Kepler Ten

In 2014 having already worked together on various projects for 5 years, Steve Hales, James Durand and Richie Cahill teamed up as a three piece to play some Rush tribute shows. The project was so well received and so enjoyable that they soon made the decision to begin writing originals.

Steve: "It was refreshing to have the freedom for us all to explore ideas and go off in different directions. No ideas were too crazy and we didn't really have a clue where it was going or what it would sound like."

With Steve and James coming from a progressive rock background and Richie providing a harder, bluesier rock guitar the band influences were diverse. Muse, Rush, Yes, Dream Theater, Queensryche, Van Halen even some Queen.

The band signed to White Star Records in 2016 releasing the single - Time and Tide - late that year, followed in 2017 by the full album release - Delta-v. The album was a hit with critics, reviewers and fans, scoring the band a nomination in the UK Prog Awards at the end of 2017 along with several inclusions in journalist's top 10 albums of that year. Shows with Lonely Robot, Von Hertzen Brothers, HRH Prog VI and more followed. Unfortunately Richie departed the band during this spell, his shoes filled by Mike Tillotson.

Then followed a difficult 18 months. Steve suffered a chest illness followed by a back injury which between them sidelined him for almost a year. Mike departed the band and James and Steve withdrew to concentrate on writing new music and lyrics. The storm passed, new ideas emerged, things began to improve once again.

Fast forward to 2019 and recording sessions started in earnest. Over an hour of exciting new material was there but a guitarist was still needed. After posting an advertisement on their social media pages one particular player stood out from the crowd. Alistair Bell. What a revelation. This incredibly technical Scot with all kinds of influences and interpretations, loved the Kepler Ten songs and was soon driving 3 hours to an audition. The very next time the three met was on stage together at a festival!

Steve: "It really was a trial by fire. Alistair played a blinder in stifling 29 degree heat! We were all very relaxed considering we'd only met once before and there were lots of smiles. That's a great sign and the crowd took to him straight away."

The three musicians hit it off immediately, on and off stage and Alistair drove away from that show to work on the new album tracks. The lineup was set. His contribution to the sound of the band was immediate and a new tighter, fresher dynamic emerged between the three musicians.

The result of this new sound was heard for the first time in 2020 when the band released their new single and video - Falling Down - followed a few months later by the full album - A New Kind of Sideways. The release was incredibly well received winning a several awards and featuring in many journalists top ten albums/songs of the year. The pandemic unfortunately scuppered plans to tour the release, but with the situation improving the band are now looking to make up for lost time and get back on the road.