Reliant Tom

Brooklyn-based experimental art-pop duo Reliant Tom shares "11-2," a track from their forthcoming album Play & Rewind, dropping May 8 via Diversion Records.
Vocalist Claire Cuny explains, "The song is about learning to return to a semi-normal routine by learning to manage the grief." Inspired by the passing of her father, Claire's haunting tones invest the lyrics with stark melancholy, as keyboards mingle with burbling synths on a stop-and-stutter rhythm. "You know I was thinking it was only a dream / Cause when I'd open my mouth to scream / Nothing came out." - Pop Dust (Randy Radic)

After losing her father unexpectedly, Claire Cuny aka Reliant Tom felt completely lost.

Leaving her home became difficult. Going about her normal day felt irrelevant. And though she has a partner she loves with all her heart and a mother who tries to be there for her, she still felt so lonely that she could “die.” Luckily, Cuny was able to turn to her music for comfort.

“I wanted to keep [my dad] alive in this album,” Cuny tells BTRtoday about the upcoming album Play & Rewind (out May 8). The first single from the album, “Nevermind the Garbage,” addressed Cuny’s emotions after her dad’s death. She uses her powerful yet soothing vocals accompanied by slow melancholic slide guitar to express the torment, the numbness, and the confusion that balls up inside someone who loses a loved one.

Listen to “Nevermind the Garbage” below and read the entire interview with Reliant Tom aka Claire Cuny below. - BTR Today (Elena Childers)

Brooklyn-based post-rock electronic band Reliant Tom was born from the minds of composer Monte Weber and vocalist/choreographer Claire Cuny. Together they create genre-bending music that fuses hook-laden songwriting with experimental musical arrangements. Their latest LP Play & Rewind sees the duo push their musical boundaries farther than previous efforts. It’s an engaging, exciting, and rewarding experience for the listener. Reliant Tom isn’t afraid to show their vulnerable side, often stripping songs down to the bare bones.

Claire Cuny’s vocals take front and center in a sparse yet satisfying array of musical textures that range from stuttered trip-hop to glistening electronic stylings. The album’s opener is unexpectedly earthy with acoustic plucks and Cuny’s wispy lyrics. Like a flower unfolding, the arrangement bursts into full bloom.

Songs like “11-2“ and “The Sky is Falling“ showcase the musical prowess of composer Monte Webber. The pulsating beats and warbly synth lines weave a tapestry of futuristic tones that envelope Cuny’s powerful vocal presence. The latter half of the record showcases a softer, introspective side as Cuny’s lyrics dive deeper and deeper into reflection. On “Shape Parade“ she croons over light, atmospheric colors of piano, and saxophone.

Together Webber and Cuny explore every musical crevice Reliant Tom is capable of. Full of sheer inventiveness and passion, ‘Play & Rewind’ is honest and expressive. It’s an effort that leaves nothing off the table and evolves with each listen. - Spill Magazine

The first time I was in New York I got off the train into Manhattan coming out of Brooklyn and walked up the staircase into the city and it was crazy. It was the fourth of July weekend and the streets were filled to capacity.

It was Union Square and nothing could have prepared me for it, even though I’d been living in Chicago. It was Chicago on steroids. You come up the stairs from below ground and it’s like a storm of nonsense just went off and keeps going off. You lose your manners in a matter of seconds. No one cares to hear excuse me because it’s a mute phrase. Shit is just going on and you make the most of it. No holds barred.

Born out of this mayhem of the city that never sleeps comes the NYC dream pop duo Reliant Tom. The pair are Claire Cuny who sings and Monte Weber. The pair met in New York. At the time Cuny was playing shows as a singer/songwriter as well as working as a dance choreographer and Weber was working on his Masters in music theory and composition at NYU as well as freelancing as a composer and sound artist. Their somberly electronic debut EP quite simply titled Reliant Tom’s EP is comprised of four songs and clocks in at just under twenty minutes.

From their opening track “Poor You” I started to get the feeling quite soon of more recent dream pop acts like LA by way of DC duo Gems, Denmark’s CHINAH, and Portland’s Liz Harris who records under the Moniker Grouper, mostly due to the combination of live recorded instruments fused with electronic elements that sounded of a higher quality than a Casio keyboard run through Garage band.

​The electronic manipulations are present but never over the top and Cuny’s firm yet beautiful vocals pair rather nicely with the blips and bleeps and bits of sonic buildup and feedback. This is especially noticeable on the woozy and electronic elegance of “Flying Ship.” Next on “I Can’t Wait” shuffles along with scraps and scrapes of soft drums and keys and Cuny’s vocals turn more ethereal and drift in and out of Weber’s soundscape. The EP closes with the sunny sounds and syncopated beats of “All the Same.”

As ambient noise pop acts tend to bleed together after a time simply due to the fact that there is only so far one can take the material before an album of it simply sounds like one loop of music even though the lyrics may have changed and the beats are slightly different and the feedback placed in a different spot, after a while you’re not fooling anyone anymore. This is not to say that I don’t enjoy dreamy pop and electronic based bands, I really love them, however I listen to them infrequently. But to speak of Reliant Tom’s EP it is definitely an album I know I’ll find myself revisiting on late nights and early mornings. - Jamie Robash

This stunning debut from New York based duo Reliant Tom is full of lush atmospheric tones that radiate with undeniable elegance. The four tracks describe an apocalyptic narrative from personal obsolescence to alien abduction to societal matriculation. "Poor You" begins with a sea of experimental sound manipulation that fades into a laid back groove. It's liquid like flow channels elements of 60's soul alongside an array of pulsating synths and subliminal tones. "Flying Ships" keeps things moving with it's cinematic stance highlighted by the hypnotic swagger of vocalist Claire Cuny while "I Can't Wait" is a stunning dose of highly textured experimental pop. Things wind down with the breezy feel of "All The Same" which rounds out this top notch effort in five star fashion and leaves me wanting more. Highly recommended - Dave Allison

Introducing New York-based Reliant Tom, the avant-pop duet from the minds of Claire Cuny a singer/songwriter and dance choreographer and Monte Weber a commissioned composer and sound artist. The pair met in NYC last year where their juxtaposing musical backgrounds excited one another and the collaboration began. I stumbled across their music recently and immediately was intrigued by their sound as it slightly reminded me of a combination of two of my all time favorites Portishead & Radiohead. You can't help but be fascinated by Weber's sound design and sensibility of composition as well as be captivated by the haunting timbre of Cuny's voice. I got the opportunity to interview this interesting duo where I got to learn more about their music and recently released self titled debut EP which you can read about below: - Melissa Jimenez

Avant-pop duo, Reliant Tom, is nothing if not absolutely striking. The two-piece combines clever instrumentals and cutting edge musical tech with sultry vocals and sharp-tongued lyricism. Last week, the group dropped their latest music video, for "Poor You" a trippy and disorienting display that provides the perfect visual accompaniment to the song's haunting tone and minimalistic sensibilities. Check it out streaming below. -Olivia Sisinni - The Deli Magazine (NYC)

Reliant Tom‘s latest single is a nostalgic affair ruminating on “When We Were Young”. The Brooklyn-based electronic rock band blend synths, guitar, Afrorock rhythms to create a tune reflecting on the things they miss from past years. The style is wistful and dreamy, as any good nostalgic song should be. The minimalist approach is perfect here and allows Claire Cuny’s delightful, charming voice to take center stage. - Sarah Zupko