Filing in through the front door, the immediate rush of air conditioning was a relief on such a muggy summer evening. Fans made their way first to the bar, then into the stage area, filling the room. As TOMI walked through the crowd, cheers rippled through the audience, making their way from back to front. A magnetic performer, TOMI took possession of the room from the very first note, packing an almost unprecedented power into her wide-ranging vocals. Her music provides the perfect combination of rock and pop: some songs led the audience to dance, others to head-banging. The joy and abandon in the air was just as palpable as the outside heat, and radiated off the talkative TOMI, who spent time in-between songs sharing the stories behind them. Some of these were heartbreaking; she spoke of crying in a locker room at a yoga studio after a breakup, and a former friend suffering from addiction (she doesn’t think he ever heard the song she wrote about him, but she hopes he does at some point and recognizes it). Then, of course, there were some funnier ones, such as working a day job as a secretary in which she had to smile all the time. For her very last song, she delighted the crowd by debuting a new, sparkly guitar named Pam.
It’s clear that for TOMI, the Mercury Lounge and her latest EP, What Kind of Love, is only the beginning.
Brooklyn based TOMI has been busy prepping for the release of her EP What Kind of Love, out today. The EP features the title track “What Kind of Love,” and “Every Morning I Feel Like Running Away Here.” On “What Kind of Love,” TOMI speaks on the kind of love that you crave and need. “What kind of love takes its under its wings, what kind of love ties you up in its arms and won’t do you any harm- what kind of love?” ponders TOMI. The song has an 80’s dance feel to it, and the music video is visually aesthetic. “What Kind of Love,” really shows TOMI off as an artist in terms of her voice, style, and creativity. “Every Morning I Feel Like Running Away” tells another story. Looking for an escape and breaking out of the comfort zone, TOMI sings “Even out in the open I want to sail away.”
TOMI shares her personal inspiration for What Kind of Love, explaining:
We all experience different versions of love, even in just one person. There is kind love, destructive love, boring love, obsessive love, drunk love, the list is endless. I spent this past Thanksgiving in Las Vegas, and it was a beautiful trip aside from a panic attack: ‘Every now and then I feel you coming up behind me.’ A lot had changed for me in a short period of time. I had been in a relationship for three years with someone who couldn’t quite figure out how to love me. It made me wonder if something was wrong with me. When we broke up, I felt a weight lift, and then as I fell in love with my current partner, I felt the weight pour back over me, even stronger this time.
