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By Chyrisse Tabone, Rock At Night Tampa
Rock At Night had the pleasure of speaking with guitarist/vocalist Tom Leighton of rock band Bad Flowers. The trio Bad Flowers is also comprised of bassist, Dale Tonks, and drummer, Karl Selickis. On Friday, February 16, 2017, the band will release its debut studio album Starting Gun, which is a follow-up to their 2016 self-titled EP. Starting Gun was recorded at Vigo Studios, near the band’s hometown of Cannock. The band chose this studio because they wanted to make a record that sounded like their roots and had the chance to work with long-time friend of the band and producer Adam Beddow, who has recently helped produce Diamond Head’s most current work.
The band will play an exclusive album launch show at the Birmingham Asylum 2 on Saturday 17th February 2018 – playing all the songs from the new album plus more surprises. To dovetail the release of the debut album, The Bad Flowers will be special guests on Stone Broken’s nationwide 12 date UK tour that starts on Thursday 22nd February at The Haunt Brighton. The tour also includes an appearance at Planet Rock’s Winters End Festival.
During the interview, Tom Leighton discussed the origin of the band’s name “Bad Flowers”, noting it was from the lyrics of a song that was written in a prior band. He discusses the history of the band, which was formed just outside of Birmingham, UK, four years ago. When asked to describe the genre of music in the band’s recent album, Leighton replied, “We just play what we feel. It’s a harder rock. We kind of experimented with the new album”.
The acoustic ballad “I Hope” was discussed and when asked if the band does any covers, Leighton replied, “We used to cover ‘Voodoo Child'”. Other songs on the albums were discussed, including “Hurricane”, which he says is a “heavier song” and “Rich Man” which has “strong beats” and is “foot-tappin’.” Leighton’s favorite song on the album is “”Let’s Misbehave” and describes a Bad Flowers’ live performance as “classic rock and LOUD!”
Tom Leighton noted his and the band’s influences are Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, and the American band Rose Hill Drive. Music is “in my blood”, he said, since his father played music. Leighton also noted he still uses his “prized guitar” to this day. He knew he wanted to be a musician after listening to the cassette Monsters of Rock as a teenager. He thought to himself, “This is what I want to do!” He still owns and listens to vinyl albums and noted the new album will have approximately 250 red vinyl albums released.
Regarding equipment the band uses, he indicated the band favors Orange amps and pretty standard effects pedals like overdrive, Wah, and an octave pedal.
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I grew up in a household full of rock music, studied journalism in college, and then became a scientist.Although my science career has served me well, music has always played a major role in my life. I grew up reading "Creem" magazine; I play several musical instruments as a "hobby";and it seems a camera has always been in my hand. Now, I am combining what I love the most--music and photography--serving as editor of Rock At Night. I travel between the US and UK seeking my dream! My motto: life is short...no regrets. Chyrisse
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