Tom Emlyn and Alys Hardy on the Pure Local Extra show

Firstly, since Alys was last on the show, she has started volunteering for Newport City Radio. You can expect to hear her on one of our many shows soon.

To start the show, we listened to 2Like a Cigarette” by Tom. The song idea came to him while busking. As the title suggests, it is about smoking. More specifically, why people smoke and do things that they know are bad for them. It also takes on the theme of using someone or something up.

Like a Cigarette takes on a more acoustic sound, however, Tom plays in many different styles. Especially since he is in multiple bands (Rainyday Rainbow, Papa Jupes, etc…) According to Tom, it all flows together for him.

A common question Kym asks the guests who appear on the show is if they remember the first song they wrote. Most of the time the answer is no. However, Tom replied with yes and in fact he remembers the first song he wrote, down to specific lyrics and melodies. A follow up question to the first song written is if we will ever hear it again. Usually the answer is no but Tom answered that it had already been recorded again but with new lyrics: it’s just a matter of time until it’s released.

The next song we listened to was Alys’ upcoming track “Free Dances (So Beautiful To Me)”. She was sent a track by a friend and then recorded it with Tom all in the house. The full song releases on the 2nd of October, but we got an exclusive listen on the show.

Another common question asked on the show is ‘Who would you be a tribute act to?’ Last time, Alys answered with Madonna. This time, she wasn’t too sure who, not having just a single person in mind. Tom suggested Janis Joplin to which both Kym and Alys agreed. As for Tom, Bob Dylan is one of his favourites, but he’d want to go for someone unexpected like Tom Jones. 

One of the final songs we played was ‘Lost My City A to Z’ by Tom. The song was originally written by his mum, but Tom put his own spin on it. He imagined the song in the style of The Beatles which was very prevalent upon listening. According to Tom, she was pleased with it. 

Finally, what’s coming up. Alys is going to be on the Breakfast Show this Tuesday. Alys and Tom have a Gig in Bath at the Royal Oak on the 27th September.

You can listen to the full show here