Tom Foolery

Tom Foolery is Thomas J. Marolda, a US electronic music producer and DJ associated with breaks, Nu-Skool breaks, jungle, trance, house and techno. He is an early adopter of the hard, dark Nu-Skool sound in the United States and is known for combining heavy bass with funk-oriented rhythms.

Career

By 2002, Tom Foolery is bringing in records directly from the UK to present a style that is not yet widely distributed by domestic record shops and buyers. In 2004, he relocates to the mid-west and carries that hard, dark breaks approach into the local Dirty South jungle scene. Early promoters sometimes book his demos as jungle and place him in dark-room sets alongside acts such as Phantom 45.

His sound develops further through contact with the Midwest house and techno scenes, leading to a style that blends dark breaks with house and techno influences for club use. In the studio he works with analogue and classic hardware, using a production method he associates with older approaches still used in parts of psytrance.

Releases and collaborations

Tom Foolery has a series of releases under his own name and works with UK breaks producer Transformerman and Florida producer DJ Fixx. Published singles listed under his name include The Coast with DJ Fixx, Atomic Rock, Dance Sucka, Defiance with a Transformerman UK remix, Mindwrecker, Electro Rasta, Control, a DJ Fixx VIP version of Control, Jedi Mind, Be Good to the Grime in an electro mix, Electro Rasta VIP with a DJ Fixx mix, and Time to Freak. A further release, Charly Says, is listed as a cover version with Mitch Mitchem.

Mixes

He also issues a run of mix CDs and promo mixes, including Progression of Breaks (2001), TopCat presents TomFoolery (2002), NuSkool Compilation (2003), Fool in da Breaks (2004), Resolution (2005), USAmnesia (2006), 407 (2007), a 420 mix for CaveFest in 2007, and Voyage of the NU (2008). The 2007 promo mixes include tracks by artists such as General Midi, Rektchordz, Koma & Bones, Slyde, Bassrock, Dreadzone and others.

CatalyticSouls and events

Tom Foolery is the founder of CatalyticSouls, a crew that hosts underground electronic and live band festivals in several states. Events associated with the group include Cave Stock, CaveFest, the UnderGround Sound Series, Gamma Fest featuring Shpongle and Hallucinogen, and EarthTones, along with one-off events.

Education and other work

He carries out scholarly research into electronic music and rave culture as part of master’s studies at SIUC, under Phylis Johnson and Todd Herreman. He also teaches audio engineering and production labs for RT and MCMA students. Outside music production and DJ work, he studies sound in healing, chakras, energy flows and kundalini.

Performances and associated acts

Tom Foolery tours nationally as a DJ and performs with a wide range of artists, including Shpongle, Hallucinogen, Electric Skychurch, Infected Mushroom, Ferry Corsten, George Acosta, DJ Craze, Baby Anne, Kaskade, Woody McBride, Nigel Richards, Doc Martin, The Breakfastaz, DJ Lee, Evol Intent, Phantom 45, FACTORe, Agent K, John B, SkyLab 2000, Bassnectar, Hive, The Rogue Element, DJ Liquid, Swamp, Monk, Kid Icarus, Gein, Micro, Dylan, Kaos, Reid Speed, Annalyze, Elite Force, Dylan Rhymes, Burufunk, Bluetech, Rick West, Spree and ADB, Simon Apex, Devine & Emily Play, Paul Anthony, and General Malice.