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Karim Fanous (Contemporary Acoustic)
Accoustic pop, or pop with a folk twist from London.
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Karim moved to London with his family when he was six... 'I think the plan was always to move to move to Europe to absorb the culture and opportunites, but I'll never forget the Middle East... I would consider myself English and my formative years were spent here in London, but I am very proud and aware of my arab roots.'
Karim's musical education began in Primary school where he took up the recorder and follwed on to the clarinet, which he continued to study in secondary school. 'I was lucky to have the opportunity to learn these classical instruments and play in the school concert bands and orchestras. I have met many amazing and deep musicians along the way - better than I could ever be- and I consider myself advantaged by the experience'.
His love for popular music developed in secondary school where he also began to play the guitar. 'I started mucking around with steel strung acoustic guitars when I was about 16. So I taught myself some chords and riffs and it all came along from there. I never really intended to be a singer or a songwriter, and I had a pretty loud and uncontrolled voice. It just happened really one day when I was about 17. I wrote my first song and thought nothing of it, I just wanted to give it to my girlfriend!'
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Karim's songwriting developed at university (where he read Psychology and Philosophy) but he never took it that seriously, spending more time playing rugby, having fun and trying to get a degree: 'I was always writing songs randomly and naturally and never had any intention of doing anything with them or playing them live, except to share with my friends. In the last year of my uni studies, a friend of mine said let's form a band and I said ok!' The band PrizeApart was born and Karim has not looked back since. 'From then on, I was hooked on music. I started taking writing and playing more seriously, and tried to develop my voice. I also learned a lot about music technology and recording, and recorded and produced our songs. Since then, to make ends meet I have done alot of audio engineering on film soundtracks and for other bands, from Tango to pop, and have also had the fortune to co-write a title song for a film coming out next year. But my solo stuff is where it's really at for me, it's what matters most. It's only been going for a short while now but so much has happened!'
Karim began playing live on his own at the end of 2004 and has just finished recording his debut EP 'Word, Song and String'. He has a powerful, dynamic voice, which can render anything from the subtleties of a passionate love song to a rock and roll or soul belter. The amazing thing about his music is that it is so accessible but so unique. You could call it acoustic pop, or pop with a folk twist, but you won't have heard anything like it before. He calls it: 'Everything from acoustic pop and rock to folk, love songs, hate songs, and one guitar funk rapture.... Ha!'.The sound of him and his guitar live is overpowering, and yet so inclusive. One instrument and one voice fill out so much space. 'I want it to be the sound of a steam train running at full pelt and you trying to clap it along to go faster. The sound of kissing your chick by the fire. The sound of a night out with the boys. The sound of a date gone wrong. I like to think it's the sound of life. The life that I live and the life that you live.' |
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Karim Fanous Lists the following Influences
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Del Amitri, Eric Clapton, The Black Crowes, Robert Johnson, Joni Mitchell & Ac/Dc.... Names a few!
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Pop
