Hampshire singer/songwriter Tom Bryan has had a few obstacles to deal with in his life over the past year. First his band Shoot The Duke disbanded just as they were beginning to make a name for themselves across Hampshire and the surrounding areas. They sighted musical differences for the split and it was a massive blow for Tom as he had put so much time and effort into making it work. He also had to deal with the pain of watching his Mother go through a difficult illness. Tom says with everything going on he found it difficult not to be pulled into depression; finding himself feeling rather pessimistic at times, always looking for the negative in things rather than enjoying the moment.
Tom used these feelings to create his first original tunes since the band split and the new single which is released on the 25th October is called “Heavy Weather”. The tune is backed with an additional track called “Paradise”. They are both quite a departure from the music that he created in the band Tom explains, “After the split of the band. I remember scrambling online for a loop pedal. I found one that was stupidly cheap (almost like it was meant to be) and ‘Heavy Weather’ was the first song that came out. I use delays and echoes to add to the percussion and hit notes in the offbeat which creates a sort of sway, loop it all together and add some drum samples – I find it hypnotic. There is also so much room to be creative. Iím massively into John Martyn and Ben Howard who both gave me huge inspiration to play this sort of rhythm”.
The two tunes show a musician capitalizing on his recent experiences with his band, trying to carve out a sound by himself from the limited resources he has. Though limited, it shows just what can be done when you have a talent such as Tom’s. ‘Heavy Weather’ shows Tom’s fascination with pushing the six strings on his guitar to make different sounds, enthralling sounds. It starts off gently with some acoustic guitar before the voice arrives “everyone is just waiting for the heavy weather”, reminding me of the reggae style adopted by Sting of The Police back in the 1980’s. “Paradise” has a lovely mesmerizing vibe pulsating its way with various acoustic and electronic sounds, coupled with infectious rhythms with it all once again being cemented together by Tom’s considerable vocals.
Tom’s solo career seems to be really escalating and he managed to bag a great slot at Victorious Festival, playing to 300 people back in the Summer. He also won the Acoustic showcase Competition at the Wedgewood Rooms in Portsmouth. There are plenty of out of town bookings for new gigs on the horizon as well as a slot at the Dials and Icebreaker Festivals. These two tunes I’m sure are just a small aperitif to what this young man is ultimately capable of.
Links
https://www.tombryanuk.co.uk
https://www.facebook.com/tombryanuk
https://soundcloud.com/tombryanuk
Words by David Chinery (Chinners).
