River Tiber is the moniker of young Canadian multi-instrumentalist Tommy Paxton-Beesley. Hailing from one of alt-music’s perennial hotspots of Toronto, Paxton-Beesley manages to combine both the Canadians’ penchant for melodic and atmospheric indie music and their more recent trend towards bassier and glitchier electronics, resulting in a sound that is instantly arresting and unique.
Although Toronto is surely one of the friendliest cities on the planet, it can also be cold, dark and lonely, and it’s in these spaces that River Tiber’s sound seems to lurk, ready to catch you unaware and haunt you with its beauty. Across glacial soundscapes that incorporate skittering drums, delicate chimes, and mists of beautiful electronic haze hovering in the middle-distance, Paxton-Beesley unfolds his soul in the most honest and rending vocals. Ranging from the simple and bare sing-speaking to soaring and soulful crooning, the emotional range he traverses is astounding in a similar way to fellow Canadian act Majical Cloudz.
The three songs released by River Tiber so far “What Are You Afraid Of,” “The City,” and “The Star Falls” are all distinct musical pieces but very much of-a-piece aesthetically and thematically, addressing Paxton-Beesley’s own inner turmoils and apparent shortcomings. “What Are You Afraid Of” and “The City” have videos that were shot and edited by Paxton-Beesley himself that perfectly capture the mood and style of the music, and speak to the completeness of the vision of River Tiber that he already has. Both videos can be watched below.
All three songs are taken from his debut album Synapses which will be released this Fall.
You can find River Tiber at his official site or on pretty much any of your social networks of choice:
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“What Are You Afraid Of” video:
“The City” video:
