Toma Kami’s 'missed heaven'

Between Bristol’s Livity Sound and his own ‘mb studio’ imprint, Toma Kami has built a reputation for genre-defying electronic music that speaks volumes. Known for sets that effortlessly drift between dancehall, techno, and jungle, and of course his performances at venues like Berghain and Dekmantel. Now, with his debut album missed heaven, Toma Kami reveals another layer of his artistry – one crafted partially from his grandmother’s countryside home, where “music just seems to pour out of him.” The record steps away from his club-ready signatures, exploring more delicate territory through ambient textures. In softening his edges, he might have just made his most striking statement yet.

Hi Toma Kami. Your signature sound merges elements like hyperpop, trap, and Latin club music. What drew you to these styles, and how do you approach blending them so seamlessly?
These are all amongst genres that I’m constantly listening to, so I guess it was only natural for them to creep up in the music I make eventually. I don’t really approach production with a conscious intention to go in a certain direction, I sort of notice those style patterns afterwards the same way you do. What’s nice about making music after a certain time is that you can naturally allow whatever you have inside you that day to just come out, without thinking too much about what you’re trying to achieve.

Sounds like a very intuitive process. What’s your main source of inspiration? Is it a person, a place, or music style?
It varies so much. It can be a place that I’m in, an image. Often I will get a kick of inspiration after experiencing a performance that stayed with me sonically. I try to make as much music as possible when I’m in the countryside. My grandmother lives in this very isolated place where I spend a lot of time and whenever I’m there the music just seems to pour out of me, it’s kind of magic. 

That sounds so lovely. How does it feel to finally release your debut album, missed heaven, after years of building up your sound?
At this stage, my creative headspace moved on from this project a while ago so it’s nice to rediscover it now as a listener almost, and still feel like it has legs. I’ve always made all sorts of music outside of the dance spectrum, I have a few ‘albums’ that have piled up over the years. But until recently none of it felt like it was worth putting out there.

Now we’re curious to hear the rest too! Looking at the tracklist, the theme of anemoia (aka: nostalgia for a past you’ve never experienced) seems to colour missed heaven. Could you share the kind of memories or feelings you envision in your music (even if they’re imagined)?
It’s almost too personal to try and share those feelings in detail tbh. It just really hit me when I discovered that term, it encapsulates a lot of memories I’ve had listening to music, drifting into melancholia that is completely abstract. I think through this collection of tracks I’m trying to facilitate this for other people to experience this with their own thoughts, rather than share however it makes me feel personally.

So listeners get to make up their own anemoia thanks to your music! We were also wondering as an artist who’s both a DJ and producer, do you approach creating music differently than you do mixing tracks for a set? How does each practice influence the other?
I don’t think they influence each other too much in my case. I see them as two separate practices that I enjoy doing equally. It’s great to be on the road when you’ve been stuck in a production tunnel for a while and staring at a screen, and I also enjoy isolating myself to create after extended periods of touring. I would get bored if I was stuck doing only one of the two.

What can we expect from your shows? Do you see this album influencing your DJ style in new ways?
I don’t think it will impact my djing as I never play my own stuff. Not trying to make a point with that, there’s just always so much music that I’d rather play ten times more. I think it’s normal when you’ve spent countless hours on your own stuff.

What is your favourite song at the moment?
Definitely Withdrawals by Nettspend.

What are you envisioning for 2024?
Let’s see what happens!