Tamra – “Omens, Silos” [Song Review]

Boise/Los Angeles-based indie rock outfit Tamra releases the first single, “Omens, Silos,” from their upcoming debut EP, Light Reading, set to drop on October 20th.

Made up of Kenton Freemuth (vocals, guitar), Andrew Freemuth (guitar), Ethan Bjornsen (bass), and Chris Clayton (drums), in a world where even lounge bands playing at Ramada Inns have charming origin narratives, EPKs, and bulleted lists of accolades, Tamra is four middle-class white men approaching 30: the kind of band no one wants to hear from.

Yet Tamra’s music exudes a raw, desolate feel, at once convincing and elusively reminiscent of lo-fi Pearl Jam, only looser and more lonesome.

Opening on slanted, raggedy guitars riding a roomy mid-tempo rhythm, “Omens, Silos” conveys a subtle aura of emotional isolation, the sensation of a stranger lost in a strange land. Ebbing and rising synths give the melody oozing luminosity, accenting the mood of solitude as Freemuth’s plaintive, deliciously gravelly vocals amplify the sense of seclusion.

Haunting, as well as more complex and intricately layered than it initially comes across, “Omens, Silos” achieves a remarkable sonic balance.

Tamra in 2023, by Blaise Prokop

Run Time: 2:47
Release Date: August 9, 2023
Record Label: Independent