Antigonish County-based singer-songwriter Kim Wempe will be playing a sold-out concert this Friday at Justamere Café. (Contributed photo)

Share

Tweet

For Antigonish County-based singer-songwriter Kim Wempe, a cover of Willie Nelson’s famous song On the Road Again might be appropriate.
Wempe, who will be playing a sold-out show at Justamere Café in Antigonish this Friday (Feb. 17), said she has done a “ton of touring” over the last year.
“I played some amazing festivals last summer like the Stan Rogers Folk Festival, the Lunenburg Folk Harbour Festival and the Larlee Creek Hullabalou in New Brunswick,” Wempe said, as she relaxed in her Ohio home, enjoying a short break in her touring schedule.
“Those opportunities and experiences are awesome,” she added. “I think just a year touring, to get that under my belt, was good. I have a lot more experience and can write a lot more songs. I’m looking forward to kind-of starting a new album.”
Starting the new album, which would be a follow-up to her very successful Painting With Tides, could come in May. Wempe said the material is basically ready.
“I have a few more songs to write but I think I pretty much have the album,” she said, adding nothing has been confirmed as of yet however.
As for the show in her adopted community this Friday, Wempe said she is really looking forward to playing in front of familiar faces.
“I haven’t played Antigonish since the Bauer Theatre (Oct. 23, 2010) and I’m looking forward to seeing so many people,” she said.
“This is my community, it’s where I live, so to see that support when you come home, especially after touring so much, it means a lot. I’m really excited to do the show. It’s going to be very intimate and I have a bunch of new songs and stories.”
She said being home also can help the creative process from a combination of her strong support system around Antigonish and the natural beauty around her home in Ohio.
“My first day home, I wake up and look outside and say, ‘this is crazy, I forgot I live here,’ she said with a chuckle. “ It’s so beautiful, especially with all the snow here now. Just being outside in woods helps the creative process.”
But, as is the life of a performing artist, Wempe’s return home will be brief as she heads out on the road next week with dates in Newfoundland and then a trek out to British Columbia and Saskatchewan.
Wempe said she is “excited” and looking forward to the shows.
“I’m just constantly keeping at it,” she said. “I just go out there and do my thing.”