Loma - “Half Silences” from the 2020 album Don’t Shy Away on Sub Pop.

Loma never anticipated going this far. The project began as an impromptu collaboration with songwriter Emily Cross, recording engineer Dan Duszynski, and Shearwater’s Jonathan Meiburg, converging to record their 2018 self-titled debut. After releasing the record and touring, each member intended to go back to their own projects. However, it only took a few months away from each other before they realized they wanted to keep Loma going. The trio holed up in Duszynski’s Texas home studio to record their sophomore effort, ‘Don’t Shy Away,’ which was recently released on Sub Pop.

“Don’t Shy Away” vindicates the bands decision to keep moving forward. The brooding, slow dirge finds the band at their best. Cross’ voice wields a stark intensity, looming over the restrained but tense instrumentation. It’s a marvel of studio wizardry, with static and eerie distortion and synth drones crashing over the steady pulse of drums and bass. It’s Loma at their best, pushing each other into bold, luminous new sonic territories.

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