First in a new series of interviews with various musicians and those involved in and around the music business. Nick Jackson of IT, who have just released their new album ‘The Stranger Inside the Self’...

Before the questions, what is your brew of choice for elevenses and biscuit or cake of choice?

NJ: Hot brew would be coffee, cold brew would be an ale. Biscuit probably a chocolate digestive.

The new album ‘The Stranger Inside the Self’ is out now. Have you pleased with the reviews of it and the fan reaction to date?

NJ: Yes the response has been absolutely amazing. All but one review put us 8 plus out of 10. There have been several very in depth reviews, which have blown me away. The time and effort put in by reviewers to really get to grasp with the work has been truly remarkable.

Interestingly the band are drip feeding songs from the new album onto streaming services. Do you think musicians need to have all their music available to stream or is it perhaps, as some artists do, have a sampler only of their music to hopefully encourage sales on their own websites, Bandcamp etc.

NJ: I’m not a fan of streaming whatsoever, but I suppose it has to be done to a degree. Mainly for the younger folks. But yes, we seem to have found a compromise of not releasing the entire album to streaming and drip feeding each track over a 10 month period. Which has allowed fans who pay for their music exclusivity. Which I think is really important.

‘The Stranger Inside the Self’ originally came out in 1994. How did the band find recording the album and trying to balance keeping to each song’s original ideas & sound, whilst still looking to add a modern stamp/feel to the music?

NJ: Originally we were only going to remix and remaster, but it quickly became apparent that that wasn’t going to work and that the songs deserved better. So we ended up re-recording 95% of it.

We were incredibly conscious of the existing parts and how they all worked together. So we wanted to keep that, so each part was meticulously re-recorded not to change the part but to simply better the performances. We wanted to honour and respect the original and I think the results show that.

What have been the live highlights for IT to date and why?

NJ: There have been many, but one stand out show was when we recorded our live album CD/DVD in Holland back in 2019. Which was at the Poppodium Boerderij. The most spectacular venue I’ve ever played in. Technically at the top of its game. And the nicest most generous hosts we’ve ever had. The people there are so enthusiastic about music and really put everything into it.

You use videos at your gigs. What role do they play for the band in getting the songs themes and ideas across to an audience?

NJ: We used to use video projections a lot more. But over the years it’s become harder to do in certain venues. The space just isn’t there. So we tend to keep video for our own bigger shows.

A lot of the videos tend to follow the lyrical themes and are a great way of representing the songs visually. They really add to the live show experience.

How has the music industry changed, particularly as regards to live shows, since the Covid lockdowns?

NJ: I’m not going to lie, but it’s become a lot harder. It’s not so much the impact of Covid but more so the cost of living. People just don’t have the means to go out and spend as much on entertainment anymore. It’s quite sad really. How much do the billionaire wealth addicts really need? It’s beyond obscene to me.

What was the first instrument you learned to play?

NJ: I first did piano lessons like many musicians were put through. Hahaha And like many quickly quit and moved on to guitar.

Given the success of revisiting ‘The Stranger Inside the Self’, are there any other songs in IT’s back catalogue you’d perhaps like to revisit?

NJ: Oddly enough there is a second long lost album from 1995 called ‘Two Worlds’, again only ever released on cassette. We will probably remake it at some point, but next up is a brand new album. Which we’re two thirds through writing. We’re over the moon with what we have already.

Describe IT’s sound to an interested new fan in a sentence…

NJ: oh wow, I find it pretty impossible to do. I think this tends to be better coming from a fan. But I’d say our music is first and foremost melodic. Strong melodies come first with us. The simpler, the better too.

Anything else to add…

I want to give a huge thank you to all those who’ve purchased our album, bought merch and have come to see us live. Without you, we wouldn’t be able to do this.
For anyone interested the best place to check us out is through our website

From there there are links to everything. Our Bandcamp store, our YouTube page which has a lot on it now and of course our socials for keeping up to date with all things IT!

Thank you Jason for allowing me to do this. And thank you for your support and making people aware of what we do. Again, another huge factor in keeping a band going.
Cheers!

Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions,

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

Josh now hosts “Taerk’s Tracks” as part of the Singer Songwriter Sunday sequence on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio.

This is the first show broadcast on 27 September. Josh presents some of his inspirational artists and tracks.

David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast 27 September 2026.

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen live or listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com

Power Plays w/c 26 October 2026

BLACK RIVER DELTA Shame On You (Despotz Records)
DAYTONA Listen To The Silence (Escape Music)
SUCKERTRAP Sacred Lies (indie)
WOOD BURNT RED Count My Blessings (indie)
BLACKLIST UNION Heavy Is The Crown (indie)

Featured Albums w/c 26 October 2026

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Singer Songwriter)

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