Tom Vek

Biography

Thomas Timothy Vernon-Kell (born 10 May 1981) is an English multi-instrumentalist musician who works under the name of Tom Vek.

Career

Born in Hounslow, London, England, he signed to the small label Tummy Touch Records in 2001, having spent the previous eight years writing and recording in his parents' garage.
Vek's debut album We Have Sound×We Have Sound4 April 2005 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracks1C‐C (You Set the Fire in Me)4:332I Ain’t Saying My Goodbyes3:463If You Want3:474A Little Word in Your Ear3:525If I Had Changed My Mind3:386The Lower the Sun3:377Cover3:368Nothing but Green Lights4:179On the Road4:1110That Can Be Arranged3:50 was recorded whilst he completed a graphic design degree. The album was finished in mid-2004 but was not released until 2005 when Island Records licensed it through Go! Beat Records. The record was subsequently licensed through Universal Records to Startime International for a North American release.
Vek made a guest appearance on the television programme The OC, where he performed a gig at 'The Bait Shop' venue; the third-season episode 'The Road Warrior' featured his track "I Ain't Saying My Goodbyes×I Ain't Saying My Goodbyes21 March 2005 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracks1I Aint Saying My Goodbyes2Summer Fall". He also contributed to the Grand Theft Auto IV soundtrack, with "One Horse Race" which was the B-side to his single, "Nothing but Green Lights×Nothing but Green Lights12 September 2005 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracks1Nothing But Green Lights4:192Nothing But Green Lights (Digitalism remix)6:03".
Vek released his second album, Leisure Seizure×Leisure Seizure6 June 2011 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 12 tracks1Hold Your Hand3:382Aroused3:313A Chore3:474We Do Nothing4:015World of Doubt3:056Seizemic4:007A.P.O.L.O.G.Y.4:368Someone Loves You3:359Close Mic’ed5:4610On a Plate3:3811You Need to Work Your Heart Out3:5712Too Bad3:50, in 2011 after a six-year absence from the music industry. The first single from the album, "A Chore", had its Radio 1 debut on Zane Lowe's show on 18 April that year. In 2012, his song "Aroused" from the album was featured on the soundtrack of Forza Horizon. Also in 2011, he was guest vocalist on the album track, and single, "Warning Call", on DJ Shadow's The Less You Know, the Better.
On 11 April 2014, Vek announced his third album, Luck, along with the release of the album's first single, 'Sherman (Animals in the Jungle)'. Luck was finally released in June 2014 to mixed reviews. NME said about the album "There are flashes of brilliance but the singer's third album misfires too often" while the Guardian was more favourable, describing it as "deliciously unpredictable"
On 12 November 2020, Vek announced his fourth album, New Symbols×New Symbols12 November 2020 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 8 tracks1Survive6:292Guilty Pleasure4:153Slippery Fish5:174Rolling You Down4:145All The Time In The World5:456My Child6:277Washed Up On The Beach5:238Fountains Spit Your Name5:49, and Sleevenote, a music player device he designed.
On 8 August 2022, Vek released a Newer Symbols, a "full re-work" of New Symbols. Each track of Newer Symbols shares its name with a track from New Symbols, with the word "new" added. Vek also made an NFT available for each track.