Releasing his debut album "On Fire" on Apple Music, iTunes, Spotify, and on all major retail and streaming sites around the world this past Saturday, January 14, 2017, Tom The Suit Forst celebrated his release the way any serious musician would-on stage jamming with special guests for an eager, packed audience of friends, family and die-hard fans.
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| Tom The Suit Forst |
"On Fire" is the first solo release from the blues-rock artist who has been compared to Joe Walsh for his incendiary rock guitar and singing style. On the blues side of his music, the guitarist has also been compared to BB King and Eric Clapton for his slow-hand, melodic approach. That mix of styles was captured faithfully by producer-guitarist Paul Nelson, who is no stranger to the blues-rock music world, having toured with and managed Johnny Winter for many years. For the recording of "On Fire" Nelson tapped musicians with hundreds of years of playing time between them, musicians from bands like Allman Brothers, Johnny Winter Band, Paul Nelson Band, Popa Chubby Band, Saturday Night Live Band, and Steven Colbert Band. After tracking at Nelson's home studio, the record was mixed and mastered at Factory Underground Studio in Norwalk, CT, with the exception of "Women of the World," which was mastered by famed mastering engineer Emily Lazar.
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| Tom The Suit Forst with Slam Allen |
The standing-room only release party was held at Black Eyed Sally's Southern Kitchen and Bar in Hartford, CT close to where the guitarist has spent the better part of 20 years living with his wife and family in Wethersfield, CT. "I wanted to be close to the people who have been supporting me over the last eight years, the ones who made this all possible for me," Forst said, referencing the shift between his last job outside of music (Corporate Executive, VP at Cox Communications Group) and his present status as a full-time recording artist.
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| Tom The Suit Forst with Doug Wahlberg |
The show featured several beloved and prominent CT blues musicians who turned up to support the man they call "The Suit," including Slam Allen, who wowed the audience with a powerhouse vocal sans microphone strolling through the crowd while the band played on stage, guitarist Paul Gabriel, and guitarist Doug Wahlberg. Forst's band included Pedro "Big Thurrsty" Broughton on drums, David Allen Rivera on percussion, and David Stoltz on drums.
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| Tom The Suit Forst with |
Next for Tom The Suit Forst will be releasing a promotional video for his song "Women of the World, which he explains was a song where he wrote the music around a lyric from his friend Gary Youell, another CT songwriter who passed away this year. "The lyric was very personal to him- it asked the question of how much better of the world would be if women had a chance to full run things for a change. I love the song that came out of it, and its place on the album is a tribute to my dear friend. I'm very proud of it," said Forst.
The video for the song produced by Marc Alan at Factory Underground with editing by Nick Swenson features photos and video clips of multi-cultural women of various ages and walks of life from around the world, as well photos and videos clips of famous female pioneers. The release of the video has been set for January 21, 2017 to commemorate the Women's March on Washington DC. "For me it's a bipartisan issue, not a political event; I have always been a supporter of women's rights and it was very important to Gary Youell as well. I think he would be proud of the song and the video being released on this important day, " he said.
"I have always been a supporter of women's rights and it was very important to Gary Youell as well"
