MUSIC: Eclectic (Patreon)

So, the next stop on the musical journey that is my solo albums is 2000's ECLECTIC. We're still using the Yamaha 8 Track for this, but there is now some computer-based sequencing going on - mostly Cakewalk, though some Cubase- and you can really hear the computer's lack of soul on some of these songs. And I obviously decided that recording the vocal tracks all the way into the red was a great idea. Older Tommie is less thrilled with this idea.

I wasn't really looking forward to going back to this one because I always felt, in hindsight, that it was the most directionless album I had done. I just couldn't decide who I wanted to be, and the result, although called "Eclectic" is probably more "Out Of Focus". I was held back and limited by the equipment I had too, even with the addition of the computer.

I also could have benefited greatly from having a band - I was doing a lot of solo gigs with just an acoustic guitar at the time, and while good for what it was I wasn't getting the feel I wanted and this is very much reflected in this album. It's a singer-songwriter crying out for a band to help define him.

That said, this was the only album that got any sort of actual record company attention. There was an (alleged) A&R guy hanging around a lot at the time, making noises, but nothing ever came from it. Felt exciting at the time, though.

And before anyone asks - Yes, "Women are Evil" is meant as a joke. It actually ended up being sung by a load of pagans at the Glastonbury Goddess Festival that Summer, which was cool. Those 10 days in Glastonbury were very magical, actually. That's when I met Stuart Wilde.

The song "Very Wrong" arrived all in one go. I picked up the guitar one evening and played the entire song from start to finish in pretty much the same form it's recorded here. That doesn't happen often, but it's happened a couple of times. Very weird, Very cool.

Listening now, it's not as bad as I feared. It actually sounds better than I remember, which is a nice surprise.

The song that opens the album, "Better Man" was also on Flat 3, 10 Church Street, and would also make an appearance on 2012's Four Fifty Eight Ep. "'Til She" and "Very Wrong" would be re-recorded for my next album "Post Partying Blues" a year later. "Not Today" also gets a reprise.

And, "All I wanted" and "If The World Came Crumbling Down" are also being re-done for my forthcoming album as there is some unfinished business with them, and they have been haunting me. All the songs on the new album are songs that haunt me, hence the title "Eidolons"


DOWNLOAD THE ALBUM HERE: https://mega.nz/folder/bhEHERwA#2RZrE89zUJ6gMf7DNy35Kg
FIND IT ON BANDCAMP: https://tommiekelly.bandcamp.com/album/eclectic
Spotify Presave: https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/tommiekelly/eclectic