Hiya Tom thanks for joining us in the virtual RGM lounge today, grab a brew and take a seat.
What made you decide that music is a thing for you?
I think if you “decide” to do music, then maybe it isn’t the thing for you, you know? I don’t remember deciding to do it, other than asking my dad for guitar lessons. It’s always been a need, rather than a choice.
Introduce yourself and your musical history.
I’m a music producer from Somerset, currently based in London. I’ve been playing music and in bands since I was 9 or so. During my last year at uni I kind of burned out on making my own music, and started producing others. Then throughout the lockdown I had a kind of realisation that bolstered my confidence a bit more and started tinkering with new ideas, which ultimately became my debut EP ‘Little Songs’ in November 2022.
Name me your 3 favourite Albums.
Right now I’d say…
Alvvays – Blue Rev
Black Country, New Road – Ants From Up There
Andy Shauf – Norm
Of all time…
King Creosote and Jon Hopkins – Diamond Mine
The National – High Violet
Beach House – Depression Cherry
What was the first song you heard that steered you into a music path?
I think I was 9 and saw The Rasmus on the UK Top 40 show (CBBC 6pm Sunday nights, presented by Konnie Huq) playing in the Shadows, and thinking that it was the coolest thing I’d ever seen, and the next day picking up one of my Dad’s guitars. I wish it was something cooler, like Jimi Hendrix or Led Zeppelin, but they all came later.
The music industry is the hardest industry in the world to progress in, How do you feel you are doing?
I suppose that depends on your definition of progress/success. I’m quite content making my weird tunes and putting them out for a few people to listen to. If you compare me to someone like Taylor Swift or the 1975, I’m doing incredibly badly, but who cares.
I’m seeing a lot of debate about women not feeling safe at music gigs, any thoughts on what we need to do to help?
Stop being a dick and realise that the mass surrounding you at a gig is made up of human beings just like you.
As you develop as an artist and develop using socials what ways do you get new ears on your music? Any tips?
I have no tips, I just do what makes me laugh or what I think is interesting, and occasionally I release music. Don’t overthink it.
Tell us Two truths and a lie about you.
I convinced myself I didn’t like jam once when I was younger.
I don’t need glasses, I just like the look.
I’m not very good at the rule of three.
What’s your thought on Spotify’s monopoly on the music industry?
A huge question. Obviously, it sucks. Everyone deserves to be paid fairly for what they create, its a job/service just like anything else.
Do you sign up for any conspiracy theories?
Again, the definition of conspiracy theories is important here. Do I believe they faked the moon landing? No, we’ve all seen that video of Buzz Aldrin punching that man. Do I believe aliens exist? Yeah, it’s statistically probable. Do I believe stars exist? No, they’re clearly a projection in the night sky put there by the lizard people to trick us.
Did you buy anything you don’t need in the pandemic?
I bought a clarinet, but I ended up learning how to play it, and it makes for a quite nice addition to some tracks, so that doesn’t count I suppose.
What was the worst experience on stage?
I’m sure there’s something worse, but this is the most recent. I was playing a couple of gigs in Germany with Lucy Wroe (another very good musician who I work/live with), and I was borrowing someone else’s guitar so I didn’t have to lug it around on a plane. The song we were closing the set with is in a slightly different tuning, so in between songs I retune, it’s usually fine on my guitar, but this one had locking tuners, so as a result throughout the whole song my guitar was getting more and more out of tune. It was very noticeable (to me), and was pretty much beyond saving after a certain point.
Tell us something about you that you think people would be surprised about.
I’m not very good at drinking water. I kind of go a day or two where I completely forget to hydrate, and then eventually I have a huge headache and I’m like “whoa what’s going on this is crazy” then I remember and drink 5 litres of water in one go.
What makes you stand out as a band/artist?
I always try to get my personality to poke through in some way. I saw an interview with Geddy Lee from Rush saying that uniqueness is having so many influences that no one can pinpoint them, then standing your personality in front of it and making something entirely different and new. I quite like that, so I always try and smush as many different ideas together and usually my personality appears regardless of what I make.
I hear you have new music, what can you tell us about it.
The new track is called “She’s Like A Dream” I started producing it the day my first EP “Little Songs” came out back in November. It’s very spacey and cool, at least I think so, and it features vocals from Lucy Wroe who I mentioned earlier.
Talk me through the thought process of the new tune/s.
To be honest, when I released “Little Songs”, I had been making stuff for around two years and splurged them all on one release, kind of as an act of catharsis. When it came out, I suddenly found myself wanting to release more, but not having anything made. So I dug around in my phone voice memos and found a very casual rehearsal I had recorded with Lucy and our friend Philipp. I heard some nice chords and worked around that.
What was the recording process like?
As I say, it started with a phone recording. I went through it and found the bits I liked and time stretched them into place. I also had a phone recording of me playing some individual drums that I used as the rhythmic basis, then I formed it into a vague structure, played some bass, some percussion. I recorded some vocal ideas that weren’t very good. Lucy recorded some vocals for it while I was at work one day and I restructured it around her. Did some editing, did some mixing and here we are.
What was the biggest learning curve in writing the new tune?
The mix was quite hard. When it started it was really grimy and dark sounding, then over time I found myself leaning towards a poppier crisper production style.
Would you change anything now its finished?
It’s done when it’s done, maybe there are things I’d change, but I’m not listening to it like that anymore, I’m enjoying it rather than analysing it.
Is there anything else you would like to share with the world?
If you don’t have a lot of money or equipment, don’t let that stop you from doing something cool. Record a demo on your phone, edit the life out of it in Audacity, share it with your friends and have fun. Fidelity means nothing.
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