When approaching Thomas Bernard Howard, one must be ready to enter his quirky, ethereal and highly unique artistic universe. Built over theatrical and cinematic tones, Howard’s evocative vocals can be heard in all their deep, dark character, creating a dreamy, angelic and bucolic sonic panorama that instantly hypnotized the listeners.
‘Flame’ is the strongest evidence of that, a delicate and soothing piece that thrives on minimalistic soundscapes and spacious, reverbed vocals. Together with previous single ‘Rose’, the record anticipates a larger release expected later this year.
Intrigued by the project, we caught up with Bernard Howard to find out more about his artistry and future goals… Interview below!
Hey Thomas, how is it going? some of our readers might not be familiar with your project, how would you describe yourself, in a few words?
Hi there Gab! Happy to have a chat with you. I’m an artist in the dream pop/alternative/indie rock genres. I write, compose and produce my own stuff.
Your current work is the result of a long journey; What first drew you to making music?
I studied piano when I was a bit younger. Then I got into singing. Always been a writer. More recently, I picked up the guitar, production and decided to properly release my work.
If you had the opportunity to pick any artists in the world for a collaboration, who would be your first choice? (and second choice, perhaps?)
I’m not so sure I would want to collab with anyone. I almost have too much respect for the artists who inspired me to want to collab with them, if that makes sense. I admire artists like Jonathan Morali (Syd Matters), Sufjan Stevens and Cigarettes After Sex.
You recently released an evocative single, ‘Flame’, anticipating an upcoming album. We appreciate the minimalism and the ethereal quality the record seems to so proudly champion. It’s also perhaps a tad experimental. What were your references regarding its sonic aspect?
On a general level, I’ve always enjoyed the idea of soft vocals juxtaposed to heavy themes. Think “You Are my Sunshine”, “Mystery of Love”, “Obstacles” (SYD Matters), “Sunsetz”, etc. I think it’s a beautiful way to tell a story. However – Flame is, in many ways, a wild departure from what you’d expect in songs like that. There is a very distinct double-entendre that makes “Flame” standalone.
Lyrically, what does ‘Flame’ stand for?
All of my work is written with layers. I wouldn’t want to spoil the fun… All I will say is, as I sing “sunshine and rainbows, don’t they go together” endearingly, it can be interpreted in a few different ways. There might also be a musical easter egg or two in the song to look out for. Fun!
Do you feel more confident writing music alone, or within a team?
I like being a one-man show, but in some respects, it won’t work. Some day, I will need more resources, like for the music videos I’ve written. Like I said earlier, I’m doing it all – the music (writing, composing, performing, producing), the marketing campaign (all the imagery and literature you may see attached to the release campaign; it takes more time than one might think), this includes music videos. I consider music videos, although grandiose, to be just another stage in telling each of these stories, and will have no choice but to bring other people in when that happens.
The music video for Flame, for example, would be historic. Not to toot my own horn, but it’s a wicked and never-done-before idea. Everything I work on in these campaigns is copyrighted, from the music to the images, but I still can’t discuss certain ideas before I have the proper representation as well as the means to act on them. After all, we don’t want to get ripped off by a larger artist who, maybe, might make it look tacky. 🙂 I wrote a song about that too, actually…but we’re not there yet.
Artistically speaking, what challenges have the last two years presented you with?
In the last two years, I was ultimately figuring this out. I’m thankful to be here now.
What are the next steps for your project? Anything exciting on the horizon?
My third song on the album will be released next month. Like Flame thematically followed Rose, my debut single, the third will thematically follow Flame.
