If you haven’t heard of Eora/Sydney-based artist total tommy yet, then allow us to introduce you to Australia’s freshest indie-rock rising star. The budding singer-songwriter and queer heartthrob is already drawing comparisons to international heavyweights such as Wolf Alice, Wet Leg and Hatchie, crafting music that somehow manages to feel intimate but simultaneously monumental.
Take her recently-released second single, ‘Losing Out’. It’s a dreamy, lo-fi track super-charged with emotional tension, while taking its musical cues from the likes of The Breeders, Soccer Mommy and Yo La Tengo. Listen below.
total tommy – ‘Losing Out’
“Someone I respected completely broke my trust and left me paralysed for a little while,” total tommy explains about the track in a press statement. “I spent a lot of time going through the motions and feeling really thrashed about. I’d delayed writing about this time for a few months, but as soon as I started everything was super visceral and the lyrics formed in about fifteen minutes.”
She continues: “The first day demo we had was really special because it was so raw. I didn’t want to touch it because I wasn’t sure I’d be able to replicate what we captured on that day. But then I got my friend to play live drums on the track and it lifted it to a whole other dimension. It’s my favourite song to play live, because I can rage about on the guitar and get out a lot of energy. I’m not angry anymore, but f**k that guy.”
‘Losing Out’ follows the release of total tommy’s debut single ‘microdose’ earlier this year, which coincided with her worldwide signing to [PIAS] Recordings and Astral People Management.
You can take it for a spin up above, and keep an eye out for more music coming our way real soon.
Further Reading
triple j’s Hottest 100 of Like A Version: 100-1
triple j’s Like A Version in 2022
Wet Leg Quote Arctic Monkeys’ Alex Turner During BRIT Acceptance Speech: “That Rock and Roll, Eh?”
