Tomi Swick

Vanessa had the opportunity to sit with Tomi Swick, a songwriter from Hamilton, Ontario, when he was opening for Stabilo at “Le National” in Montreal on October 20th 2006.

Confront: Hi Tomi

Tomi: Hi how are you?

Confront: I’m fine and you?

Tomi: I’m great! I just got out of bed!

Confront: First, welcome in Montreal!

Tomi: Thank you

Confront: Is it your first time here?

Tomi: No, I’ve been here a few times, I love Montreal! Beautiful City!

Confront: What drove you to music in the first place?

Tomi: It’s always been in my life, since I’ve been a boy I sang in a gospel choir and my mother has a beautiful, beautiful voice and so she just sang to me and got me to sing with her.  So it’s just something that has been around me even when I wasn’t doing it, music was playing everywhere so when I’d go home I was listening to music for hours and hours, it’s great thing.

Confront: What’s the creative process behind your album?

Tomi: It’s not really a set process, the only thing that was pretty constant was when I was writing the songs it was usually between 2am and 6am, by myself, just singing, I’d start thinking about things that happened that day, or things you think about for a while, you know, smoke a joint and play my guitar, just sit back and that’s the only real way it happens.  Once I had the songs done, when I had the chance to do the album, we went into pre-production where we just go “So here are the songs we’re using, lets see what we can do to them. What can we add? What can we take away?” I guess that would be the creative process.

Confront: Do you normally write down the lyrics first or the music?

Tomi: Oh, um, whatever. If I’m walking around, thinking about the lyrics and then writting a song and then there are some parts that I’ve, you know, written fully on my guitar and then I just sing along and find the lyrics later.  Then there are some songs that I just say “Hey wait a minute” and I put those together.  There are no rules to making music.

Confront: Since you first started to play in bands and as a solo act, you have gone through some changes and a lot of stuff has happened in the world in general. Would you say that these events in your life helped define the Tomi Swick sound??

Tomi: Definitely, when I grew up, the music that I listened to, like Radiohead, U2, Beatles, Jeff Buckley, Soundgarden, Paul Simon, it’s a big mix, and I listened to those while I was growing up.  The bands I was in, playing in those bands made me realize that I didn’t want to do that, that I didn’t want to be like how it was in those bands and that I wanted to do something different.  I guess that’s what helped in shaping me and shape what I’m doing now.

Confront: Who would you consider to be your biggest influence musically?

Tomi: Those bands are.  Definitely. Radiohead; you’ll hear it in my music, The Beatles; you’ll hear it in my music.  I don’t know, who else…

Confront: I know that on your CD there is one song that reminds me of Coldplay…

Tomi: Oh see! I’m much more a Radiohead fan than a Coldplay fan, but I like Coldplay as well.  It’s British, I kinda like it because you still open it up and rock out and they also raise these sensitive parts… and pretty parts.

Confront: Doing the research for this interview, I noticed that you are often referred to as a “Rock N’ Roll troubadour”, why is that?

Tomi: I think it’s because people when they hear a song like “A Night Like This”, they kind of thought that I was like… they compared me to Michael Buble at one point and I think they didn’t realize that I come from more, like I grew up during the 90’s: Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Stone Temple Pilots, Soundgarden, Radiohead, like that stuff was coming out and that’s a lot of you can hear in my music.  So I think what they mean by “Rock N’ Roll troubadour” is that “Come! And you’ll hear the pretty stuff and we also rock out” because we like to play some rock as well.

Confront: People tend to label artists or compare them with others, how would label yourself?

Tomi: I don’t know… I’m a singer/songwriter, but I’m also, I mean me and my guys are a band, it’s kind of more like Sam Roberts I guess, but not that we sound the same, but more like that idea.

Confront: Your CD’s title is “Stalled Out in the Doorway”… is that the way you were feeling before getting your record deal?

Tomi: No, “Stalled Out in the Doorway” refers to a song on the album and basically, the song is about… you know… “You get 3 strikes and you’re out” kind of thing, right?  Well it’s kind of a safety at home, when your boyfriend, girlfriend, friends, parents or whatever, you walk through the door and you say “No! Get out! You’re done! No more!”  It’s that time where you stand up, your arms through the door and you’re standing there and “Is this really happening?”  It’s like 10 seconds that seem like forever and you’re just standing there trying to figure out what’s going to happen next.  That’s what “Stalled Out in the Doorway” is about.

Confront: What makes this album different from everything else out there?

Tomi: I don’t know… I don’t know!  Haha!  I can’t say, I think it’s just… it’s my album!  It’s all similar, “music is music is music” and there’s different variations of my songs that are on millions of albums you know, and I think that originality comes from the person who’s there.  It’s just the melody you have… it’s melody and lyrics that make it great because I have my own and no one has it!

Confront: What’s your favorite song to play live and what is it about that song or that moment that makes it memorable?

Tomi: There is probably “Listen Isa”, which is a song about my mother and my brother and it’s really nice to play because, every time I play it, I can totally imagine the situation I wrote it in, I feel the same way every time I sing it and it’s just that we play around a little bit live so it’s a great time doing it.

Confront: What’s the one song from your CD that would best describe your state of mind nowadays?  Or any other song or artist that may pop-up in your mind?

Tomi: *thinking for a while* Wow… *keeps thinking* I don’t even know… I’ll come back on that one later!

Confront: You have been featured on the CD From the Heart, how does it feel to a new artist to be on the same CD as popular artists like Michael Buble, James Blunt and Daniel Powter?

Tomi: That was amazing!  It was an amazing opportunity.  I was a bit nervous of it when they first asked me if it wanted to be part of it.  Because I was nervous of people saying that “Oh, he’s just like James Blunt” and we’re not, well, I’m like that, but I come from more rock.  But it was an amazing opportunity and I kind of slapped myself and said “Hey! Wait a minute!  You can’t let this opportunity pass you by”. I was amazed that the record company put that much faith in me.  That I would lead off the album with my single, like obviously because Michael Buble and James Blunt already had songs out, so mine was like another one out, but I mean it was the first original release from that album and that was like, you cannot ask for a better opportunity as an artist.

Confront: Did you feel proud to be part of that line-up with other Canadian artist (Simple Plan, Michael Buble & Daniel Powder)?

Tomi: Yeah!  Ron Sexsmith was out there, Luke Doucet, Matthew Barber, there is a lot of great Canadian talent!  Love it!

Confront: A couple years ago, the way for an artist to promote himself was to knock on every record labels’ door and radio stations and give them a demo tape.  Now, there’s MySpace.  You didn’t have to go through all of this, you were discovered but what’s your take on promoting music on the Internet?

Tomi: I think the internet is a fantastic way to promote music; the only thing is that, obviously, downloading hurts musicians.  But I’ve downloaded before, I stopped actually and I took all the ones that I’d burned and I don’t use them.  Also, I think now that the internet is so flooded with bands on MySpace.  There are millions of bands adding you everyday “Check out my stuff! Check out my stuff!” and it’s kind of hard.  I think if you demark yourself correctly, the internet is an amazing tool for spreading the word about what you’re doing and getting your music out there.  It’s just that I think that you have to get a cool website, interesting songs and set up things by yourself so that people can kind of get interested in you.  I don’t like to throw myself at people, even on MySpace, I don’t go to everybody and say “Add me add me add me…”, you know, people add me and check my music.

Confront: I read a couple of comments on your Myspace.  You seem to be really close to your fans.  Can you describe to me your relationship with them?

Tomi: Well the ones that I know are friends if mine.  If people are paying to see me and paying for an album, it’s a pretty amazing thing, you know, like, you don’t have to help me, you don’t have to support me, you don’t have to do anything, so going out of the way because they love music and they appreciate that I put a lot of work into this. So when people are asking me questions on MySpace or asking for an interview, why in the hell wouldn’t I at least give a little bit of respect and say “Thank you so much for supporting me” because it really is.  You guys are supporting me or I wouldn’t be doing what I want to do, it’s pretty crazy.  So when fans drop by I try to be friends as much as I can because they deserve that.

Confront: If you could choose one thing… what would you like the public to remember from you?

Tomi: To remember that I like to have a lot of fun, and that what you see is what you get!

Confront: Has there been a country that you have traveled to that has impressed you or a country whose culture left its mark, and why?

Tomi: I recently got to Scotland for the first time, where my family is from, and it’s a beautiful, beautiful country!  Some crazy people, but you have a lot of fun!  It’s stunning!  I like England, but I love Scotland, it was phenomenal.  I really want to go to France, Germany and Italy and places like that because it’s so old, so I would love to go.

Confront: At CONFRONT Magazine one of our goals is to redefine mainstream.  In other words, mainstream doesn’t have to be bubblegum pop.  To be mainstream is simply the ability to reach a lot of people. What bands do you think are working at redefining the definition of mainstream today?

Tomi: Things like Radiohead.  Mainstream for me is weird because I know a lot of band but not everybody knows them. *laugh*  So I’m trying to think… definitely Radiohead.  They have so many fans, but haven’t had a big single for a while.  The overall public, like the “Wal-Mart” you know *laugh*, they don’t get them but they (Radiohead) are still getting mass appeal.  Mainstream and commercial are kind of “hand in hand”, but what we are saying is that it’s the ability to reach so many people. Like Ray Lamontagne, I don’t know if you know him but, phenomenal guy!  He’s starting to make huge waves in music and sounds like he walks in straight from 1975!  Do you know Ray Lamontagne at all?

Confront: Yes I do know him!

Tomi: I’m a huge fan!

Confront: Can you tell me more about the meaning of “Easy Company”?

Tomi: I was wondering about how people would see that song.  It sounds like a protest against the war, but there was a DVD compilation that Spielberg and Tom Hanks did that was about World War 1 or 2, and basically what they did was all on 13 DVDs and I watched them all in one night.  My dad’s uncle was a sniper during the World War(1 or 2??) and this movie made me think about how these young guys, 14-15 years old, were lying to go to war because they didn’t really understand how rough it was to go to war.  The song is about “Easy Company” was the name of the actual troop in the DVD and it just made me think, wars are terrifying things, wars are across the ocean and these kids didn’t know what they were getting into, that it was a pretty scary thing and it affects people so terribly.  It’s horrible.

Confront: We have a section called Daily Urges in which readers can submit their favorite bands, well known or not it doesn’t matter and in an effort to make other people discover these incredible acts.  What are some of your Daily Urges?

Tomi: Unified Theory, Blind Melon, Ray Lamontagne, Zero 7 & The Band.

Confront: First and last CD (album) purchased?

Tomi: Last CD I purchased was Chris Cornell, his solo album and the first CD I ever bought was Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Stone Temple Pilot… and that was it, those three are the first CDs I ever got.

Confront: First and last concert attended?

Tomi: First concert I ever went to… wow… as far as I can remember, that would probably be Luba, in the 80’s, my sister loves this girl.  The last concert I went to was Paul Simon’s, two days ago and I met him!  It was amazing!

Confront: So let’s get back to that question you didn’t answer earlier…

Tomi: What was that question again?

Confront: What’s the one song that would best describe your state of mind nowadays?

Tomi: The Wait, by The Band.  It’s a song about pressure, right?  I’m under a lot of pressure right now so, but I really feel good about it.  It’s the workload, there are a lot of people, money and time invested in what I’m doing and I have a lot of ups and downs, but I really feel like I can handle it!

Confront: Well, thank you so much for receiving me; it was a lot of fun chatting with you today!  Also congrats on doing the Bell Center in February with the Barenaked Ladies!

Tomi: It’s going to be exciting!  I just hope that people keep loving what I’m doing! But thank you so much!  Was nice meeting you to!