“There’s a line in the E.E. Cummings poem ‘Somewhere I Have Never Travelled, Gladly Beyond’ which goes ‘No one, not even the rain, has such small hands’ which I paraphrased to ‘Nothing can wash this away, not even the rain’ – I’ve always loved that imagery and intrigue… I’ve never been a realist, the magic and mystery is where my heart lies and where my mind wonders…” John Bramwell 2026
As the singer in I Am Kloot from 1999 to 2014, John Bramwell achieved a Mercury Prize nomination for 2010’s The Sky At Night, a Top 10 chart position for 2013’s Let It All In, numerous UK and European tours and a triumphant farewell at the Queen Elizabeth Hall with an orchestra in 2014.
Now, as a solo artist, Bramwell travels a very different path, a path that criss-crosses the length and breadth of the UK with a humble agenda of taking his heartwarming songs to the stage and enjoying another moment in time with his devoted fans.
The stunning 2023 sophomore solo album, The Light Fantastic was an almost complete u-turn from the I Am Kloot outlook they were known for. Darker clouds banished and in replacement strings, four-part harmonies (a warming development, since Kloot never had any backing vocals) and a dozen gloriously exhilarating, beautifully crafted and observed songs about life, humanity, the universe and everything. As John put it, “It’s been great to find the joy of making music once again. These are the most uplifting songs of my career.”