Tom Vek

After listening to some of Tom Vek's material, individuals unfamiliar with the British musician's history might think he's some weathered old songsmith who has decades of experience writing pensive tunes filled with forward thinking instrumentals. With tracks that blend well produced, electronic-tinged arrangements with Vek's characteristic voice, thinking of the musician as a veteran of the scene is not ill-founded, but Vek is not some grizzled patriarch of the music community who has honed his chops by playing countless shows on dizzying tours over the years. Vek did, in fact, spend years playing, finding his sonic footing--but it was in his parents garage, not in some posh recording studio or on some cross country tour. This time spent in his parents carport no doubt forced Vek to practice hours upon hours and record material in a very amateur fashion. Doing this, though, helped the small label Tummy Touch Records notice the young Vek and sign him in 2001. He took his time recording his debut LP, We Have Sound, which was released in 2005 to rave reviews, but the gestation period for the album proved worthwhile. Many of the experimental pop songs proved Vek's ability as a songwriter and an accomplished modern day musician who's more than capable of creating some cerebral indie rock styled music.