a rehearsal studio
...about 7 years ago and he noticed my Kiss tattoo and we became friends and
started writing together.
Stuart worked with Mat and the rest is Blitz History
Stuart: We were all in different bands, I met Kev when he
ran a rehearsal studio and I was rehearsing with another band, he had an Ace
Frehley tattoo and I commented on it saying I was a Kiss fan, Kev asked if i'd
like to demo some songs which we did. The last piece of the puzzle was Mat who
I knew from my day job, he was also in another band and had a great reputation
as an awesome drummer, we ditched our bands and formed Blitz. Rest is history
Think you got that in stereo lol
Kevin: 😂😂😂 At
least we're telling the truth
I love that you
guys met over Kiss. I see some elements of that style of rock in your music
Stuart: lots of
musicians have said they were influenced by kiss. Dimebag, Dream Theatres
drummer, Slash, Cory Taylor, for us it’s more about there professionalism and
dedication to there fans also the way there brand has survived l, wouldn’t
really say musically we draw from that now.
We see ourselves more as the New Wave of Classic Rock,
although we don’t even fit in that category a 100 percent, we just concentrate
on doing our own thing and constantly growing and developing our sound and
show.
And what inspired the comic styled art that you guys
use?
Stuart: I’ve always been a comic book fan and have a good
friend ( Richie Adams Reynolds) who owns a local comic book shop, he’s a great
artist and we share a love for the genre so when I gave him the brief I said
imagine Jack Kirby meets Manga he totally got it. We wanted the artwork to be
our trademark and create something people could loose themselves in. Wait until
you see the cover for the new album we’ve taken it to another level, just like
the music.
man id love to see it. and is there a release date for
this latest album yet?
Kevin: It will be this year. We still have 3 more songs to
record.
This is the center spread artwork.
That's Awesome, so how about some crazy memories related to the band?
Stuart: There are many tales of mystery and imagination
related to Blitz, my favourite was when we’d been booked to play a hardcore
death metal festival and when we were backstage waiting to go on there were all
these guys looking like something from the Evil Dead and I am sliding into my
snake skin pants, let’s just say those pants were changing colour, by the end
of the gig the whole audience was
singing and getting up on the stage with us ended up being an awesome night,
the whole place got us, proof everyone’s got some Blitz, we’re a no Bull shit
Rock n Roll band and we ended up making lots of new friends and fans that night. By the way we love some hard core
Metal has lots of different flavors that’s what makes it as multifaceted and
diverse as it is.
Speaking of fans, I've noticed the band has gotten a lot more of a following recently. You guys are rising pretty quickly. How
does that feel, and what do you attribute it to?
Kevin: I feel thanks to social media facebook, Bandcamp, Youtube etc its alot easier for people to find you.
There is some great groups on Facebook like: The New Wave Of Classic Rock and
Emerging New Rock Bands etc that put you
onto bands and of course you have YouTube.
So, you guys have a new album coming out, Can you tell me
about it?
Kevin: musicality we have all stepped up on the second
album. The 1 st album 'Welcome to the Rock show ' super proud of it, i feel
like we've raised the bar on the 2nd album.
Mat: I feel this time round we explored our musical tastes.
Whilst still keeping that classic BlitZ sound, there is something for everyone
on thus next album
Stuart: We recorded it at Axis Studio’s Doncaster UK with
Rock producer Matt Ellis. Ten tracks that were very proud of we feel we’ve
taken our sound to the next level the production is awesome and we’ve stretched
the canvas of our sound a lot more textured while still remaining true to who
we are, the feedback from some of the industry people who have heard it has
blown us away. We’re still using Richie Adam Reynolds the same artist who
worked on the first album along with photographer Heather Burns. The songs
cover a lot of themes from Mental Health to a song dedicated to my wife’s fight
against Cancer, there’s also the Rock n Roll tunes in there, this albums a lot
more personal.
Speaking of mental health, what do you guys say to
fans who are suffering from depression, anxiety, or bullying?
Stuart: Firstly i think Mental health services and support
for people with Mental health/anxiety issues is just not good enough, Mental health
services are not funded and are being cut leaving people desperate and
vulnerable. Try to find the strength to talk to someone, anyone can suffer with
Mental health issues, you are not alone. As far as bullying we played at the
Sophie Lancaster festival at Nottingham’s
Rescue Rooms and we totally appreciate the devastation, hate bullying
can cause in someone’s life. Rock music gives us a feeling of connection and
belonging we are a tribe we are unique to quote a Blitz song “ a Million voices
in the shadows.
Stuart: Man this is the longest interview we’ve ever done
lol, loving it though.
I'm sure a lot of your songs have personal meaning or
stories behind them, are there any of those stories in particular that stand out,
or that you would like to share?
Stuart: On the new album the track Never Surrender resonates
with me as lyrically I wrote it about my wife’s battle with cancer it’s kind of
a rallying call, what ever life throws at you keep going never give up. There’s also a song called The Rock Show
about growing with a love of Rock music and how it has shaped who we are, I
know it sounds corny but I get a little misty eyed when I sing it as there’s so
much of my life in there friends, places good times.
ok so, for each member, what do you love most, and
hate most about being in a band and playing shows
Mat: I love the family of BlitZ the BlitZ crew.... we have a
loyal fan base who have all made friends and it's great to see our music
bringing people from all walks of life together
These guys will travel miles and miles and take it in turns
giving each other lifts, I also love to feel the connection on stage with kev
and stu it's so comfortable up there with the pair of them.
I really do hate the packing down and the long journey home
though, it's so nice to have a show close to home. But that don't happen often 😂
do you guys do alot of touring?
Mat: We aim to pick out shows that will have the most
impact. Don't get me wrong we have all fell for the 3 gigs a week playing to a
sound engineer and bar staff, but we try and work arround them and do a bit of
research into each gig
I think last May we did 5 shows and travelled over a 1000
miles
damn thats rough. do you guys still have jobs besides
the band?
Mat: Yea we all work full time and have family
its gotta be hard to fit shows into that kinda
Mat: We have very understanding and supportive partners lol
man, thats awesome.
Stuart: I'll add by saying I love it when we make a real
connection with an audience looking out seeing people singing our songs, plus
being in a band with two top notch musicians who are awesome people and life
long friends. Sometimes I hate the way the music industry doesn’t support
upcoming bands and the way the media treats upcoming bands, you’ve got to love
it to do it and we love it.
That's awesome. I totally agree, The
underground/rising music scene is hugely unappreciated, thats kinda why I
started this Eternal Scene Rising lol
Kevin: Hate ? nothing I hate about being in a band.
Love writing new songs, start out as a small idea then they
just keep growing into full blown Rock Anthems. What i love about gigs is you
just never know how the audience is going to react. Such a great feeling when
the crowd sing your songs back to you 🤘🔥🤘
Oh, I hate getting up for work after a gigðŸ˜ðŸ˜ðŸ˜
Damn, thats gotta be hell
Kevin: Oh yes
Is there anything that surprised you guys going into a
band? like maybe things arent what they seam? or if u wanna take a different
take on the question, is there anything you would tell someone who wants to or
is planning on starting a band in the future
Kevin: I think we've been doing this for such along time in
various other bands that its so important you all click with each other and
that you all want the same thing.
As for anyone starting a band just going into with an open
mind and be prepared to work hard. And enjoy it
Mat: I've been in bands for 20 years now, always do it for
the right reasons, I've been in some bands just to be in a band, being in the
right one makes all the difference. Love what you do and most important love
who your in it with, leave egos at the door, after all, your all in it
together.
Stuart: You’ve got to love it, it’s got to be in your blood,
you’re your own best critic try and be honest about your goals the music
business isn’t what it was. There’s always someone going to tell you you can’t
do it. self belief and determination will pay off.
speaking of which, im sure you guys have seen alot of
really good bands break up and get forgotten. how does that make you feel, and
is there anything the fans can do to help the
Stuart: Yeh Jizzy Pearl from Love/Hate once told me “ leave
the ego on the stage”
Support the music and artist you love, go to gigs get the CD
support live music. without that in the beginning all the big bands would never
have got a brake, the future of Rock music is in your hands.
Awesome dude, and where do you expect to see blitz in
5 years.
Stuart: The dream would for Blitz to be our day jobs,
playing, recording, writing, staying true to ourselves and loving as much as we
do today.
with how fast you guys are growing, i dont imagine
that will be too long from now lol.
Stuart: Thanks dude you don’t know how much we appreciate
that.
ok, so last question before we close. what can fans
expect to see in 2020 and what should we be looking out for in the next couple
months/weeks.
Mat: We are throwing a lot of exclusive ideas about in the
BlitZ HQ at the moment, ideas on how to give the fans exclusive packages. We
have some ideas on potential collectables, loads of new merch plenty of limited
addition items and of course the new album. Will there be bonus items that come
with the album? Who knows?? Keep updated with shows and special
announcements on the BlitZ Facebook and
band camp. Please like share and follow our posts, you never know when Blitz
are going to put on a competition.... but we can guarantee what ever you win
will be extra special.
Can you tell me more about the HQ?
Mat: BlitZ HQ is what we call our meeting room, but we are
looking at putting together a website, where the BlitZ Crew can join in chat
with ourselves in the online version of BlitZ HQ
lol I thought it was a fan club kinda thing
Mat: 😂😂 we hope to
make it a fan kinda thing
lol if you do definitely sign me up, before we close this, do you wanna shout out to any
bands, friends, or family? and is there anything you wanted to say that hasent
been covered already?
Stuart: We’d just like to thank everyone who keeps coming to
the shows and supporting us, and of course our family and friends who stand by
us, the Radio stations that play Blitz and people in the bizz who continue to
show us some love. And of course keep looking for news of the release of our
forthcoming album called FIGHT TO SURVIVE. And of course massive thanks to you
mate for having us on board.
thanks bro. this has been super cool ^^ and I'm
definitely looking forward to when you drop that new album.
If you wanna check out Blitz, check them out on Spotify below, or
purchase their first album from bandcamp HERE.