By Keith Walsh
In England of the 1990s, future rocker Tom Cridland’s mother was given a warning by his grade school teachers. As Cridland told me: “My mum apparently did get told when I was very young, ‘Tom doesn’t need to imagine anything else, there’s no need to encourage his creative side – he’s already imaginative enough.’”

Now more than ever, Cridland is putting his creative abilities to good use. His band The Tomicks have just released their brilliant third album, “Corporate Psychopath,” a powerful work that’s cinematic and intimate at turns, revealing the increasing musical skills of the songwriting team of Cridland and keyboardist  Nick Whitehead. Recorded at Pink Satellite Studios in Joshua Tree, California, “Corporate Psychopath” is a mature, solidly constructed work consisting of a mix of rockers, pop songs and ballads.

When Cridland told me what the album would be called, I intuited that the titular villain might be something out of Hollywood, an idea seemingly confirmed by the fabulous cover art by Miki. But rather than a Bret Easton Ellis style slasher story, the narrative of “Corporate Psychopath” depicts a character trapped in a double life, squandering his days between the 9 to 5 daily grind and a wretched excess of promiscuity and alcohol and drug abuse. I read this as as a cautionary tale about the hazards of not following one’s bliss.  To cite the end of the song, “Boardroom beckons, decades pass like a day/I’ll control what you do and say/I’m the man, making money, not a bum/Not a loser wasting life playing drums.”

Self Taught But Determined
Cridland is a self-taught drummer who took up the instrument after becoming friends with Elton John’s drummer Nigel Olsson (to whom he sold pants created by his fashion brand).  Since that time, Cridland has passionately thrown himself into his musical career,  founding The Tomicks in 2017 with Nick Whitehead (a Warners Music label exec whom he met backstage at an Elton John concert) and his girlfriend Debs Marx.  As a solo artist, Cridland has released more than 30 singles since announcing his solo career in early 2019 with many more on the way. So when he throws out words comparing a bum to “a loser playing drums,” it’s with great irony.

Cridland explains: “It’s partly in reference (to me). You know, ‘cause I’m wasting my chances, my glittering corporate career, by playing drums in empty bars.” Not exactly true. “Corporate Psychopath” was written by Cridland and Whitehead in 2018 when The Tomicks were playing gigs all over England, and while the band hasn’t hit the Billboard Hot 100 yet, by all accounts the venues were filled with enthusiastic fans. And the proof is in the pudding, as they say —  the band’s three discs are filled with masterful tunes that will stand the test of time.

Not to mention Cridland’s solo career, which finds him stepping out from behind the drums to lead a top notch band of Dinho Barral on bass, Paulo Romero on drums, Jim Baldock on keyboards, and Robbie Blake on guitar. It was this line up that in the last few months of 2019 hit all of the 48 contiguous United States with shows and TV appearances. Later this year (COVID-19 notwithstanding) Cridland will serve as the opening act of classic American soul group, The Stylistics, on the their UK Tour.

‘Organic Instruments’
Far from wasting his life, Cridland is living a life that many aspiring musicians dream of. But that doesn’t mean that it’s without its frustrations. Cridland has shared with me the challenges of getting new music heard in the age of Spotify and YouTube. It’s particularly difficult for artists working on their own without the support of a label or manager. But these things don’t stop Cridland from  working hard to realize an ideal sound, a sound informed by his love for classic rock.

“Corporate Psychopath” is heavily influenced by Cridland and Whitehead’s favorites. As Cridland told me about Whitehead, who through the course of the album set the studio’s keyboards on fire: “I mean he likes playing organic instruments, and I like organic instruments. And I’m coming towards that more, you know. I’m sort off at the point where I can’t be doing too much with modern music production. I’ve been listening to Neil Young, The Beatles, Oasis – that’s what I  like.”

Adhering to this classic vein, “Corporate Psychopath” is the strongest Tomicks records yet, with songs skillfully written and performed. In addition to ballads inspired by loved ones there’s praise to a cold beer, and a tribute to one of Cridland’s all-time favorites. The tune “Elton John” honors the life and symbol of the great piano-playing singer/songwriter in a most inspiring way.

To wit: “If you’re different and don’t fit in/uncomfortable in your own skin/If you’re downbeat and don’t belong/Here’s a tale to inspire you to carry on/Reginald Kenneth Dwight/Went on to become Elton John.”

Cridland expounded on the inspiring aspects of the great British legend. “He just does his own thing, doesn’t he? He dresses how he wants, he’s just a phenomenal player. I love his work ethic, he gigs so much, he’s so inspiring. He once put it like this: ‘the beauty of rock and roll is that someone like me can be a star.’ And you know, it doesn’t matter what he naturally looks like, Elton looks like a rock god. And he dresses amazing, he looks amazing. Here he is covered in rhinestones, fabulous glasses. Really I think he’s the best live performer in the world, he’s legend.”

Unstoppable Creativity
I asked Cridland about the sentimental songs on his albums that pay tribute to his family members (“Loving You Debbie,” “James My Brother” and a song about his parents on “Jailbound Fool”). “I love Debs and my family very much,” he told me, “I tend to write about personal experiences. So it is natural to write about them. A producer once told me it wasn’t very sexy to write songs about my parents. “ With natural Cridlandian wit, I was told  “It was rather rich of this guy considering he was about as sexy as a blocked toilet.”

“Corporate Psychopath “ is nearly perfect. The album uses a strict palette of guitar, keyboards, bass and drums. I feel that if The Tomicks were to take a vacation in India, meet with a guru, get psychedelic and explore expanded consciousness, the results would be something revolutionary (and potentially Grammy winning). If these things aren’t immediately possible, the act of recording a few eye catching videos should suffice in the meantime.

Cridland’s creativity is seemingly unstoppable. In response to his teachers’ admonitions to his mom that he was too creative, he told me “she encouraged me to read widely, which I then gave up as a terrible teenager, and have now picked up again with pleasure.” Cridland says he’s now reading “Shoe Dog,” by Nike founder Phil Knight and just finished Ozzy Osbourne’s autobiography.

But music is where his heart truly is. Cridland tells me he’s “about to start solo gigging soon, this year. I’m about to go into an intense period of rehearsals now.” He says he plans to gig as a solo artist, with vocals and piano in preparation for his UK tour with The Stylistics. .

“Corporate Psychopath” features Tom Cridland on vocals and drums, Nick Whitehead on keyboard (Yamaha Grand Piano, Nord, Hammond Organ, and Hohner Clavinet) Debs Marx on background vocals, Federico Orlandini on bass, Brandon Brown on guitars, Kenji Suzuki on additional guitars, and Conor Mangan (slide guitar on “Loving You Debbie”) . Mixing was by Justin Woodward. The music was recorded at Pink Satellite Studios in Joshua Tree, California with vocals recorded at Love Electric In London, England.

I asked Cridland how he decided on this remote location in the desert of Joshua Tree, California to record “Corporate Psychopath.” “We wanted to go back to California, and I didn’t want to go back to The Village (the site of the recording of The Tomicks first album) or go into Hollywood  because it was more expensive, and I fancied a change. And we found this awesome location, it’s closed now, called the Pink Satellite.”

Tom Cridland Music
The Tomicks On Spotify

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