Music
Press
...That self-recorded effort is what is now Mimespeak. And while “mimespeak” not only sounds like a cool title, it actually has some meaning and historical reference for Hernandez: “I used to be a mime when I was in theater; I was in plays throughout my later childhood. I look at myself back then as a mime, without a voice, unable to spout off his opinion, and the record is sort of like a journey… from somebody who doesn’t say anything on his mind to somebody who just blabs out everything he wants to.”
After listening to the album several times, it’s clear we’re lucky he’s recorded this “journey.” Mimespeak, although heavily piano focused, pulls from a variety of influences creating a work that is at times playful, toying with different genres and time periods, while at other times exploring dark feelings about life and dysfunction....
--Erin Rice
Wednesday, June 20, 2007 - Pegasus News
"Produced by Denton supastar Robert Gomez, Mimespeak is symphonic pop at its finest, with Mr. Hernandez singing and playing piano on rich songs that sound as though they should be part of some dark cabaret act."
--Hunter Hauk, Dallas Morning News
"Tommy creates music from a visionary standpoint. He thinks conceptually and colorfully, and could easily go on to create entire productions from such an approach."
--Ayo, KDGE 102.1 FM - Dallas Media
Soul-searching seems to always inspire singer/songwriters, and Hernandez obviously did plenty of introspection while writing these songs. While the album's piano-heavy music is dreamy and sufficiently stripped, it's lyrically and thematically where Hernandez shines--his thoughtful (and sometimes angry) words speak the the lovelorn, yet often still shimmer with hope. For example, on "Some Love" he sings, "This is the story of an optimistic boy/Cut to pieces by his comrade's hand/Then deep inside, he found some scissors of his own/Watch out/This boy has grown." On the melodic "Secret Song" he sings, "Music tree shook a leaf onto my face/I was down on the ground holding your hand/Your shining eyes--with a voice louder than your whisper--they sing a song/And along I hum."
The upbeat piano on "Take/Give," along with the pounding beat of "Death In Dallas" and his emotionally honest lyrics prove that Hernandez is a contender in the indie-pop realm. While the strings on the overly dramatic "Math" seem a tad self-indulgent, overall Hernandez does a great job of making unique and innovative songs.
--David A. Cobb
Envy Magazine
July 2007 Issue - Envy Magazine
It's striking to listen to Denton artist Tommy Hernandez's debut Mimespeak in the sweltering summer, mostly because it would be best appreciated on an overcast fall afternoon. A thoroughly accomplished debut, produced by fellow Dentonite and rising star Robert Gomez, Mimespeak is stately indie pop with baroque flourishes that wouldn't be out of place on a Decemberists or Sufjan Stevens album. It's a disc powered by Hernandez's reedy tenor, an instrument folding itself neatly into the dark corners of these imaginative compositions. Hernandez and his exceptional band of musical cohorts flit from jazz to pop to rock to folk. Adventurous and unconventional, shades of George Winston show up in more than a few songs -- particularly the breathtaking The Etude -- lending a fractured, classical air to these occasionally mournful ruminations. - Preston Jones
Discography
Do It Yourself [Self-release, 2005]
Mimespeak [Facepaint Records, distributed regionally and digitally by Crystal Clear Distribution, 2007]
Photos
Bio
Tommy was born to a piano teacher mother. He mimed and recited Shakespeare in community theater.
He studied much too hard in school.
He bottled, brooded, wrote and drew.
Then one day he lost his mind.
He walked out of his job
Left his studies behind.
He only plays music now,
Melodic, honest, and brazen.
He lives for the piano
Thus he'll die a vagrant.
- - -
ADDENDUM:
Tommy met Krista at his work. He met Beau at his other work (the one he walked out of). Krista is a classically/soul-trained singer whose transcendent voice will kick any other singers ass. Beau Turkey is a seasoned heavy-metal drummer from Oklahoma, who's seen the world and turned it upside down, but is now pretty old and tired so he's settling down with Tommy.
The end.
RECENT PRESS:
"Produced by Denton supastar Robert Gomez, Mimespeak is symphonic pop at its finest, with Mr. Hernandez singing and playing piano on rich songs that sound as though they should be part of some dark cabaret act."
--Hunter Hauk, Dallas Morning News
"Tommy creates music from a visionary standpoint. He thinks conceptually and colorfully, and could easily go on to create entire productions from such an approach."
--Ayo, KDGE 102.1 FM
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