Music Q&A with Swim Camp
Photo courtesy of Swim Camp
Singer/songwriter, Tom Morris, began recording music in 2015 under the moniker, Swim Camp. This Friday, Swim Camp is releasing a new album titled, Fishing In A Small Boat via Know Hope Records! Ahead of the release, Swim Camp released three singles: “Thread“, “A Different Kind of Sleep”, and “Melt”. Tom recently spent some time talking about the album, how he started Swim Camp, who he would like to see in concert that he hasn’t seen, and more! Fishing In A Small Boat is available for pre-order NOW!
Congratulations on the release of Fishing In A Small Boat! What does the album mean to you?
First off, thank you! I'm not really exactly sure what it all means to me right now. I know I'm really proud of it and the work that went into it. I don't know if there's some deep meaning to it, it's just about a bunch of little moments in my life up till now. I just hope that people like how it sounds because everyone involved worked really hard on it.
How do you feel the last year and a half affected the creative process and the making of the album?
It's kind of hard to say, most of the structure and the tracking of the songs was all finished by when the pandemic happened. I guess having all that time spent at home allowed me and my buddy, Mark Watter, to really hone in on the mix for each track and the record as a whole. This album feels very intimate and I think that was informed by how we were all living at the time. I wanted it to feel warm and cozy, though, rather than claustrophobic which was, I think, how a lot of us were actually feeling.
What’s your favorite song off Fishing In A Small Boat?
I go back and forth between a few, but right now it is Race Track, which is the fifth song on the record.
When did you realize you wanted to create music?
I guess I've always been around music. I grew up in a musical household and started piano lessons when I was like 4. I had bands in high school and college, but we played jazz and avant garde stuff because that was all I listened to for a long time. I started getting into "indie rock" music later in college, but it wasn't until I left the country in 2015 for a while that I really got interested in making this kind of music. I picked up guitar during that time and really started to get interested in songwriting. That all really directly led me to Swim Camp.
What is one artist or band that you haven’t seen in concert, that you hope to see someday?
Paul Simon.
What instrument do you not play that you hope to learn someday?
This is a good question. I can play most stuff, at least well enough for me, but I'd really like to be good at piano. I think that requires me to really practice, so maybe that'll be my New Year's resolution.
What is your favorite thing about making music?
There's something about the process of experimenting with new sounds or using equipment in new ways that I get really fired up about. Accidentally stumbling onto something that sounds interesting is a great feeling. I think most of the things on this album that I'm really excited for people to hear and notice were either done as an experiment or were fully accidental. Stuff I couldn't replicate if I wanted to. It's very "of a time and place" and these recordings are the byproduct of that process.
How do you stay positive?
Truth be told, I don't try to stay positive. I think it's important to recognize and understand and feel the breadth of emotion that is within you, good or bad or whatever. I have lived with chronic depression my whole life and I think in the moments where I feel sad, it is ok for me to be feeling like that, which was something I struggled to accept for a long time. Releasing that pressure to be upbeat all the time has made my life full and rich. It has made me a better friend and ultimately has made my life more beautiful.
Any last words or final message for the readers?
Be good to yourself and to each other. Hope to see you at a show soon :)