About Me
Touted as a singer-songwriter with "a twist of bluegrass, folk, and jazz," and consistently winning the Eugene Weekly reader’s poll for Best Local Singer-Songwriter, Laura Kemp has gained a reputation as one of the finest performers in the Northwest. She has been a fixture on the folk scene since moving to Oregon in 1990 and over the past 19 years has produced 5 studio albums as well as two live CD’s with the power girl group, Babes With Axes. Accompanying herself on guitar, harmonica, banjo, and harmonium (acquired on a recent trip to India), her musical style is not one to be pegged down, though it is largely rooted in folk and influenced by her time spent living in Nashville and North Carolina. Over the last few years she has been expanding her repertoire with jazz standards and is sometimes heard playing with the jazz trio, Three on the Tree, adding upright bass and saxophone into the mix. Recently inspired by a three month excursion to India in the spring of 2008, and influenced by the music of Krishna Das as well as other modern kirtan artists, her latest musical exploration has been writing music to sanskrit mantras and accompanying herself on the harmonium."With songs that range from sassy rockers to ballads, covering topics from pets to television and every angle on love imaginable performer extraordinaire, Laura Kemp (has the) ability to make an audience chuckle, tear up, and feel an instant connection with her lyrics - all in the course of one song." San Francisco Bay Guardian.In her 20 year career she has performed on numerous stages throughout the country, including Passim in Cambridge, MA, CBGB’s Gallery in NYC, Kuumbwa Jazz Center in Santa Cruz, CA, The Great American Music Hall in San Fransisco, The Crystal Ballroom in Portland, OR, Bumbershoot Festival in Seattle, Bald Eagle Music Festival in Haines, AK, Chamizal Festival in El Paso, TX, Bighorn Mountain Festival in Sheridan, WY, and in her hometown, Eugene, OR on the main stage of the Oregon Country Fair, the Willamette Valley Folk Festival, and the Eugene Celebration.
