Tamar Berk is ready for a Permanent Vacation

Indie pop singer-songwriter Tamar Berk will debut her new music video for "Permanent Vacation" on the Reader Youtube page at midnight, January 18/19. "This little mini-movie is everything that I wanted it to be," she says. "It’s certainly my most favorite video I’ve made." Directed and filmed by Brandon Mosquera, "Permanent Vacation" was inspired by her first post-pandemic vacation trip. "Having never been to Costa Rica, we decided to go there. Although I have always been afraid of flying, traveling, airports, and crowds of people exacerbated my anxiety. It kept occurring to me that I wanted this trip to change me, and make me a different person."

"After the event, I was a changed person in many ways, but I still went back to my daily grind after it was over. Every experience exists only in our minds and in the way we remember it. It's about a deep desire to leave your present situation and find something better, but you don't know how to do it."

Berk grew up playing piano and started writing songs on guitar as a teenager. While living in Chicago, she played in regional bands like her first, power pop group Starball, known for their tracks like the 2001 song "New Year's Day" ("I wanted to write a holiday song"). She went on to play in an electro-punk duo with her husband that they named the Countdown, a Small Faces cover band called Deep Joy, and she briefly had a group with Kim Thompson called Sweet Heat. Relocating to Portland, she played keys with the Pynnacles. Her group Paradise released three albums, including a rock opera. Among the labels her bands recorded for are Kill Rock Stars, Minty Fresh, and Invisible Records. 

After moving to San Diego, her album The Restless Dreams of Youth was released in summer 2021, preceded by singles for “Better Off Meditating” and “Cleveland.” The video for the latter track matches her own super-8 home movies from childhood, alongside images of her grown up and making a life for herself in San Diego. 

Another single, “Shadow Clues,” earned positive reviews in Northern Transmissions and Stereo Embers Magazine. That track also appeared on the 2021 edition of the local music compilation series Staring at the Sun, and a Tiny Desk Concert duo video version was released as well. Berk also performed the duo concert version on episode 12 of the local music internet program MusicSceneSD TV.

The album includes local guests including Chris Davies (the Penetrators, Chloe Lou & the Liddells), who she first met while during San Diego tour dates with the Pynnacles. Berk also frequently works with Chicago-based drummer Matt Walker, known from the Smashing Pumpkins, Morrissey, Garbage, and Filter. Her daughter has her own band, the Fluorescents, later known as The Inflorescence, with their debut album released in 2021.

In early 2022, a single and video was released for a track from an upcoming project, "Your Permission." "Tragic Endings" was the second single off her sophomore album Start at the End, released in April 2022. The accompanying video features Berk performing the song outdoors on a rooftop, along with footage of her riding an oceanfront rollercoaster. Start at the End was nominated for Best Pop Album and Best Pop Artist at the San Diego Music Awards.

New singles dropped in summer 2023 for “Drop in the Bucket,” "Cash Out," and “If U Know, U Know,” all from her third album Tiny Injuries, with a music video produced for “Drop in the Bucket.”