Giant Walker is a Heavy Progressive Rock band from Newcastle, UK. Born in the South, yet bound by their northern heritage they also share a love for bands such as Karnivool, Soundgarden, Radiohead and Deftones. With their current run of singles,   their music captures the many lows of loneliness and tips a hat to the music that gets you through hard times, alternating between giant riffs, melancholic melodies and ambient soundscapes. The band are all set to release their 4th single, Left To Wreck, on 25th February 2022, the previous three singles having gained coverage from many of the Heavy music magazine and webpages.

Jamie Southern, guitarist with Giant Walker, joins us At The Barrier to tell us about the impact of one of the bands they admire, Soundgarden.

To me, Soundgarden is as close to a perfect band you can get. Each member brings something different, yet so satisfyingly complementary to the overall package that I fell for them hook, line and sinker the moment I heard them. I was in the car with my parents when I saw a CD that I didn’t recognise put into the stereo; it was the album, ‘Superunknown’. My Dad started to crank up the volume as the opening song, ‘Let Me Drown’ played – and it just completely floored me. I couldn’t tell you what album my parents listened to after that because I was still relishing in what I had just heard. To say that car journey changed my life wouldn’t be an overstatement.

My two favourite Soundgarden albums are Superunknown and Badmotorfinger, there’s no way I could only choose one. The songs from these two albums have accompanied me through every big moment in my life so far, and I can always find solitude in the deep and dark emotional landscape that they provide.

I don’t think that I need to say much about how unbelievable the late, great Chris Cornell was as a singer; I could listen to that guy sing the dictionary and I would probably melt in my chair. However, what isn’t mentioned enough, is his ability to craft some of the most stunning lyrics.

I think my favourite lyrics might just be from the song, Like Suicide, which, from what I’ve read, was written about a crow that flew into Chris’ window and sustained fatal injuries. This forced him to make a decision – leave the crow to die slowly or end its suffering using whatever he could find, in this case, a brick. The chorus kind of summarises the whole ordeal; “She lived like a murder how she’d fly so sweetly. She lived like a murder but she died just like suicide”.” At first, I thought the lyrics were vaguely about a woman being murdered, which is what the more immediate and literal reading of the lyrics eluded to, but when I realised he was singing about putting a wounded crow out of its misery, it became bittersweet and relatable, which really stuck with me.

Soundgarden remain to be one of my biggest musical influences, and I don’t doubt that a lot of the subconscious decisions I make when writing new music are a direct result of listening to this band religiously for years.

So… What are you waiting for, go and listen to some Soundgarden.

Thanks to Jamie for taking time from a busy release schedule for Giant Walker to write about an amazing band. Now go and listen to some Giant Walker!

Here’s a taste of Giant Walker:

Giant Walker online: Website / Facebook / Instagram / Youtube / Bandcamp

You can read more from our extensive archive of Why I Love pieces from a wide array of artists on an even wider array of subjects, here.

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