Music
Press
“....it reminds me a lot of Phish or the Grateful Dead. You’ve got this real blues driven kind of southern rock, with a lot of jamming going on and Tom’s guitar work is phenomenal.” - Richie Le Rishi - Artist First Radio Network
- Richie Le Rishi
"From the opener "Don't Ease" to the encore "Peaches" the Tom Marcellis Band had the packed house at the 312 Performance Hall on its feet the entire night......with their no-holds-barred brand of roots rock and roll these guys really know how to energize a crowd......This is one of the best bands performing today!" - News Free-Press
By: Aubrey Rocheleau
Tom Marcellis began his musical journey in his teens. He attended bluegrass festivals throughout the south, went to the Mountain Opry on Lookout Mountain, and jammed with many other musicians around his hometown of Chattanooga. In addition to playing solo and jamming with other musicians, Tom also played in local bands. The bands played a mix of blues, country and rock. It was no surprise that he chose to study music when he went to college. He became interested in jazz, performing at area jazz clubs and playing in jazz-fusion bands. In addition to playing in bands based on original songs and improvisation, Tom also began writing his own original songs.
After he had written some songs and gotten some live experience under his belt, Tom began touring. He and his band played playing venues, clubs, theaters, colleges, and festivals throughout the southeastern United States. Tom and his band had great experiences opening for acts like Allgood Music Company, Widespread Panic, Col Bruce Hampton, Blues Traveler, Indecision, The Black Crows, Bo Didley, Buckweat Zydeco, The Kudzu Kings, The Charlie Daniels Band, Blood Sweat and Tears, Sam Carr and Frank Frost. Tom grew as a vocalist and as a guitarist through his experience of performing live. The core of Tom’s band includes himself on guitar, banjo and vocals; Carveth Clauson on drums; and Dominic Theil on bass. Additional musicians include Kat Epple on flute, Laurence Getford on keyboards, and Ryan Clark on mandolin. Fans can see Tom performing with his electric band, an acoustic ensemble, solo or as a duo depending on the venue and the “vibe” of the show. In addition to Tom’s original songs, sets could include songs by Willie Nelson, Little Feat, Wet Willie, Traffic, Grateful Dead, Robert Johnson, Blind Willie Mctel, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Maceo Parker, Bob Marley, Gabor Szabo, Santana, Flat and Scruggs, B. B. King, Howlin Wolf, Allman Brothers, The Meters, Vince Geraldi, Bob Lucas, Stevie Ray Vaughn, The Band, and Hoyt Axton to name a few. The band also includes many traditional blues and bluegrass songs in their set.
Tom released his debut self-titled CD in 2006. In his press kit, he writes, "My intention was to document the band's live vibe for that period. The tricky part is allowing the project to tell you when it's done." “Dog Song” pays homage to the band’s down-home, Southern roots with its up-tempo tune. While still staying up-tempo, “Roll” chugs along at mellower pace and features electric guitar. “New Day” also includes some tasty guitar licks combined with a memorable use of piano chords. These three songs demonstrate the variety of Tom and his band’s music. Tom and the band expect to release their second CD in the latter half of 2007. They are also planning a tour to promote the release. - Supporting Indie Music Worldwide
Known for their dynamic and energizing live performances, the Tom Marcellis Band is one of the best up and coming acts in the country. They are currently in the studio recording the follow up to their very successful debut album. Tom Marcellis has been a professional touring musician and recording artist for over 15 years, “I have worked with many tremendous musicians over the years. The current lineup has been together for about three and half years now”.
As Tom says, three years ago, what started as jam sessions in his teaching studio has become one of the most eclectic and vital musical collaborations on tour. Celebrated for their soaring improvisational and experimental compositions, the ensemble that makes up the TMB sound is among the tightest around.
With compositions ranging from dark southern ballads, to Brazilian jazz to psychedelic funk and r&b, Tom Marcellis is an internationally acclaimed musician, singer and songwriter. “Our style it’s pretty eclectic. Magazines and radio journalists have reviewed us as a jam band, southern rock, world jazz music, americana etc… They compare us to the Grateful Dead, Phish, Widespread Panic and others like that. To me it’s Rock and Roll. Leo from the TLP Show described us as ‘…music that is so Kick Ass, that words cannot explain it’”.
Charting new territory on their musical explorations, the TMB are being compared by critics to such tremendous bands as “The Grateful Dead”, “The Allman Brothers Band”, “Little Feat” and many others. Like their studio debut, the new album highlights a number of new songs written both on the road and in the studio as well as a few classic previously unrecorded audience favorites. The new album (yet to be named) is expected to hit the shelves in the fourth quarter of 2007. The Tom Marcellis Band will be performing a series of club, theater and festival dates in support of their up coming release including stops in the South, Northeast, Midwest and West Coast. “When I have time, I like to produce and promote benefit concerts. Several years ago I created an event for the Red Cross. Carveth, the drummer, walked into my studio one day andintroduced himslef. Dom, the bass player, called me out of the blue and said he would love to participate in the benefit the following week. That was our first show. The chemistry was so intense we decided to pursue the sound. We have worked together live since and are releasing an album later this year”. Together, they tour all around America, “mostly the southeast right now”. The last couple of tours kicked off in Atlanta. The highlight of their last tour, at least for Tom, was a couple of shows in Kansas where they opened for Melvin Seals and the Jerry Garcia Band. “What an amazing group of musicians. Do not miss that show”.
So how did TMB ended up opening for Melvin Seals and The Jerry Garcia Band? How TMB promotes themselves? “We play live. The internet is a great tool for promoting. One of our most valuable assets is our publicist. We can record and perform all we want. The promoters get people to the shows. The publicist, however, makes sure everyone knows what is coming up and what we have done recently that is of interest. This is ultimately what drives cd and ticket sales”. They sell online through iTunes, CD Baby, Amazon, and dozens of other outlets. They have many wonderful independent record stores that sell their stuff because they stopped in and did an in-store performance and signed autographs the day of the live performance. “We sell tons of merchandise during live performances as well”.
With an ever growing loyal and dedicated fan base there is no doubt that this band is rising fast to success.
tmb-photo-bw.jpgThanks Tom, and to the Tom Marcellis Band!!!
Check out TMB MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/tommarcellisband
Total Eclipse Entertainment (www.totaleclipseentertainment.com) is currently handling TMB. “We submitted material. They believed in the music and signed us. I trust them with my life. They always, and I mean one hundred percent of the time, have my back”. And about the gigs, “Total Eclipse handles all our booking as well. Talent buyers contact them and they arrange our tours”. For more info please visit http://www.myspace.com/teeinc
Is there any place you’d really love to play?
Tom: Space! - ILMIBM - ilovemusicibuymusic.org
Song of The Year selected Tom Marcellis as one of the world's best in 2006 and 2007! - VH1
"Unique and distinctive vocals set against upbeat and fun musical arrangements." - Indie Productions
"Occasionally we receive music that is so Kick Ass, that words cannot explain it. This bluesy track (This Old World) is one of those songs." - Insomnia Radio TLP Show
http://tlpshow.insomniaradio.net/ - The TLP Show
".....he’s a pure Tennessee boy....he has a myriad of musical influences in his work. I hear some live Allman Brothers, Grateful Dead and Little Feat. The musicians behind Tom are very good . . . he plays a great show at festivals. If you like that jam-band sound, check him out at www.tommarcellis.com." - Southern Fried Magazine
Discography
Tom Marcellis Band "Memphis Original" (in progress) - 2010
Tom Marcellis Band - Self Titled - 2007
Valerie Elam Deja Vu - Guest appearance- 2006
Guava Jelly (3 projects) - not currently in print - 1991-1996
Over the years there have also been dozens of live cd's mastered and offered for limited times. There are several shows being prepared for 2010 release dates.
Photos
Bio
"...music that is so Kick Ass, that words cannot explain it." - Leo TLP Show
Like the lava that dwells beneath the Halema'uma'u Crater Overlook, the Tom Marcellis Band is fiery and authentic. This uniquely accessible improvisational music engages audiences with a narrative style of rock steeped in the eclectic musical heritage of the south.
At the core of Tom’s song writing beats the heart of traditional blues, jazz, bluegrass and other American music adeptly integrated with global cultural styles. Says Tom, “Sometimes the subject matter dictates the arrangement while other compositions exist long before the lyrics arrive. Dog Song developed from a story my uncle told. He used to raise beagles. The music just played in my head like a score while he spoke.”
As a teenager Tom frequented the bluegrass festivals around the south, the Mountain Opry on Lookout Mountain, and many other jam sessions around Chattanooga. He also worked in local bands playing mostly blues, country and rock. While studying music in college, Tom performed at area jazz clubs, and played in jazz fusion bands. His unique voice as an instrumentalist began to gel. As a young adult he started writing songs while playing in original improv based bands. Soon after that Marcellis began to tour, mostly in the southeast, playing venues, clubs, theaters, colleges. festivals and opening for acts like Allgood Music Company, Widespread Panic, Col Bruce Hampton, Blues Traveler, Indecision, The Black Crows, Bo Didley, Buckweat Zydeco, The Kudzu Kings, The Charlie Daniels Band, Blood Sweat and Tears, Sam Carr and Frank Frost etc... These experiences kiln fired his skills as a guitarist, and performer.
With the release of his latest self titled CD, unforgettable hooks like “Roll”, “Peaches” and “Hole In My Head” made it to the studio. While “You Call Me a Fool” laments the woes of tormented love with a juicy funk/R&B groove that transforms into hard driving rock and ventures completely outside, the unmitigated optimism of “New Day” is fueled by a spacious Brazilian jazz theme. “Stairway to Mars”, an account of alien abduction, begins as a chilling specter of the Mississippi Delta igniting into a thick southern jam. Full of vibrant tone and rich poly rhythmic texture, these are visceral spontaneous recordings of a band determined to capture it’s sound. Tom recalls “My intention was to document the band’s live vibe for that period. The tricky part is allowing the project to tell you when it’s done.”
Combining form and formless the Tom Marcellis Band invites the audience in and leaves them breathless with ear-to-ear smiles all around. With the outstanding rhythm section of Drummer Garrett Foster and bass player David Bynoe they create grooves so deep, smooth and fun to ride you will never want to stop.
Experimentation within arrangements as well as with composition itself connects the audience and performers to the music in a fundamentally organic way. His powerful and gentle style is instantly recognizable. Through touring combined with the release of his latest CD the music is attracting loyal fans everywhere. In 2009 the band is headed into the studio again and there is another tour in the works. These shows are a spiritually uplifting experience that should not be missed.
Links
