Tom Hanson
September 2007 update... It's taken a while, but a new record is finally ready, Everything Takes Forever. You can find it at my new website, www.tomhansonmusic.com
I'm a songwriter, guitarist and singer who makes acoustic-based music that gets called things like "dark," "dreamy," "melancholy," or "hauntingly beautiful." (See comments about Wake of the Moon, below.)
Feel free to download and distribute the following MP3's. If you would like a copy of the CD, please send me an email with your name and address. For now, they're complimentary. (If you live outside the US, a donation may be requested to cover the postage.)
Wake of the Moon (2001)
Listener Comments about Wake of the Moon...
“I was truly blown from the first second I put it on. It's brilliant … you have created a great original sound. There is a beautiful tenderness in the music. The mixing and the playing are fantastic.” — Daniel Miau
“I must say what a project! You should be very proud. Over the past week I have listened to Wake of the Moon 6-8 times on my portable player, in the car. It has grown on me like a (good) fungus … Now, tonight I put it into the stereo and listened with headphones, 2x. Yikes oh man, hauntingly beautiful.” — Kevin Klingberg
“Wanted to thank you for the CDs: You sound terriffic … I loved your singing and playing (its not fair that one person should be that talented!!!). Your words and melodies are very intertwined, complementing each other and giving a soothing, mystical effect … also liked the violin in the background … and the way you did the album cover … very creative and artistic. I was basically blown away by the whole CD …” — Kean Ganan
“After listening to your CD for another week, I like it even more! You are constantly echoing in my head.” — Tom Bellissimo
"A crystal clear production, excellent guitar playing and a haunting violin adding extra flavors. Songs like Let It Go, My Love In blue and Caught Up In The Show deserve to be heard by many. CD-rack position: between Nick Drake and J.J. Cale." — Mikael Ledin
“I really like the ambiance and tone of the whole project. I can't say as I've heard anything quite like it, which I view as a good thing. … Wake of the Moon possesses all the best qualities of "homemade" musical projects (intimacy and loving performances rendered among friends) and none of the worst (sloppiness and obvious technical handicaps). I hope you are proud and satisfied. You should be.” — Marcus Bovre
“Your CD is outstanding! Wake of the Moon has quickly become one of my favorite 'chill out' CDs … the orchestration is brilliant. If you really listen closely there is a lot of stuff going on in each of the songs but it is never done in a manner that sounds busy. One song that I think highlights this amazingly well would be ‘Incandescent’: I love that keyboard ripple effect (or whatever it is) with the electric sliding guitar sound and then the piano comes in at just the right moments and then you have what sounds like a violin in there right at the end! Each part adding perfectly to the mood of that song … I think my favorite tune right now is ‘Glide’ … I can't get over the electric guitar on that song. It's playing in my head constantly!"
“The sound on your CD is wonderful as well. Everything is done so professionally. Is this your first CD? Anything I fail to mention in this e-mail is only a result of there being so many good things on the CD that I can't possibly mention them all in the space of one e-mail."
“The perfect way to experience Wake of the Moon (in my opinion): Kicking back on a warm summer evening on the front porch with some candles and a couple of real good beers. I intend on doing that!” — Doug Malorny
For additional inquiries or correspondance, email Tom Hanson.
A note about the (lo-fi) recording of Wake of the Moon:
Initial tracks were recorded on a 4-track cassette "portastudio" using one Shure Beta SM57 microphone and subsequently transferred to a minidisc-based 8-track portastudio in order to add additional parts/instruments. The CD was mixed to an inexpensive stereo minidisc recorder using a couple of cheapo multi-effects units and no compression or other processing. All in all, a pretty lo-fi affair.Studio:
I have a home studio with significantly upgraded equipment and have been producing projects for a variety acoustic-based artists. If you or anyone you know would be interested in working with me, please email me.