Album review: TOMI MALM – Coming Home

TOMI MALM – Coming Home

Website [Release date 16.10.20]

“Coming Home” is the second album from Finland’s classically trained writer/ producer/ musician, Tomi Malm. Three years after his highly successful “Walking On Air” album, he again recruits some of the best in the Westcoast Rock business. And you’ve got to be writing good stuff to attract Randy Goodrum, Bill Cantos, Frank Adahl and Jerry Lopez, plus keyboard player Robbie Buchanan, guitarists Tim Pierce and Steve Lukather, and more.

These are all seasoned professionals who can nail down a sound or a simple concept with clarity and vision. That Malm got them all involved speaks volumes for his his own skills and talents, and indeed, for his growing reputation.

Malm produces, and plays guitar and keyboards, But his single biggest contribution to his own album is his high calibre songwriting across all 16 tracks. “Walking On Air” marked him out as a convincing composer, capable of pushing past the boundaries of commerciality. And his latest batch of material, often armed with a slow burning fuse, credits its audience with musical intelligence, which means they’ll give the songs time to work.

Sometimes technical expertise is lacking in emotion: perfection can often inhibit the expression of feeling. Malmo gets past that by filling his songs with seductive hooks and hazy sonic colouring. The sweetened strings, the swells of horns and tinkling pianos all provide the richness of sound that his handpicked vocalists interpret.

The gentle grandiosity of songs like ‘Come Away’ (Bill Cantos), ‘Two Hearts’ (Jerry Lopez) and ‘The Time Is Now’ (Warren Wiebe) make date-stamps redundant. It’s timeless material, showcasing the kind of casually ornate songwriting and urbanity of tone which is growing Malm’s international profile.

Some songs rise above the others. Lushly textured and amply cushioned, ‘When You’re Gone’ and ‘Without Saying A Word’ have a rich, pastoral quality that was once captured by early Westcoast bands, before the genre turned into a Toto/Marx sound alike contest.

Malm’s dominant piano is economic and uncluttered, allowing the songs the space they need to shimmer and shine, creating a gravity defying weightlessness on the Burt Bacharach song ‘Leave It To The Girls’, filled with singer Ashton Moran’s honeyed tones. And again on ‘Dream On’, as Frank Adahl dreamily ponders issues of love and loss.

The jury is still out, but ‘Are You Real’ and ‘Coming Home’ are probably the picks. Both carry a little more lyrical weight, and manage that delicate balance between sentimentality and real feelings. But the truth is that there’s little to choose between tracks on this slow-growing but charming album. ****1/2

Review by Brian McGowan


Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions, streamed via Facebook.

In 2023 he signed a recording deal with Sony in Canada and released a new single on 15 September.

Josh Taerk Sunday Sessions 2024

Latest session: Sunday 25 February
Next session: Sunday 14 April

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio



David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast on 3 March 2024.


UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). This show was first broadcast 5 March 2024.

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Listen via Windows Media Player. Click or tap here and “open file”
Listen via other media player (eg. VLC) Click or tap here and “open file”

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com


Power Plays w/c 18 March 2024

GYPSY’S KISS We’ve Come To Play
FM Out Of The Blue (Frontiers)
SHOTGUN MISTRESS Shot Down (indie)
ATTIC THEORY Violent Delight (indie)
FLOYA Yume (FiXT)
SAHAJI Tell Me All Your Feelings (indie)

Featured Albums w/c 18 March 2024

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003-2023
12:00-13:00 LEAVES’ EYES Myths Of Fate (AFM Records)
14:00-16:00 HOLLY LERSKI Sweet Decline (indie)


To see our Tweets you need to be logged in to a Twitter account



Popular (last 10 days)


This entry was posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Leave a Reply