The Melbourne singer-songwriter has unleashed a torrent of emotion with her latest track.
TAMS/N OTWAY is no stranger to unpacking her feelings through song. Her body of work ranges from the tongue-in-cheek banger about a toxic boss Audacity to the hauntingly beautiful pleas for affection that is Love Me Always.
On her latest track Broke By You, the first single off her debut album set to be released in the near future, TAMS/N tells the tale of a relationship gone cold, of a lover running off to the country and leaving her behind.
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“I had an SM58 and midi controller plugged into my Laptop in bed one morning. Feeling depressed yet inspired, I wrote Broke By You,” says TAMS/N.
“I started with a Cadd9 which is arguably the most beautiful chord in existence and kept it simple from there. It was one of those songs that just oozed out of me. I felt so content and happy about it instantly. It was so beautifully meant to be.”
Brooding and dramatic, the track, clocking in at four minutes, takes listeners on a journey of loss and despair. Anchored by piano chords and TAMS/N’s vibrato-laden vocals, the song has a cinematic quality to it, fit to accompany a heart-wrenching breakup scene – a slow-motion betrayal.
Waves of emotion cascade down upon the listener. TAMS/N’s great strength is her ability to create and release tension, using her voice as a weapon to build into dramatic peaks.
Opening with piano and a sparse trip-hop beat, the track crescends with sliding bass and wailing backing vocals, creating a moody, dark ambience where the singer’s heartache is on full display.
Near the end of the track, TAMS/N unfolds into a flurry of questions, ones we often find asking ourselves when a relationship has crumbled: “Was I enough / or not enough? / Was I too much?”. It leaves listeners holding on to that bitter feeling, painful yet unforgettable.
If Broke By You is anything to go by, TAMS/N’s debut is set to be raw, real and of epic proportions.
Keep up with TAMS/N by following her on Instagram or TikTok.
This article was made in partnership with TAMS/N OTWAY.
