Concert Review: TOMI Will Survive At Wythe Hotel
It was her last song, a cover of Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive,” that summed up the essence of TOMI. Singing the song as if it was born is a funeral, she turned broken emotions into ashes she had to walk through so as to be reborn. Her voice broke like glass while her keys pressed down into what felt like open graves. While, for the most part, TOMI’s music is fun and fun-loving, her rendition of this classic, “No, I am leaving you, jerk!” track showed that she is all about being “reborn.”
Sonically and personally, TOMI is fun-loving. In a way, she represents what people most love and hate about pop: it, somehow, makes heartbreak sound like a joyous occasion. Suddenly, having your man not return your texts feels like a solid reason to twerk. Yet, again, her cover wrapped up the “pop-points” of songs such as, “Carry You,” “Every Morning I Feel Like Running Away,” and “What Kind of Love; ” to make you feel better about surviving. Heartbreaks can make you want crawl up, in fetal position, and casually roll into traffic. Suddenly, your collection of wine bottles goes up, your amassing of Jane Austen novels has been burned, and you are jealous that Romeo And Juliet had a “happy ending.” Yet, you have to survive because …… you have to!
TOMI – Every Morning I Feel Like Running Away (Official Video)
The magic of TOMI is that she brightly sings for the times when you know you will get up even if you don’t want to. Resilience and resistance are not, exactly, hot commodities when it comes to things we want to feel. Usually, your resilience is tied to someone else’s stupidity and your strong choice to hit it with facts. Thus, for TOMI, the greatest fact you can tell your heartbreak is that, “Yes, you exist, but I need to live.” It is a truly powerful message blended into 80’s styled synths, chords, drumrolls, and keys. Meanwhile, TOMI’s voice smoked like either a fog at a colorful nightclub or over a long, winding road: able to capture bliss or blubbering sadness. The result was a show that was rich in fun and wealthy in wisdom. For More Information On TOMI Click Here.
