If you haven’t heard of Lance Bermejo, more commonly known as tome., it's either you’ve been living under a rock or have terrible taste in music. TBH, those are the only valid reasons I’ll accept at the moment. But kidding aside, if you're looking to broaden your musical horizons, let me tell you why he should be part of your playlist.
In a music space increasingly dominated by pop artists, tome. is your quintessential self-produced, bedroom indie-pop artist capitalizing on pure hard work and talent. It’s true. His music is not only a playful tongue-in-cheek parallel of his artistry but a result of his overall craftsmanship as an artist.
I don’t mean to use such patronizing words to describe him, but it really is the best way to say it. He seems real, earnest, full of character, and just overflowing with talent. Luckily, I’ve had the pleasure of getting in touch with tome. and have him share how his love for music and artistic shenanigans started.
it started with MTV
On normal days, the 21-year-old Lance works as a graphic designer at his day job. But when inspiration kicks in, just like the lofi beat girl, you will find him in his room, lowkey playing with his musical gizmos, producing, writing, and creating magic as tome., “Yes! [I make] everything sa kwarto ko lang,” he shared during our interview.
“Retro-futuristic pop,” that’s how tome. describes his music. It is innovative, nostalgic, and to put it easily, it’s like when the dubstep from the 90s had a baby with the well-synthesized beats of the early 2000s, mixed with modern-day touch, or at least that’s where I see it.
According to tome, growing up watching and listening to female pop stars on MTV, he already knew that he wanted to make music. “Since then, music has always been my form of comfort, and realizing that I can give a similar impact to others gave me the drive to start,” he said. “I also grew up watching and listening to female pop stars on MTV, and it inspired me to follow in their footsteps as well.”
tome. the pop-head
If you haven't noticed it yet, tome. is a Pop-head. I’m pretty sure he will agree on that too. For example, in his music, he takes great inspiration from Björk, Sevdaliza, Charli XCX, Carly Rae Jepsen, and Majid Jordan. But not only that, his music cannot only make you lose it and groove it, but he knows how the magic of pop works— turning experiences into art.
“The biggest inspiration comes from my experiences. I like the concept of catharsis so much,
and that people are able to relate to what I am going through and realize that it’s okay to
feel that,” he said.
Moreover, under the good rhythm and catchy melodies of tome. lies the authenticity of his artistry. “The premise of my craft is that it is genuine, and so there aren’t any formats I adhere to when making music-to which I think is the beauty of it,” he said. “My process sometimes starts with a one line idea for a hook or a verse, a melody that I can’t get out of my head, a genre that I want to try and make, or a story that could be the song’s theme. It all comes naturally.”
getting there
tome.'s rise is the quintessential anyone-can-do-it success story. Exuding all the effusive pride, his singles "ancel and '38c dive' from his album 'TOMMY', released in 2021, earned the first and second spot in Spotify's OPM Indie Mix and Pinas Vibes playlists.
"I still can’t wrap my head around it! To think that a lot of people will listen to something you’ve worked so hard for feels very fulfilling and makes me excited to go further," he said. But most of all, he is very grateful.
what’s next for tome.?
Recently, tome. released his newest album tommy.online, but he is already working on his new era. "One thing about me is that I don’t like to stay in one place," he said. "I would love to work on a rave, dance-y club genre in the near future."
tome. knows what he wants, and he knows how to get it. His artistic maturity and his grasp on the world are truly eclectic, and we can't wait to see more of him.
“I currently have this big project I’ve been working on for years which is very exciting and something people haven’t heard from me before. After the RNB releases I have in the next months, I’ll be giving everyone a taste”
to his listeners
tome. is indeed your quintessential indie-pop artist. If his dreamy vocals aren't enough to get you to listen to his songs on repeat, then his raw and insanely real lyrics will. But moreover, behind his songs, tome. aspires to inspire, and that’s why his music matters.
"Trust your vision," tome. said as we ended our interview. "No matter how absurd your idea is. Be more afraid in not taking chances because every step you take, whether it’s a fail or a success, it creates progress and leads you to the version you want to achieve."
━━ Photos By Winston Abapo
