Tom A. Smith has been performing for most of his life. From getting on stage as a child to becoming one of the North East’s most exciting young artists, the Sunderland singer-songwriter has spent years building towards the moment he is now enjoying.
The last 12 months have seen that hard work begin to pay off in a major way. After reassessing his songwriting and taking his sound in a new direction, Smith signed to Fiction Records, released a host of new material and developed an increasingly energetic and theatrical live show.
He has also been making his mark on the festival circuit, including a surprise appearance at Kendal Calling, while collaborations with artists including Rowetta and Swim School have added further dimensions to his music.
With a new extended EP out in full next month, and a starring role in Dave Stewart’s Ebony McQueen also in the works, there is plenty happening, and we caught up with Tom to discuss the journey so far.
NC: You’re fresh from Kendal Calling as we speak, how was it?
Tom: “Yeah. What a festival, first and foremost. It’s incredible. It’s probably the fourth or fifth time I’ve been, and it’s amazing. Somebody dropped out of the Woodlands Stage and we got asked if we wanted to fill the slot. It was a no-brainer. We went along and I did a secret couple of songs at Tim Peaks Diner, because that’s where I started when I was about 12. That place has always been really important to me.
“To go back and play there was pretty surreal. Then on the night I totally didn’t expect anyone to be there. I still haven’t got around the fact that people actually want to come and see us! We couldn’t really announce it properly, so I thought nobody would have seen it. Somebody said to me afterwards that it was the busiest they’d ever seen that stage at any point in the five years they’d been going to the festival!”
NC: You’ve been at this for a while now, most of your life, but do you think you’re starting to feel the real benefits of all that groundwork now? The last couple of years, particularly, have been really good for you.
Tom: “Totally, particularly the last 12 months have been a little bit wild. There’s been so much groundwork put in over so many years. It’s taken a lot of maturing, especially with the songwriting. The opportunities I’ve had to be on stage and in some incredible environments with so many amazing artists have set me up well.”
NC: And how has moving from a solo artist to playing with a band been for you during this time?
Tom: “That’s taken the live show to new heights. I’ve been with the same band for five or six years now, and considering we’ve put up with each other for so long and enjoyed it as much as we have, every time we go away it still feels like the first time we’re going on the road together. It’s so much fun.”
NC: You signed to Fiction Records around a year ago. What was that moment like?
Tom: “The moment was actually amazing. We did a gig in London and none of us knew on the day that we were going to be signing a record deal. About two hours before the gates opened, they said they were going to come along with the deal and sign us at the show. My family was there, all the band were there. It was such a special moment.
“The main thing for me was the confidence it gave me. At least somebody thinks I’m decent and knows what I do. Maybe I am alright! It was a real eye-opener that this is quite serious and the things I’m doing are actually being noticed.”
NC: What impact has it had?
Tom: “I’d already started shifting from what I was doing before. I was changing my songwriting, and they’ve been amazing for my development. You always get told that when you sign a record deal, the decisions start coming out of your hands a little bit, but I’ve felt the total opposite. They’re enthusiastic about everything I’ve wanted to do.”
NC: You’ve spoken about your transition in sound. Do you feel like you’ve found your sound now, or is it something that’s always going to evolve?
Tom: “I do think it’s a constant process. I’m writing songs now and they’re different again, but I feel like there is a general cohesiveness to everything now that maybe wasn’t there two or three years ago. I was writing one thing and then the next thing I’d release would be at the total other end of the spectrum. It was hard to actually say what I was trying to do. Now it feels like there’s a cohesion, especially within the EPs and the bodies of work.
“But I always think songwriting and music are moments in time. Whatever feels right at that moment is probably right. I’d seen an interview with Bowie where he’d said, “If you’re comfortable, you’re doing it wrong.” I thought, forget my comfort zone and try to do something a little different.”
NC: Alongside the music, your live persona has really evolved too. You started out as a kid with a guitar and now your stage presence is completely different. Was that difficult to develop or natural?
Tom: “For so long I was very comfortable being on stage with the guitar, and I never really wanted to lose that part of the performance. When we did a tour about three years ago, I started ditching the guitar for a couple of songs. We played tracks where it wasn’t really necessary for me to have a guitar, and that gave me a bit of freedom.
“It became about how we push the boundaries every single time we go out on stage and maybe make it a little bit different every time. I’ve had so much fun with it. I just wanted to make it entertaining. I definitely don’t walk around the house in pink polka dots, but I love the idea of being on stage and it being this persona and this sort of alter ego. That’s what Tommy is.”
NC: Was there anyone in particular who influenced that side of your performance?
Tom: “David Byrne has always been a big inspiration for me over the last few years. Bowie is obviously a big one too. Then there are people I’ve performed with. Even people who still play with guitars, like Miles Kane, and how he conducts himself on stage is just cool and effortless. I’ve not really tried to do what anybody else is trying to do. I’m just trying to take influences from different things and put them all into one.”
NC: Tell us all about the new single “Am I Ever Gonna Be A Rock Star?”, taken from the extended EP?
Tom: “I must have written about 50 songs for the last EP, and obviously not all of them got on there. Because of that, some songs that I really like didn’t get on. I’ve got a few months where I didn’t have anything planned for release, so I thought, let’s keep the ball rolling and keep it moving. Let’s put these songs out.
“There are extended versions of tracks too. I’m also really excited about it because we’ve been trying it live over the last few weeks. It’s the first time in a while where we’ve decided what the single was going to be before we started trying it live. It was quite a big risk for me, but it’s been working really well.”
NC: “Am I Ever Gonna Be a Rock Star?” has that chaotic energy you’ve really mastered with some of the recent singles. Does it fit naturally into the live set?
Tom: “Yeah, it’s just chaos for two and a half minutes! It’s such a fun song and it’s been great to play live. I love the lyrics and the sentiment of it. It’s nice playing these tracks live because I already know people like them before they’re even out, so it’s a bit of a weight off your back. The response we’ve had since announcing it has been amazing.”
NC: You’ve collaborated with a few artists recently, including Rowetta. Is that something you want to continue?
Tom: “Collaborating with musicians is always amazing because it gives a song a different feel or a different point of view. Especially with what I’m doing now, where a lot of it is very in-your-face and there are similar ideas running throughout, it’s nice to freshen things up with a different perspective.
“Rowetta did a great job on that track and we’re really pleased with how it sounds. I’ve got nothing planned at the moment for any more collaborations, but I’m always open to writing with people. I’ve got a few songwriting sessions booked in over the next couple of weeks, not necessarily for myself but for other people as well.”
NC: If you could collaborate with anyone, who would it be?
Tom: “Soulwax, absolutely. I’d love them to remix something and do a version of one of my songs. I think that would be really cool.”
NC: Moving away from music slightly, you’ve also got the Dave Stewart project Ebony McQueen. How did that come about?
Tom: “This is totally new. I did a couple of school shows when I was about 12, but other than that I really left acting behind. I got a message on Instagram from Dave Stewart. In the world of music, he’s just a god. Eurythmics are the pinnacle of some of the music I’ve grown up with. He messaged me saying, “Can I have your phone number?” I was like, “This is weird!”
“He rang and said he’d been working on this film for however many years and had written the lead role based on his getting into music and his early life. He wanted someone who looked similar to him to play the character, and he wanted it to be authentic. He said I was the first person who came to mind and that he’d been thinking about me for the role for a while. I was like, “Wow, okay.” He sent the script over and I absolutely loved it.”
NC: And he joined you on stage too?
Tom: “Yeah we did a show at the Fire Station in Sunderland. He messaged beforehand asking if he could come and do a song with us. I was going to do this big speech beforehand and make it a big moment, but as soon as the song before it finished, he just walked on stage.
“The whole place was like, “What on Earth?” I just saw his hat bobbing up the stairs coming onto the stage. It was completely mad. Afterwards, I didn’t see him. I don’t think he wanted to stick around because it’s like having one of The Beatles there in Sunderland.”
NC: It’s very Sunderland, isn’t it? Yourself and Dave Stewart, with the film being set there too.
Tom: “Yeah, it’s all set in Sunderland. It’s such an exciting thing to be part of. Even though it’s set in a different time to me, there are things in it that are very Sunderland. It’s just brilliant.”
NC: How is Sunderland as a place to be at the minute musically?
Tom: “It’s incredible. It’s just getting better and better. We’ve recently got Music City status, which is amazing. I didn’t need to be told growing up that it was a music city because I already knew that! There are so many fantastic venues and amazing artists coming through at the moment. There’s this total new wave of new music coming from the North East and Sunderland in particular.”
NC: Do you see yourself as one of the driving forces behind that scene?
Tom: “I’d like to think so. There are so many more people doing infinitely more for the local area, but it’s nice just to be part of it. At the moment I’m one of many artists who are sort of spearheading it in terms of the music.
“It’s exciting, and it’s amazing that it just seems to be connecting every time we do a show in Sunderland. Even just going out, people recognise me and it’s just like… that’s what you grew up always dreaming and wanting. We’re getting there. We’re on the right track with it.”
Pre-save the full new extended EP here: Put On A Record Tommy (Deluxe).
Main Photo Credit – Katie Anderson
…
Follow us here:
You can check out all episodes of The Northern Chorus Podcast on Spotify, Apple and YouTube, including interviews, reviews, rankings, music chat and more!
