To create his North Country Boy collection, Jason Hall drew inspiration and energy from the unforgettable music of the early 1990s, such as Stone Roses, The Charlatans, New Order, The Smiths, Happy Mondays and other groups from the north.
Musically Inspired
The theme for the new collection, which features relaxed, floppy styles for men, comes from one of Hall's favorite songs, North Country Boy by Tim Burgess, front man of The Charlatans.
“Most men’s collections are based on roughly the same things men are into—friends, fashion, music and football,” says Jason. “When you're picking a theme, it seems to fall into those four elements. Some people have three of those interests, some have a different three.
“Music has always been very important to me, and for the latest collection, I looked for a really strong influence, going back to the early 1990s. I wanted to base it on an iconic character from those days and Tim Burgess just fell into place. North Country Boy was the song he was most known for so that became the name for the collection.
“A lot of the young kids today are listening to the bands of that period for the first time and discovering many musical heroes from back then.
“For the new collection, I knew exactly what I wanted, knew it was Tim’s image, the floppy hair that everyone wanted in those days, so we found the right model, Jacob. He is one of the new faces coming through and he worked so well with us that he is going to be one of our regular models.”
The Creative Process
Jason has his own fully-equipped photographic and music studio close to his Edinburgh salon, where he works closely with photographer Lee.
“When many people are working on a new project, they use mood boards,” says Jason. “We start with a song board, a play list. For North Country Boy we wanted to create the energy and attitude of the time, so we created a play list of about ten or twelve songs and had them playing the whole time we were working.
“We did really crazy things to create the right atmosphere, got loads of bottles of Tizer and Tennents, lots of sweeties that we had grown up with. I collect clothing from certain eras, so in the dressing room we had lots of outfits from the period. It all added to the energy and vibe.
Looking ahead, Jason predicts that longer hair for men is staging a strong comeback.
“We have lots of guys now who are letting their hair grow out and having it styled. The trend is for it to look slightly rough and casual, but styled that way.”
Hair: Jason Hall
Photography: Lee Howell
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