TOM HARRISON

REVIEW: OLD GROWTH

Words: Keeley Thompson

A hush has fallen over the cottage garden. No longer does the midday sun beat down relentlessly, but instead casts a warm, oblique glow through the dusty panes of the casement windows. The once vibrant greens of summer have begun their slow transformation. Hints of gold and crimson peek through the leaves of the rose bushes, while the rambling jasmine softens its perfume. 

The air itself carries a new crispness, a gentle reminder that summer's warmth is fading. A melancholic beauty hangs in the air, tinged with the promise of cozy evenings. The change is bittersweet, a turning of the page in nature's grand narrative. Yet, as the days grow shorter and the air crisper, there's a sense of anticipation for the hearth's warmth and simple pleasures. 

In his debut EP Old Growth, Tom Harrison documents the process of growing older and growing up. Written while on a road trip through North America, Harrison tells of the process of surrender and acceptance when letting go of old patterns, stories and habits. 

The opening track, Miles Away provides an instrumentally whimsical and innocent beginning to the EP. Yet despite the sonic playfulness, the track carries an underlying dissonance; like the start of a long road trip, full of excitement and hope whilst also holding melancholy for what’s being left behind. 

The second track, Start Again opens right where the first finishes; city lights, once a constant companion, become a distant smudge and unfiltered stars glimmer in the vastness above. It’s the first night away from home, and there’s joy, but there’s also pain - a goodbye to the familiar and the easy routines, even if they weren't happy ones anymore. 

Consistently maintaining its delicacy despite the weight of its subject matter, Old Growth covers themes of lost identities, rediscovering oneself and making peace with the unknown. Mixed with intention but left raw enough that it’s as though the road trip is still in progress, Old Growth is a musical portfolio as much as it is a journey through new spaces and new selves. 

The EP closes with its most energetic and instrumentally distinct track, Ontario. The opening riff is carried throughout the track, balancing scarcity with fullness and providing a solid foundation for the song's transformation at two minutes and fifty five seconds.  Here, the song momentarily morphs from folk to a fully blown western shootout soundtrack. 

It’s easy to understand  both the physical and mental locations that Tom Harrison visited during the creation of his debut, Old Growth. An homage to closing chapters of your life and rewriting new ones, Old Growth is a poignant and hopeful appeal to the souls in search for meaning and “more”. 

5TH JULY | BANSHEES BAR | TOM HARRISON. SERENA STRANGER & JB PATERSON

TICKETS HERE

INSTAGRAM | FACEBOOK | WEBSITE