Live at Bumbershoot 2013, Day 2: Tamaryn

text by Gerrit Feenstra and Anna McClain

Mexican Summer band Tamaryn had a killer year last year. Their debut LP Tender New Signs was not one to miss, meeting the shoegaze resurgence's wave of mutilation head on with an atmospheric whisper led by a collected muse with the voice of an angel. The band is made up of Tamaryn (originally from New Zealand) and Rex John Shelverton, who mans production. The New Zealand via Brooklyn sound is completely evident - the busyness of the day to day hustle is contrasted by a reverberated wave of calm. Tamaryn's sound captures both with grace and poise.

The blissful melancholy of “I’m Gone” and the shoegaze masterpiece of “Heavenly Bodies” are only two of the many delightful offerings found in this little gem. The upbeat groove of “Prizma” and the experimental closer “Violet’s In A Pool” are also completely worth the visit. But today, we get to see how their watery glitter shines on the live stage.

Tamaryn and her three bandmates basked in dark blue light on the KEXP Bumbershoot Music Lounge stage. After listlessly shaking a tambourine, Tamaryn nonchalantly draped herself on the mic to sing 2009's "Mild Confusion." Tamaryn calmly confronted the microphone as her bandmates grooved around her. The group put their apathetic demeanor to work, the blue light and hazy sound washing over the audience like a sea during "While You're Sleeping, I'm Dreaming" from Tender New Signs. The track title "Haze Interior," off The Waves, perfectly describes what Tamaryn transformation of the Music Lounge.

Tamaryn whipped out some relatively energetic dance moves as the band bathed the audience in the wall of deceivingly high energy, gauzy sound during their fourth song, "Heavenly Bodies." The spellbound crowd began nodding along for the more faster paced "Prizma," and with a delayed guitar loop still playing, the band casually exited the stage.