Okay, so my New Year’s Resolution should be to update this blog on a more frequent basis.  Sadly, the hectic touring & recording schedule doesn’t always allow this but I feel the least I can do is improve on my woeful 2012 effort.

I would like to thank all who have helped me, in any way no matter how small, throughout the course of 2012, which was without any doubt, the most successful & enjoyable year of my career to date.  I toured in 15 European countries, my busiest yet, in support of the new album ‘How We Once Were’, which I have been both humbled & delighted by the reaction to.

We are currently arranging numerous dates for 2013, please keep an eye on the gigs page for details & if anyone is able to help in this regard please contact me directly.  I am hoping to tour in new countries this year also, and again will ensure that any news I have is posted here first.

In terms of releases, I have just finished recording all my parts for a new album, once more in Kevock Digital Studios with Ian McCalman.  16 songs were worked on, 12 of which will form the basis of a new album to be released later in the year, whilst the remaining 4 will be put onto to a limited edition EP.  I’m currently in rehearsals with a variety of musicians at the moment, with a view to them recording their parts over the next few months.

And at last, there are also talks of work on a further limited edition release with long-term collaborator Tom Merritt-Smith (Carefree Prisoner & Impasse).

I will be on the road again in Germany in February and hope to see friends, old & new, then.

All the very best to you all for the coming year.

SK x

Hello,

I’m just back from another great tour of Germany and am getting set for my maiden tour of Portugal….

The reaction to the album has been great, I’m really pleased with it – to those of who have written a kind review or given the album airplay/exposure I thank you greatly.

And to those of you who took the time to buy a copy, again I thank you – your support is much appreciated and I hope you enjoy the album.

Now to prepare for a mammoth few months which includes a two-week holiday in Kazakhstan & Kryrgyzstan as a break between the hard touring.

So long, and I hope to see you on the road soon.

S x

Hello All,

Fresh from my brilliant tour of Finland, Estonia & Lithuania I’m very pleased to announce that my third album ‘How We Once Were’ is out today – now available to puchase from www.simonkempston.co.uk/album/ – there are many other ways to buy the album of course, but please consider buying directly from the website and supporting an independent artist (i.e. me) directly.

As a little taster for you, here is a very new video that Sunny and the brilliant team at Balcony TV Kanuas made on my recent tour of Lithuania – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pn6y0D8ea40 – the song is entitled ‘Careless Interventionist’ and is the first song on the new album.  It is a song of reflection, drawing on, though not exclusively about, personal experience of isolation whilst living in London several years ago – I hope you enjoy it, please feel free to leave comments on the video, here or on Facebook.

And of course, all thoughts upon the new album would be very much appreciated.

Hope to see you all at a concert soon – for those of you in Edinburgh, please do consider coming along to one of the Festival shows I shall be participating in – further details here –http://www.edfringe.com/whats-on/music/scottish-songwriters-in-the-round

SK x

Well, it has been a little while since I have posted, granted, but I have not been idle! In the interim period I have undertaken my first tour of Finland, Estonia, Latvia & Lithuania! All four countries were fantastic from both a musical and a personal perspective, and it all went so well that I will be back (in Finland, Estonia & Lithuania at least) in July. I concluded the tour with a wonderful few days in the stunning city of Kaunas & the kind gentlemen at Kaunas Acoustics shot this video of me performing ‘To The Wilderness’ in the city – please watch & listen here – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xbXe1SvpIt4&feature=related.  There will be two more instalments so do watch this space!

April saw another performance as part of Edinburgh’s wonderful Ceilidh Culture Festival, my only Scottish gig of late but forages south of the border have seen me appear in Keswick, Devon, at the High Barn in Great Bardfield & the Acoustic Festival of Great Britain in Uttoxeter. I have dates in England this weekend in Didcot, Stafford & a return to the Audlem Festival before departing for a tour of Germany (with an opening date in Switzerland).

In other news, my new album is to be called ‘How We Once Were’ and will be released on the 30th of July. There will be a modest ‘launch night’ in Edinburgh towards the end of June, details & invitations to follow! Pre-orders will be available on this site from the end of June also. The CDs feature bespoke artwork with a full 8-page colour booklet which includes all song lyrics.

On this subject, several people have asked about downloading my songs – to cut a long story short there is no facility to do this at the moment as I am in the process of switching providers – again this will be up and running by the end of June in time for the launch of the new album.

So, the next few weeks are set to be an incredibly exciting time for my music & I – thank you all for reading & for sharing in the journey.

I look forward to seeing you on the road somewhere soon!

All the best,

SK x

Well, it’s been a little quiet on the touring front as of late, although the year to date has seen a couple of mini-tours, one of the North of Scotland & the other of the South West of England; which included a support slot to the legendary Dave Swarbrick at the beautiful Bristol Folk House.

This is not without good reason, as I have been very busy in the studio with Ian McCalman putting the final touches to the new album, which I’m happy to say is almost ready to be mastered. Artwork concepts are being worked through & we should have a final product pretty soon, all set for a launch in the late spring, in good time for the busy festival season. I’m honestly not just saying this, but I’m very proud of this record – all the musicians who appear on it sound fantastic & I am of the firm belief that it is the finest record I’ve made yet. And I, of course, very much hope you will all agree.

I’m currently putting together my 2012 touring schedule which in addition to dates all over the UK, will also include return tours to Holland, Germany & Switzerland with hopefully further dates in Austria, Ireland & Slovakia too. And for the first time I shall also be performing in Latvia, Finland & Estonia.

Please keep a close eye on the gigs page, which is changing all the time. I, of course, very much hope to see you all at a show soon.

Very best wishes,

SK x

Well 2011 was my busiest year ever, with Scottish highlights including sell-out performances at Ceilidh Culture and the Edinburgh Festival Fringe amongst many performances the length & breadth of the country, successful tours of Ireland, Slovakia, Germany and Holland, and numerous tours of England and Wales including several festival performances.

In November, I undertook an exhausting 8 country tour of Europe spanning the length of November in support of my recently released second album ‘Impasse’ and I rounded off the year with a few more concerts in Holland & Belgium before seeing in the New Year in Muelheim, Germany.

We’re currently hard at work on my third full-length studio album (not including Man Gone Missing releases or ‘The Loss of an Unknown’), to be released in Spring 2012 – the arrangements are sounding fantastic, and with Ian McCalman on the production tiller, the music is not only sounding great, it’s been great fun as well. Please keep an eye on this blog for more information about the release.

Happy New Year, and I very much hope to see you at a gig soon (keep an eye on the gigs page – it’s changing all the time).

SK x

Wow, what a month I have had! I’ve been robbed in Amsterdam, and my car’s engine decided to cease up on me…..but the music and the concerts have been great.

Amsterdam, Den Bosch, Ede, Eindhoven, Mulheim an der Ruhr, Gothenburg, Malmo, Ystad, Ronne – all fantastic nights, thank you so much to those who took the time to see the shows. Pretty much in Scotland for a wee while now until I head off again for the continent in early November and am very happy that this is the case – I need a bit of rest!

I have also been in the studio working on the third album with Ian McCalman, which is set to feature Marty Camino on double bass, Adam Nash on violin, Louie Robertson on acoustic guitar & Inge McIlroy on backing vocals. It’s sounding excellent so far, testament to the fine work the musicians have all put in.

Thank you also to all those who have bought ‘Impasse’ – it received a lovely review in Acoustic Magazine (issue 157) amongsth others and the feedback I’ve received from all of you has been amazing. Also, there’s a nice review of our Edinburgh Festival show here – http://www.threeweeks.co.uk/article/ed2011-music-review-simon-kempston/

Hope to see you a few of you somewhere on the road soon.

Until then, all the very best.

SK x

Hello,

Just a quick note to let you all know that I shall be performing this Sunday night at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.  Details are here – http://www.edfringe.com/whats-on/music/simon-kempston – 2130 at the Acoustic Music Centre, St Bride’s in Orwell Terrace.  I really hope to see a few of you there.

This is the new website – a few slight modifications still to be undertaken but do let us know your thoughts.

See you on the road soon!

SK x

Hello all,

This is just a short note to let you know I’m appearing live on internet tv tonight – streaming here at 1900 – http://www.justin.tv/djbluetone/videos. Tune in if you can!

SK x

Hello all,

Just a short note to let you know that my new album ‘Impasse’ will be released on May the 23rd – everything is extremely hectic just now but I can say that I’m extremely happy with the finished product and feel that it is my best yet. Having finished it, I can’t wait to get out on the road and perform all the new songs, and am excited and nervous as to how they will be received.

Details of how to purchase the album etc. will be posted here soon – and on that note, this website is about to undergo a major facelift! Will be going live soon enough, and with a bit of luck in good time for the release.

I’ve had a fantastic month since I last posted, and have performed at Ceilidh Culture in my adopted home city of Edinburgh for the first time, as well as shows everywhere from Ullapool to Abertillery, including great shows in Dunferline, St Monan’s, Keswick and Keighley amongst many others. Really enjoy performing in Wales, I must say! I seem to have developed a preference for performing in small, beautiful mountainous countries – Scotland, Ireland, Wales & will add another to the list with my maiden tour of stunning Slovakia at the end of June/start of July.

Keep an eye on this page and the myspace for new dates and I’ll hopefully . And I now have a facebook – please come and say hello here –
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Simon-Kempston/119084861501022?sk=info#!/pages/Simon-Kempston/119084861501022?sk=wall

Hope to see you all soon.

Best,

SK