Thom Brookes is a modern day travelling troubadour. Having recently swapped the bright lights of England for the relative peace of County Kerry it wasn’t a decision he took lightly. “I have always moved about a bit. Never really settling for very long,” he said. “England is very crowded. I’ve recently become a dad and thought that it would be a great place to raise my daughter. And there’s a certain spirit in Ireland that draws me – those ancient voices.”
Having visited Kerry before thanks to his extended family he “fell in love with its beauty”. With an Irish manager and producer it all “just kind of fits”.
With a new E.P ‘Milk’ just released for a free download the singer and multi-instrumentalist describes himself as “a nobody wanting to be a somebody in a foreign land”. ( A review of ‘Milk’ by GoldenPlec can be found here)
The E.P has really whet the appetite for new listeners around Ireland and, with an Album that has “been in the pipeline for some time” ready for release in spring, there are exciting times ahead.
Many people would see releasing a self-recorded E.P to the unforgiving public as a daunting task. Brookes doesn’t see it this way. “The internet is awash with music nowadays. Everybody is doing it. If you get too precious with things they never see the light of day,” he said.
With a varied taste in music ranging from Dylan to the Beatles Brookes finds inspiration in a unique way. “I look deep inside myself and find an empty space, where it’s cold and dark. Then I find the echo and bounce it around ’til it becomes familiar.”
With a teacher father and a librarian mother it seemed inevitable that Brookes with form an interest in Poetry from a young age. This interest helps with the song writing process but also helps him to unwind. “I like to read history books too. I find the past far more inspiring than the present or the future” he said.
In his opinion poetry in music is still alive and kicking in 2013. “Dylan’s still delivering. His output in the last ten years has been great, profound stuff. I really envy some of The Tallest Man On Earth’s songwriting too. He’s a natural.”
The writing process for ‘Milk’ was a labor of love for Brookes and his new family. “We had a baby. And we’d moved house a few times leading up to it. Things are easier now though. Recording at home is great. I find studios very daunting and there’s nobody watching me do vocal takes when I’m at home.”
The next twelve months for Thom Brookes look promising with some shows leading up to his album release in Spring and the relase of more free songs he is extremely positive about things to come.
In the meantime Thom has a gig on Saturday the 7th Of December at Young Hearts Run Free and is playing Ruby Sessions on Tuesday 10th December.