Singled Out: Satin Nickel's Shadow Of Doubt

Satin Nickel recently released their new album "Shadow Of Doubt and to celebrate we asked Morgan Hollingsworth to tell us about the title track. Here is the story:

My middle name is Thomas. I have always been proud of that middle name, even though if anyone ever called me by my full name I would shudder for fear I was being scolded for something. Growing up listening to Nickel Creek, one of my favorite songs by them is "Doubting Thomas," which I profoundly related to, not just because of the name, but because the character in the song is always questioning himself, his perspectives, the intentions of his peers, living in fear of making the wrong decision, and residing in a perpetual existentialism. Even today I share many of those fears and characteristics, and I have many friends who are trying to convince me to abandon my fears and come out of my shell.

When I heard the original story in the bible about "Doubting Thomas" I was miffed. Thomas was one of Jesus' apostles, and when Jesus was resurrected the other apostles came to Thomas with the news. Thomas refused to believe them until he saw Jesus with his own eyes and touched his wounds; so Jesus came to him, had him touch the wounds, and only then did Thomas believe.

Thomas is criticized for only believing when he sees proof, which, if we followed that moral, we may as well write a thesis paper without citing sources, or take a case to court without any evidence. In this day and age there is so much false information floating around, and we have political and religious leaders telling us not to believe the evidence of our own eyes and ears, to follow outdated or misleading practices and dogma. This is a time when we must think for ourselves and come to our own conclusions, to gather the data and evidence that we have and cast doubt on matters in question until we have definitive proof.

I originally wrote "Shadow of Doubt" as a defense for Thomas, intended for just one voice and one guitar, pulling influence from solo artists like Nick Drake and Madison Cunningham, and this would be my way of standing up for myself and my existential shell. When I shared the song with Sam and the rest of the band, they were so impressed with it that they said we HAVE to put it on the album. Putting this originally solo/acoustic song in a band context gave the song a weight and power, merging our Americana sound with this progressive-rock aggression, that I can't imagine the song without anymore. This song has become a sort of anthem, saying that individual thought and the ability to determine fact from fiction and wrong from right is something we will not surrender.

Hearing is believing. Now that you know the story behind the song, listen and watch for yourself below and check out the album here

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