Meet TONE, a nomad with a tape recorder and tonnes of stories to share.

TONE is a great example that self-induced discoveries bring the best results. Surrounded by music since a young age, he consumed his family’s record collection, from Prince, Boyz II Men to David Bowie and The Smiths. While skating around in baggy clothes as a teenager and getting into hip-hop groove and Djing, his hunger for expression started to grow. Originally infatuated by film, after finishing school, he came back with full force to the beat-making mission.

Today, a father and experienced musician, TONE shares his history of hard work, the chase for dreams and everyday struggles in a debut album, ‘So I Can See You’. Wanting to see what he’s all about we invited TONE to talk to us pre-release.

Can you tell us who you are, where you’re from and about the music you make?

My name is Basil Anthony Harewood but people call me Tone. Long story short, I’m the fourth successive Basil in my family on my father’s Guyanese side so we all get called by our middle names i.e Anthony, Tony, Tone. I’m a nomad really, born in the Midlands, UK, moved to Germany when I was 4 then back to the north of the UK when I was 8, then left the family home at 18 to study film before I ended up in London. The music I make is sonically simple, lyrically from the heart and draws inspiration from a multitude of places, be it all the phases I’ve been through musically and culturally, relationships, personal battles, film, art, but ultimately it's just me with some instruments, my tape machine and stories from my life.

How did it all start?

I grew up in a music-loving household, my folks listened to music all the time growing up, they were big into soul, RnB and reggae, rock, as well as big pop artists like Prince, Michael Jackson, Boyz II Men etc. Raiding my dad's CDs, I found bands like Joy Division, The Smiths and David Bowie. My dad is originally from Guyana but moved to the UK in the late 60s. He grew up in Macclesfield. He was a teen through that late 70s glam punk era but never really showed me any of it until I brought it up later when I got more into music. My mum is from Wales and was a mod back in the day, she is a die-hard music fan and showed me a lot of the classic RnB albums and northern soul stuff. She was dancing as a youngster.

I had piano lessons as a kid but it never really stuck so I missed out on any formal education with music. I started DJ’ing (techno, house, ambient, garage) when I was 13/14 in the year 2000. I bought turntables a mixer and as much vinyl as my paper round could afford, I learnt how to mix and would make mini discs for friends at school and then started to DJ house parties. Fast forward a couple of years later, me and my younger bros discovered skateboarding. My two bros got into all the nu-metal & punk bands and I ended up a hip-hop kid with baggy everything. I developed a love of film-making through creating local skate scene videos which is how I ended up at film school. Eventually, my younger brother Jacob started playing the guitar, he would show me chords and hooks and artists like Hendrix, Led Zepp and the next thing I’m completely obsessed with was guitar music as well as the electronic stuff I was DJ’ing and HipHop. Fast forward to finishing film school and all I really wanted to do was make music, I’d started recording on a 4 track with a friend of mine and was playing the guitar regularly. I joined my mates’ band playing bass and at my first gig the artist Jeremy Jay was there and asked me to go on a 5-week tour around Europe… the rest is history as they say.

Can you tell us a bit about your new album ‘So I Can See You’?

It's a personal record, one that’s been a long time coming. A lot of variables that have led to this moment, commitments to other projects, developing the confidence and skills to produce the album I wanted to, on my own and in my own studio. I really wanted the music to sound like musicians playing together as a band with minimal effects. Just well-recorded instruments with simple parts. I’d been looking into building a studio for years. I and my friend Mica Levi had been sharing different spaces for time but never had anywhere concrete until our friend Giles Kwakebass introduced us to his building down in Hither Green and we got a space and managed to build the studio around the beginning of 2019. I picked up a 1/2 tape machine and set it to work. It also coincided with the birth of my daughter. It was a real turning point for me, letting go of some relationships that I knew weren’t healthy, taking a good look at myself and making a lot of changes. The album is just documentation of this period of my life.

Is there any song on the record that’s particularly special for you?

The song ‘In and Out’ for me is a personal favourite. It's about a close friend of mine who has been struggling for years with mental health and addiction problems. It’s just a message to them to say I’m there for them and that I understand more than they probably believe, having gone through similar issues myself. I also love how the recording turned out.

If you were to describe your sound to someone who’d never heard you before, what would you say?

British, mixed race, mixed up, hip-hop, pop, rock, dub, electronica, coated in honesty.

What inspires your music?

To be honest, I don’t even know… It’s different every day. Sometimes it's hearing an old song on the radio and remembering certain times or seeing a film or even a clip of a film that does the same thing, sometimes it can be a random idea when on the train looking out the window. My family, my friends… They are some of the most incredibly talented people and I’m super lucky to have such a wealth of inspiration around me.

What advice would you give for anyone trying to achieve a similar sound to your band?

Get a tape machine.

If your music were a film or TV show which would it be?

Hey Arnold.

Name an album you’re still listening to from when you were younger and why it’s important to you?

Deftones - Around the Fur - just a classic album from when me and bros started skating around 2002.

What do you hate right now?

Hate.

What do you love right now?

Love.

What comes next in the TONE’s story?

Getting the show on the road. Once the album comes out on March 4th I’m planning some special UK shows and looking to try and get out to Europe and who knows where else in the world.

What upcoming 2022 music releases are you most excited about?

Coby Sey’s second album on AD93 is dropping imminently and that’s probably the main one I’m looking forward to seeing the light of day. Tirzah’s remix version of her album is dropping sometime soon too which I think is going to be really good, least to say I have a remix featured on it.

Is there anything else you would like to share with our readers?

Keep an eye out on my socials @airforcetone for shows in and around the UK, I can’t wait to play you these songs with my band, I have such a talented group of individuals involved and it's going to be fun to share.

Take care and make sure to be as loving and caring for your friends and family as possible. Be conscious of the earth, work hard, educate yourself and listen to others when they have perspectives of life you don’t, learn and support them however you can.

TONE is performing in London on March 3rd and Manchester at the White Hotel on the 5th.

Start Listening To: TONE