Kieran Webber
Director and Founder of CLUNK Magazine, CLUNK Events, and other CLUNK affiliate businesses. You’ll probably find me tucked away somewhere sending emails, listening to music, and creating content.
Tampa, Florida based artist Mike Tony talks us through his 2024, new music, and influences
Coming straight from the sands of Tampa, Florida is one of the USA’s best kept secrets, a man that will croon and sway his way into your life. By fusing a retrospective sound that flows through psychedelia, rock, and more with a Jim Morrison a-la Alex Turner aesthetic, you cannot help but be enamoured.
We recently got out ears around his latest release ‘Velvet Sunshine’, a pulsing psychedelic track that will whisk you away to shangri-la. After devouring this single and his back catalogue we wanted to know more about the artist. So, we caught up with Mike Tony to talk about influences, dream collaborations, and more!
Kieran: Hey Mike, thank you so much for taking the time to chat with us!
Mike: My pleasure, thank you so much for having me!
Kieran: So, how has 2024 been treating you? Anything exciting happening?
Mike: 2024 started out a little slower than I wanted to, but I could say that about every year. Though by this time last year I had released 2 singles with videos. So far this year I’ve been focusing more on getting new material done in the studio and working on my other musical endeavor Soft Cuff, a cinematic psych-groove band I play drums in. We just finished our first 6 song EP due out later this year. And I’m putting on the finishing touches of some new Mike Tony material I plan to release later this year as well!
Kieran: How long have you been making music and at what point did you know you wanted to release Mike Tony, the artist, into the wide world?
Mike: I’ve been playing music all my life. I started playing drums at the age of 8 and then started playing guitar, bass, and keyboard and writing songs when I was 13. It was always in my head at an early age that I would do this forever! I grew up fronting a garage band called Très Bien for about 10 years and we released 6 albums together. I eventually moved to LA and went on to Producing and working on solo material. I went under the moniker Rollingchild at the genesis of my solo career, and released my first solo LP “Post Party Depression” in 2019. I decided to change it to a shortened version of my name (Michael Anthony/Mike Tony) during the pandemic as it felt more aligned with what I was making.
Kieran: From your look and sound it’s clear you have a strong 70s aesthetic matched with a Alex Turner vibe, but was there anyone else that influenced you?
Mike: If I had to pick a top 5 for Tony’s inspiration it would probably be: Serge Gainsbourg, Scott Walker, Tom Jones, Ian Svenonious, and Julian Casablanca
Kieran: Is there a particular record that influenced you as a musician or still has an impact to this day?
Mike: I could list tons, but I’ll shorten it up. The Beatles Revolver was such and Important and eclectic record that made me want to focus on production and studio engineering. Some of the tones on that album are tones that I have been chasing and trying to mimic for the 20+ years I’ve been recording . The Make-Up’s I Want Some was my bible in highschool, and was one of the coolest albums I’ve ever heard at that time, no one was making music like that at that time, and no one has since. It definitely changed the course of my musical journey and has had a huge influence on how I write.
Listen to ‘Velvet Sunshine’ here:
Kieran: How would you describe your music?
Mike: Cinematic and Dramatic Psychedelic-Soul.
Kieran: If you could collab with any artist (alive or dead) who would it be and why?
Mike: It would be a dream to work with Leon Michaels, Beck, Damon Albarn, David Bowie, Rick Ruben and Danger Mouse. From a producer standpoint, these guys make the best decisions, and have this incredible ability to think outside the box and create something so new and futuristic yet still bring you tones and influences from the past.
Kieran: Lastly, what’s the plan for the rest of 2024?
Mike: Release new material and potentially move to either NYC or LA. I’m also working on getting over to Europe to play some shows, I don’t know if that will actually happen THIS year, but I can plant the seeds now.