Before setting out on the road for a headline tour, Louis Campbell, one-half of the folk music duo Spafford Campbell, spoke to Erazer about how the pair were feeling and what to expect from the run of live shows.
Alongside fiddle player Owen Spafford, guitarist Louis will play live across the UK, performing songs from the group’s debut album. “It’s nice for it to be for other people now,” Louis said about Tomorrow Held, which was released last month under Real World Records. “It’s always strange for something to be building up for such a long time and then suddenly it just flops out.”
Louis and Owen started working on the record in Spring 2024, and after whittling down a list of ‘ideas’ from 100 to 40, they worked out which eight songs would make it to the album. “We spent exactly 45 minutes developing the ones we liked a bit more,” Louis revealed. “We were quite regimented with it, considering it was all based on improvisation.”
Louis and Owen first met as members of the National Youth Folk Ensemble, and although they were from different parts of the country, they instantly connected over music. “Although we have very different backgrounds, the core DNA of the music we like is quite similar.” A few residencies and concerts later, the duo found themselves making their debut album.
One track on Tomorrow Held is MacGill, a song which acts as a homage to great American musicians Jimmy Webb and Glen Campbell. Named after Louis’ Grandma, MacGill channels the style of Jimmy Webb, the songwriter known for Galveston and By the Time I Get to Phoenix. “There is something really beautiful about Jimmy’s writing that he can use quite complicated musical ideas while feeling fully Americana,” Louis said. “It never loses that sense of relatability. We always loved that about those songs.”
Among the musicians Louis has collaborated with is celebrated guitarist Martin Simpson, whom Louis met through Bellowhead fiddler Sam Sweeney. “[Martin has] been this wonderful mentor figure the whole time,” Louis said. “It’s just amazing to be around these people who have spent their lives dedicated to their instruments. He has got such a long history leading the charge with modern-built acoustic guitars.”
Spafford Campbell will be heading out on a UK tour throughout September and October. Kicking off in Poole, the pair will stop off in Sheffield, Leeds, Newcastle, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Manchester, Oxford, Stroud, Brighton, Ashburton, Bristol and London. Find any remaining tickets here: https://www.spaffordcampbell.com/live
“We are really excited,” Louis said ahead of the expansive run of dates. “We are playing everything from the Round Chapel in London to a friend’s cafe in Manchester. It’s nice to be able to dig into the music by doing it over and over again each night.”
Tomorrow Held is available now via Real World Records.
