By Keith Walsh
In 2018, when Tom Cridland emerged out of nowhere as the singing drummer for a brand-new rock band The Tomicks, he had leveraged his newfound success as the founder of Tom Cridland Clothing fashion brand to finance their first album, a 10-track eponymous set. It was a worthy debut for a guy who had honed his vocal skills at drunken karaoke episodes and only picked up drumsticks a couple years earlier.
Using his savvy set of marketing skills and social acumen to get into clubs and other public spaces around England, Cridland promoted the band with slogans such as “Forget Make America Great – Let’s Make Rock and Roll Great Again” and “F*ck Fast Fashion.”
The Tomicks have released three more albums including the just-released Tomicks IV, and along the way Cridland had the opportunity to work with some of his favorite performers including Earl Slick (John Lennon, David Bowie) and Kenji Suzuki (Simply Red, Annie Lennox), and track albums at legendary places like Abbey Road and Sunset Sound. Battling algorithms, the ubiquity of cynically manfactured earworms, and the continuous glut of new acts, The Tomicks still haven’t reached an audience wide enough to land them on the Billboard charts. (It’s with his Elton John Tribute that Cridland has seen financial rewards for his musical work – and that’s another story).
It’s a bit of a shame. Eschewing newfangled songwriting gadgets, Cridland and his writing partner Nick Whitehead (there since the very beginnings of the first album) have stayed true to an authentic songwriting approach, building songs up from piano tracks to their full-fledged forms. With Whitehead on piano, Justin Woodward on bass (as well as guitars) and Harry Michael on drums, Tomicks IV hews close to their original roots rock sound, with mixing and production by Woodward giving the album a brilliant sonic edge.
The opener, “Simple Life With You” is a tender ballad informed by Elton John, while “We Love American Girls” is a sassy tune with a country inflection. This could be a hit on country stations for sure. “Popstar Lover” is a melancholy pop tune with bittersweet transitions from major to minor, with a 1950’s flavor to the verses.
“You don’t know how hard it is/to be bought and paid for/everyone’s always looking the other way/I want to be him for a day.”
“Were Still Friends” again takes melodic and lyrical cues from Elton, with some country flavors reminding one of his earliest albums as well as the bouyancy of his early 80s victory lap “I’m Still Standing.” “No One To Answer To” takes a darker turn, with archly pulsating bass and piano interplay, and a lyrical tale of an up-to-no-good goon. “Nanny State” is a political piss take in a minor key. “Rabbit Hole” reflects on career failure that’s somewhat softened by a newfound friendship. Again, a country inflection on the choruses.
“Who Killed Rock and Roll?” is a rousing anthem drawing on the piano stylings of Professor Longhair, one of Elton John’s original influences. “Empty Rooms” starts off as a ethereal ballad, conflating Cridland’s frustration at the challenges of being heard in the age of Spotify with the sorrows of malaise. Ninety seconds in, Woodward’s guitar solo joins in along with the drums, sounding more than a little like prime Pink Floyd. It’s a brilliant moment in an album of them. “Fade Away” is a sad lament reflecting Cridland’s gift for portraying a forlorn mindset despite being happily in love in his private life (in October, Cridland married his longtime partner and Tomicks co-founder Debs Marx).
“You thought you’d get a kick/out of tearing me apart/I can’t think of reason why/you needed to break my heart/how I just want you to fade away.”
Since the first Tomicks album, up through 2020’s Jailbound Fool and 2021’s Corporate Psychopath (as well on his 100-plus songs as a solo artist – another story again), Cridland’s lyrics have extolled the virtues of love as well as shining a light on society’s most unsavory characters. Tomicks IV follows in this vein, alternating between catchy pop-leaning numbers and minor key laments. Cridand’s voice has matured to top level professionalism – something in which his 2021 UK tour with The Stylistics certainly played a role (yet another story).
Recorded at Hollywood’s famed Sunset Sound, Tomicks IV is another great album. Inasmuch as the music marketing machine is a mystery requiring constant cash to fuel its engines, one might conclude that unless Cridland should decide to sign with a major label, the tunes might play to a much smaller audience than they actually deserve.
The Tomicks At Tom Cridland dot com
Tomicks IV Streaming Links
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