About
Tom Spell
One Man Band from Düsseldorf, Germany playing Alternative- / Gothic- / Symphonic- Metal & Rock
One-man-band means I write, perform, record and mix my music alone. I sing, play guitar and bass and use samples and synthesizers for everything else.
Melancholy meets Power
The basic principle of my music is what I call Melancholy meets Power.
By this principle I make music which has sad, melancholic moments but doesn‘t stay there. Instead it‘s also full of elements of energy and power – like hammering drums and guitar riffs, majestic horns or dynamic vocals. This kind of music tells me to acknowledge the sad and tragic aspects of life but also to carry on and fight to regain balance.
When I realize what moves me, I realize who I am
Life is full of moving moments. They reveal to me my inner attitude towards the world and towards myself. When I realize what moves me, I realize who I am.
I want to make music that moves – because it is inspired by moments that moved me.
That’s why I’m always looking for the one inspiring moment… no matter whether it’s beautiful or sad, whether it’s an experience, insight, natural spectacle, film, book or game…
…when I walk through the forest, when I stand on the banks of the river Rhine, when I have to realize that every friendship can break, when black humor is the last resort, when the moon shines in the night sky, when electric guitars meet warm strings, when I can forgive myself, when I see snow-capped mountains, when a flashback shows me that the villain used to be a good person, when I look at the sea, when I realize that imperfection means individuality… what such moments trigger in me is what my songs are about.
My songs are melancholic hymns between fantasy and reality
I sing about thoughts and feelings, strength and weakness, dreams and longing, night and nature, desire and loss.
I am fascinated by the eternal cycle of creation and decay.
To express this musically, I combine elements of metal, rock, orchestra and synthesizer to create a powerful mix of alternative, gothic and symphonic metal & rock.
Alternative- / Gothic- / Symphonic- Metal & Rock
I’ve been listening to rock since I was five years old. I’ve been listening to metal since I was nine years old. This music has always triggered a feeling of incomprehensible power, an immense drive in me. Metal became the soundtrack of my life.
After some guitar lessons, I soon wrote my own songs and realized early on that I can best implement my musical ideas alone and independently of others. The use of synthesizers and samples made this possible because I was able to record and program elements such as orchestral instruments or drums myself on the MIDI keyboard.
From the beginning, my songs have been about what moves me in life and what I can’t express with words alone.
My enthusiasm for metal reached its peak when I discovered more progressive forms of the genre, especially the combination of the brutal heaviness of drums, guitar and bass with the melodic and majestic elements of an orchestra or the deep, atmospheric sounds of a synthesizer. This combination creates an incomparable intensity and versatility. Suddenly all aspects of life rage in one song. Opposing things such as anger and love, sadness and energy, longing and fulfillment are musically united. From then on, this sound shaped my entire musical work. (If you want to know more about why I do progressive rock and love music with orchestral elements, look here– article only in German at the moment).
I was also inspired by other genres, such as electro, classical and pop. I tried ambient, techno tracks or ballads. My search has always been for complex sounds that combine melancholy and driving force.
In 1999, at the age of 18, I produced my first CD Nightshade Dreams in a small edition under the name Obsidian Moon. The individual songs were very experimental and almost all differed in style. The music consisted only of vocals and synthesizers. The album was reviewed in the magazines Sonic Seducer, Zillo and Heavy oder was? (see here).
Later my symphonic metal project Ancient Earth emerged and shortly afterwards the German rock project Abendrot. These three projects now come together under the name Tom Spell.
My musical work almost came to a standstill due to my studies and work. For many years my resources were tied up there. Slowly but surely I had to reclaim my work-art balance. I changed my job and began to focus more on topics such as project planning, goal setting and time management. I found more balance through sport and meditation. I built my home studio and taught myself the knowledge I needed about recording and mixing through self-study.
In addition to music production, setting up the machinery for publication also took many months. This particularly included the founding of my label Tom Spell Music, the creation of an internet presence and the shooting of the first music video about Mensch und Endlichkeit.
It’s been a long road but now I can finally produce the sound that’s been burning in my heart for all this time. I hope my music brings you a lot of joy and inspiration.
Tom Spell
Spring 2023
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