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Rock Icon Gets New Band and Plays Local, Small Club
by Alex Lloyd Gross
Unless you have been living under a rock, you heard of Aerosmith. While the band is no more, the bassist Tom Hamilton is making new music and playing a small, short tour of clubs with his new band, called Close Enemies. They will play the City Winery on January 8, 2025.
When asked about the past incidents that caused band members to get hurt in the 1970’s by playing live in Philadelphia, Hamilton said”1. The incidents that happened way back in the last century were forgiven and forgotten not that long after they happened. Philadelphia was always a rowdy crowd but certainly not the only place where we had stuff thrown at us. Back in those days it was common almost everywhere to get hit with bottles, cans, coins, lighters and shoes. I once got hit in the face with a deflated football.Another time I got hit right in the nose with a size nine ladies pump,”
For the current time, Close Enemies has a single out called “Sound Of the Train”, which Hamilton is rightfully proud of. It could easily have been an Aerosmith song. That is the only product they have out right now, “We are hoping to put the album out soon”. He is excited about this new project. “We have the whole record recorded and we are looking forward to playing “. When asked if the band would be playing their new single, Hamilton said” Absolutely”.
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Close Enemies got together almost by accident, as Tom tells it, “A couple of years ago Trace (Foster), one of our guitarists and also my bass tech called me up and said he wanted to come up to Boston with a couple of his friends and help me work on some material I had saved up that Aerosmith didn’t use. We had a fun few days and then I went back into Aero mode to get ready for what was to be our Peace Out tour. Trace, Tony Brock and Peter Stroud went back home and began writing songs.
Jump ahead a year or so and the Peace Out tour had to be cancelled due to Steven’s terrible injury to his throat. Knowing I now had time on my hands, Trace invited me to come down to Atlanta and get together with the same guys and see if I wanted to join them. They played me the songs they had been working on and I was knocked out so I signed up. That first day we came up with a song called Wink and a Feather. I had a rough demo of a song in my back pocket. We listened to it and by the end of the day we had great track. That one eventually became a song called More Than I Could Ever Need.”, Hamilton said.
Tom is used to fans coming up to him to chat and he always tries to make time for them. Locals fans make remember back in September of 1980, local radio station WMMR hosted him at the Art Museum, for a guest for a race. After, he spent plenty of time chatting with Aerosmith fans .
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Alex Lloyd Gross File Photo-Delaware Valley News.com In 1980 Tom Hamilton was at the Great Philadelphia Race on the Ben Franklin Parkway.
Back then, fans bought Aerosmith 8-tracks, records and cassettes. The music industry has changed. “I like the fact that recording technology is so available now. It’s really exposed how much talent there is out there. I do miss the fact that when you buy music now you don’t have something to hold in your hands with pictures and information about what you’re into. On the other hand, being able to take your phone and listen to anyone you want means it’s easier for people to try out your music and maybe become a fan. No matter what medium you’re talking about, it’s the song that’s the centerpiece of what’s happening. You have to have good songs and you have to be able to go out and play live.”,
With Tom used to playing arenas and stadiums, now he is playing small clubs. when asked about it, he said “It felt really natural. The guys are so supportive and talented it just fit.
Don’t get me wrong, I was a little nervous stepping out of my comfort zone into a new situation but it wasn’t long before it became a welcome challenge. I didn’t spend any time thinking about whether or not we would be playing arenas and stadiums. I just knew that we had bunch of solid rock songs that had the potential to take us anywhere.” he said.
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Alex Lloyd Gross File Photo Tom Hamilton live in Philadelphia with Aerosmith.
Close Enemies is going to be at the Philadelphia City Winery on January 8,2025. The weather will be cold but the snow will be gone. It’s a great excuse to get out of the house and see a fresh new band in 2025. You can snag the last remaining tickets at this link