UK psych-pop band Tokyo Tea Room brought the dreamy, hypnotic sounds of ‘Feel Forever’ to Bowery Ballroom for their first Manhattan show, delivering a breezy, intimate performance that felt suspended in time.

Stream: ‘Feel Forever’ – Tokyo Tea Room

Sometimes revisiting old memories is unsettling, especially when you see them for what they really were, rather than through rose-colored glasses.

It’s never quite the same, for better or for worse, and there’s something bittersweet about that.

Sometimes you just want to be stuck in one place, feeling forever.

Released September 18, Tokyo Tea Room’s sophomore album Feel Forever has the UK-based band doubling down on their psych-pop sound, adding in lyrical elements that touch on love, desire, and the realization that the best things in life don’t last forever.

“I have a fascination with the impermanent nature of human emotion, moments of feeling that can be powerful and inconsequential at the same time,” songwriter Dan Elliott said of the album in a statement.

“Feel Forever is a response to these natural hits of dopamine, a window to all these things that live on in my mind beyond their expiry date. It’s a mix of the good, the bad and the strange, which I think reflects the outside chaos.”

Even if it’s touching on these big themes, the music itself is super palatable and easy to listen to – Tokyo Tea Room even landed on Spotify’s “Soft Office” playlist.

“There’s something about you I love,
I didn’t know my world would change.
When I’m without you
I know Home becomes an empty space.”

– “Always in the Sun,” Tokyo Tea Room

The band took their dreamy sound onto the stage for their headlining North American tour.

At Bowery Ballroom, Tokyo Tea Room created one of the most laid-back concert experiences, complete with mood lighting and cheering family members scattered throughout the venue.

The band sauntered on stage to “Burning Down the House” by Talking Heads, waving to the crowd before launching into “Forever Out of Time.” Almost instantly, it felt like a Beach House-esque atmosphere, with the airy, almost wispy song.

After thanking the audience for coming, Tokyo Tea Room said this was only their second time performing in New York City and their first time playing in Manhattan. One of the members even said they tried their first New York bagel earlier in the day, which snagged a few cheers from the locals in the crowd.

“All Night” was definitely one of the more upbeat moments, bringing a little extra momentum to the set. There was even an infant wearing headphones bopping around with their guardian.

What was really noticeable throughout the concert was how cohesive the band felt – every song felt well-rehearsed and just easy.

To some, that simple sound could come across as a sense of restraint, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Tokyo Tea Room found its groove (literally) with its breezy, hypnotic synth and drum combo, leaning into a sound popularized by groups like Men I Trust, Vansire, The Marías, and, in the right lighting, Beach House.

As they said themselves in “All Night”: “The energy just feels right.”

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 © Tamibé Bourdanné

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