Stereo Embers The Podcast 0444: Tom Hollister (Cardinal Black)

"Midnight At The Valencia" Before all this rock and roll stuff, Tom Hollister was a highly touted Rugby player from Wales. I'll let him tell you how his career as an athlete was derailed as a young man in Canada, but let me just say this: when he got back to Wales, he channeled all that athletic energy into another sport entirely: the making of music. In 2010, of all the emerging buzzbands, Cardinal Black was one of the buzziest. Guns N' Roses' longtime manager Alan Niven was overseeing the band's activity and let's just say this: it was active. They were invited by Steve Winwood to record at his studio, they played a killer set at Sonisphere and they flew to the U.S. to record an album. But things didn't go as planned and the band hit pause on a career that was about to kick into overdrive. I'll let Tom tell you about that dark time as well, but, and I don't think this is a spoiler, the dark times are over and Cardinal Black 2.0 are in fighting shape and adding brilliant achievements to their resume' with each passing day. They've hit #1 on the iTunes Rock Singles Chart, they've played sold-out headline shows in all over the world, supported Myles Kennedy, The Struts and Peter Frampton thanks to a personal invitation from the man himself, and played Joe Bonamassa's Keeping The Blues Alive rock cruise. The band's new long player Midnight At The Valencia is a smooth blend of simmering soul, bluesy ballads and shimmering, rootsy genius. Hollister's stirring vocals are drenched with heart and with the brilliant guitar playing of Chris Buck weaving throughout the band's compositions, Midnight At The Valencia is one of those records that evades the timeline. When you put it on it could be 1971 or 1993 or now. Or all of it. I love this record and I love this band and Tom is a humble, thoughtful and kind soul. www.thecardinalblack.com (http://www.thecardinalblack.com) www.bombshellradio.com (http://www.bombshellradio.com) www.stereoembersmagazine.com (http://www.stereoembersmagazine.com) www.alexgreenbooks.com (http://www.alexgreenbooks.com) Stereo Embers The Podcast BLUESKY + IG: @emberspodcast Email: editor@stereoembersmagazine.com (mailto:editor@stereoembersmagazine.com)