What Larks!

Monday, 28 August 2023, 7:43 am
Article: Howard Davis

Singer-songwriter and APRA Silver Scroll nominee Tom Lark has released a wonderful debut album, ‘Brave Star,’ full of catchy melodic hooks and nifty guitar licks. Shaped in equal parts by the confronting vulnerability of John Lennon and the troubled braggadocio of spaghetti westerns, the songs on ‘Brave Star’ are dreamy, well-penned observations with a decidedly philosophical bent. The title track, for instance, explores the fleeting and evanescent nature of showbiz fame, as aspiring artists come and go desperately awaiting their brief turn in the spotlight only to fade into insignificance.

Tom Lark is the original musical project of Shannon Fowler, who has also released material under the Shannon Matthew Vanya pseudonym. Where SMV allowed for pop indulgence, Tom Lark is more an outlet for the artist’s indie sensibilities. Having released two eponymous EPs in 2011 and 2015, Fowler set the project aside for a period, and has now returned to his first love, making sunburnt psychedelic folk music peculiarly suited to sensitive cowpokes gathered around the campfire.

Lark likes to mine a deep vein of mellow rock and softly loping beats, tinged with Americana influences that stretch from Pavement and Big Star as far back as The Travelling Wilburys, with hints of teenage angst reminiscent of T Rex. If Kurt Vile procreated with Tame Impala the offspring would undoubtedly bear an uncanny resemblance to Lark’s recent incarnation.

He is a trippy wizard of surprising pedal effects infused with the potent glow of some high-grade cannabis oil that results in an infectious confection of ‘pure pop for now people,’ to steal Nick Lowe’s delightful album title. Slight glam rock affects, a smooth tonal fluidity, and abrupt song endings accompany such deceptively simple, plangent, and touching lyrics such as “I’m feeling out of place. I want to be alone.”

While his wistfully evocative and softly whispered wordplay is in constant danger of being buried in the mix, Lark’s largely plectrum-driven riffs and subtle strumming patterns, produced on a hollow, boxy Danelectro Pro, have earned him a dedicated following that includes The Phoenix Foundation’s Sam Scott and Luke Buda, both of whom clearly enjoyed his recent gig in the intimate acoustic environment of Moon in Newton.

An immensely likeable performer whose delightful smile evokes the sly humour of Neil from 'The Young Ones,' Lark was more than ably supported by Alex Freer on drums and James McDonald on bass. The trio smoothly evoked not only happy trails on the high desert plains, but also sun-drenched days at beachfront cafes, only occasionally reverting to hints of Lark’s previous aspirations as a grunge rock guitar god.

After a seven-year hiatus producing other people’s songs, his has been an entirely natural and organic evolution, now deserving of a much wider audience. Lark’s turn in the spotlight has certainly arrived.

‘Brave Star’ is released through Ōtautahi’s Winegum Records and available on vinyl, cassette, and CD. Check out this link for a brief RNZ interview - https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/nzlive/audio/2018901266/nz-live-tom-lark

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Howard Davis

Scoop Arts Editor

Educated at Cambridge and UCLA; worked on several major Hollywood feature films and as a Kundalini Yoga instructor in Los Angeles; currently enjoying life in Wellington.

Contact Howard Davis

• Email - howard@scoop.co.nz