Koukie

I initially thought that “Songs From An Empty Stage” was a soundtrack to some West End show that had, as they all do, escaped my attention and that Koukie, for it is she, was merely taking her time in the spotlight somewhat more seriously than most until I realised that, after the twelve songs that make up this album, that very spotlight was still shining brightly on Koukie.
From the opening chords, Koukie brings a sense of the dramatic to all that she sings. “Secret Garden” opens this album and goes over the top as if on the run from a capricious Andrew Lloyd Webber. All is not as it seems though as “A Man In A Suit” then derails the blockbuster train just for a visit to the elegant land of cabaret and, with a gleeful abandonment of irony, appears to reinforce good old fashioned values although that is soon revealed to be but a pretence with the joyously theatrical “Koukie’s Song” deconstructing the very idea with little more than immaculate phrasing and emancipated thinking. Koukie knows she is a woman in a man’s world.
The stage is never far away however and “Eclipse” keeps the curtain from coming down early on Koukie’s domination of the auditorium. Make no mistake. She’s way too classy to be a mere puppet operated by the words of others and everything she does is stamped with her very own highly disciplined mark of quality and, still fully energised, she proves that by launching “Bring It On” towards the stars.
Pure theatre, pure showtunes in a rock format, pure class. A star is born and, if I had a heart, I would willingly give it to Koukie.

Rating: 5 / 5
Website: www.koukie.com
Reviewer: Bluesbunny
Review Date: Aug 17 2014 - Bluesbunny Music Reviews

KOUKIE - SONGS FROM AN EMPTY STAGE

The debut release from London singer Koukie fuses sultry jazz vocals
with an overriding sense of playfulness to create a theatrical but
pleasing album. This innate joviality resonates throughout the album,
particularly on the single Stop You With Love, Koukie's Song and the
up-tempo finale, Free, in which she lauds cherries as "teardrops of
heaven". One slight detraction is the lengthy intros to certain songs:
for instance, I Forgive You and A Man In The Suit, although the latter's
Bond-esque feel more than compensates. Fun, classy and delightfully
conducted, Songs From An Empty Stage is, as Koukie says on Eclipse,
"insanely divine".

Rating: 7/10

(Review by Ian Holt) - Press Association

A big opener leading to a mellow and soft vocal at first confused me, but worked in a way I'm not sure I've heard before.

Here we have operatic rock with glimpses of cabaret and punk - perhaps genres that at first you believe shouldn't be combined, but go on to be something tremendous when woven together and produced in this way.

A unique tone is present throughout and it's hard to draw a comparison to any other artist out there right now - there's certainly a gap in the market for someone like Koukie, but the real question is whether she'd appeal to the masses rather than a niche audience of few.

'Stop You With Love' is a very experimental single, and a brave move for a relatively unknown artist - but those who want to make their impact known need to take these chances if they're ever to be successful. Imitation is a great form of flattery, but the ability to stand out on your own is something much more powerful indeed, and something Koukie has in spades.

Koukie's single is out March 3, and her debut solo album 'Songs From An Empty Stage' is to be released on the same day.


Rating : 4/5


(Review by Daniel Falconer) - Female First

Koukie is just as theatrical as her striking look with purple long eyelashes, and her doll-like appearance, as well as her stage clothes too! She belted-out her first song Stop You With Love that made your ears prick-up and take notice. Bring It On was calmer, Koukie’s Song had the same energy vibe than her first song, and Eclipse was a groovy affair, which showed a different dimension to her usual cabaret folk music that was evident in I Forgive You, and A Man In The Suit.

Koukie’s debut album Songs From An Empty Stage, is available @ iTunes. - Clown Magazine

London-based Koukie is a recording solo artist with a band. The singer composer and poet is delighted to announce the release of her debut solo album, Songs From An Empty Stage. Fusing rock opera with gypsy, punk and cabaret into a fireball of sound, hers is music for a new generation. Koukie dazzles audiences everywhere she goes with style and charisma. ‘If Queen and Shirley Bassey were to have a child, Koukie would be the one blasting off your ears,’’ says Porchlight Studios producer Niall Woods.
Koukie graduated from London College of Music in 2011, with a Bmus Popular Music Performance. That year, she was chosen by the heads of London College of Music to be the pop icon in the LCM Summer Showcase, beating off competition from over 3000 other students across the capital, to perform her signature Koukie’s Song.
Koukie has since appeared live at London venues, including a sellout headline show at The Garage in Islington. She’s been a special guest at an Ealing Youth Orchestra concert, and recently held a performance with LCM Sinfonia at St Barnabas Church, presenting songs from the album with a 100 piece orchestra and a rock band.
Koukie has spent the last 2 years writing, arranging and recording her new album. The album was produced by Niall Woods of Porchlight Studios in Dublin and London. It features contributions from many top musicians, including One Direction’s bass player Sandy Beales.
Martin Riley, arranger of the Performance of The Music of Deep Purple by the Moscow Symphony Orchestra, has arranged the orchestral versions of songs included on the album.

Why did you select this song as your current single?
Because it sums up as well as one can the essence of my music. It is one of the strongest songs on the album I believe, and you can find operatic rock with glimpses of cabaret and punk in it. Within 3 minutes you are taken through a whole range of genres in a way you would never imagine but it is all woven together and produced making complete sense. I thought this single would be a good representative of Koukie because that is what happens with every track and the album as a whole.

How does this single relate to the rest of the Album, EP or Mix-tape?
It showcases clearly the way I like my music to be. In songwriting as well as my personal life, I don’t like to stick around in one place for too long. I get bored. So it reflects in my music. Every song consists of many different sections with very little or none repetition. And even if a certain section is being repeated, it always returns in a slightly different format. Therefore it is really hard to draw a typical pop song structure to it. There are verses and choruses if you’d like to call them that way, but they all might have a different melody or chord structure. So ‘’Stop You With Love’’ is no different. It probably has the most repetition of all of the songs in the album, but otherwise it travels through genres, styles, emotions and shades of music with the speed of light, leaving a trail of story behind to hold on to.

What was the writing process for the song?
‘’Stop You With Love’’ was written at the very early stages of creating the album, so it is one of the first songs written. It was at a time when I had taken a deeper interest in jazz music, hence the scatting at the end of it. Writing the music was quite easy if I can recall it correctly. It happened over night in complete darkness with my eyes closed. That is how I preferred to compose music at that time. One thing I remember very clearly is, I felt like I was ready to compose a new song, the lyrics had already been written a few days ago, so I sat down at the piano, closed my eyes and put my hands on the keys randomly, without any thinking. The very first chord that came out ended up being the first chord of the song. Well, the first chord of the first verse, to be precise. I wrote the intro for it afterwards. The rest of the song seemed to just pour out of me seamlessly after that.

What does this song’s lyric mean to you?
The inspiration lyrically for it came from a particular situation where I had to struggle with a person in a superior position than I was for ‘’a place under the sun’’, if you can call it that way. They really didn’t like me and tried to create many different obstacles for me to fall on so that I wouldn’t succeed. At first I was slightly intimidated by them, then I got angry but then I realized that there is no point of harvesting any of those feelings. To win in this struggle I had to stop them, but with love, meaning I wouldn’t fight back with the same destructive tools they were using. It meant taking myself out of the equation and taking the high road. If I didn’t participate and dropped my fear, they had no more power left over me. It is obviously easier said than done, and less possible at times. But in this particular situation it worked like a charm. So I had to write a song about it!

What would it be like to see you in person performing this song?
It would be very interesting. I don’t want to give away too much and it also feels a bit weird to tell someone how great it would be to see me perform live. But from what I’ve heard and gathered, it is quite unusual. I guess it is because of my desire to use my hands as tools to ‘’paint’’ the music and project whatever is being played through my fingertips. I am a fan of expressive gestures and storytelling. And for that I need my both hands, face, eyes and body. It will never be the same, simply because there are so many exciting things happening in the arrangement that every time I perform it, I will be able to focus on only a couple of them. Which also keeps it very interesting for me. So I guess the answer to this question would be – to see me perform this song live would help you dot the I’s and cross the T’s in regarding to what it all means. A full circle as one might say.

Could your fans summarize who you are as an artist by this song?
Yes and no. Like I mentioned above, this song is one of the strongest representatives of my music and definitely my debut album ‘’Songs From An Empty Stage’’. There are a lot of clues that give away what I’m like if you know what to look for. But I guess one of the major characteristics of me as an artist is change. So if there is one things you can be certain, it is that I will change a lot and my music will change a lot. How or when is irrelevant. But equally I can’t promise I will change again because I really don’t like to commit to something permanently and give away the freedom of ‘’anything could happen’’. So if that is what this song summarizes and leaves an impression with then my fans have definitely got the right idea about me!

Is there a video planned and or completed and if so, what was the idea behind the video?
There isn’t a video just yet although I have a very unusual idea for it. And because it is unusual, I haven’t had the opportunity nor the resources to achieve it. And I don’t want to make another video that is no different from everything else that’s out there just for the sake of it. I would heavily contradict myself that way, wouldn’t I. So I will have to hold out for it a bit longer and hope that the right opportunities will come along to accomplish my vision. Meanwhile, I am about to release a live performance video of ‘’Stop You With Love’’ with a 100-piece orchestra and a rock band as a consolation prize.

One last question, what is your motivation behind your music?
Very easy. My well being. I know a lot of people say they can’t live without music, or that they’ll die if they stop doing it. I can live without it, and I don’t die on a daily basis when I’m not performing or writing. But I just don’t want to live without my music. I have come to realize that no matter what happens I will never be truly satisfied and completely happy, if I don’t put my eyelashes on and become Koukie every once in a while. So I don’t really have a motivation behind my music. I just don’t have a choice. If I want to ever smile again. - IMove iLive Online Music Magazine

The music of Indie Performer, Koukie is decidedly different, decidedly fabulous, decidedly avant garde! This London-¬based musical artist seamlessly blends and fuses rock, opera, punk, and cabaret into one fireball of sound for a new generation of music lovers. Please join us in an exclusive musical spotlight – Who is Koukie? Enjoy!

Isaac: I would like to ask you for the readers of this online publication who have never heard your music, explain your sound in 5 words:

Koukie: Musical madness with gleeful abandonment.

Isaac: Best description of the year!

Isaac: With respect to musical icons, who would you consider to be your most significant musical influences?

Koukie: I’m going to avoid the most popular answer to this question ‘’There are so many!’’, and just explain 3 major genres/artists that have shaped my musical taste into the fireball of sound it is today.

1. Classical Music. Obviously, an incredibly wide genre, which dominated first 16 years of my life with my great grandmother a piano teacher, my dad a trumpet player, and my parents sending me to a music school at the age of 3.5. Impossible to avoid an influence, but if I have to call out leading favorites, they would have to be Ludwig van Beethoven and Edvard Grieg.

2. Musical Theatre. Again, an ambiguous category with every possible variation within it. However, all of them satisfy my cravings for theatre, showtunes and class. From Leonard Bernstein to Marvin Hamlisch, Stephen Sondheim and Andrew Lloyd Webber, to name a few.

3. Queen. Besides it being my dad’s favorite band and therefore inevitably knowing all of their songs by the age of 10, they possess a boldness and an abandonment that thrills me so powerfully, I am ready to drop everything the second their song comes on and I just have to live through all the shades of harmony and emotion it portrays.

Isaac: Do you have a favorite song to play from your collection so far?

Koukie: Yes. The one I’ve written most recently. It gets played again and again in my head until it’s settled and I have space in my heart to look at the next one.

Isaac: I am interested to know who you are listening to at the moment. What bands and artists should we have our ears on right now who you think deserve the spotlight?

Koukie: I don’t think just because it’s new that I should be listening to it now. It is difficult for me because I’m finding it really hard to get excited about a lot of the new releases. And more often than not, I end up going through music that was released from over 20 years ago to find something that inspires me. I build a collection of music to go back to, and each of the artists serve a different purpose – some of them are there to help me get through a tough day, some will give me that uplifting emotion that life is beautiful. Others are on my playlist to help me meditate and get rid of all the background noise in my head, or to just give me a ‘jump-around-and-shake-your-hair’ therapy. On top of all the music I mentioned as my main influences, there’s plenty of artists that keep influencing me on a daily basis. Jamie Cullum’s in it, Muse is in it, Michael Jackson, Sting, John Legend, Elbow, Sara Bareilles, Seal, even George Michael. But one artist I believe is not getting enough spotlight for her worth, is Fiona Apple. She’s been around for a long time, and has had 4 brilliant albums. All of which are each better than the other, and doesn’t have an expiry date. If I could only bring one album with me to a desert island, it would be one of Fiona’s. Which one? Now that’s a tough choice!

Isaac: Since you write your own music; where do you draw inspiration from when you write songs and what’s your favorite part about the process?

Koukie: The inspiration comes from my life. Everything is really personal and real with me. So if the song says it, that means I’ve experienced it. Sometimes the experience might not be projected directly into my life but since I am incredibly empathic, I often emotionally put myself through someone else’s experience as if it was my own. I used to wonder why I did that, but now it is very clear – my paintbrush needs colors to paint the melodies with and for that I need emotions of all spectrums. Raw, pure and unprocessed. I need life events of every caliber. So I go looking for them, explore the world and people. Because every lyric and chord progression have a story behind it. And I can tell you exactly what I felt when it happened. That’s one part of the process. But the favorite part is definitely when after a struggle and doubt, a creation comes together on paper and then it’s time for tears. Tears of joy. Thrilling release and artistic ecstasy. Nothing compares to that feeling.

Isaac: If you could go open up for any artist on tour right now who would it be?

Koukie: Fiona Apple. That woman has changed my life in ways I could never have imagined. That’s what I love about art so much. You can create something in your bedroom, pulling your hair out, and then years later on the other side of the world, someone’s life is influenced heavily by your work, and most likely you will never find out. It’s crazy! You can literally have a profound encounter with a stranger you will never meet. And maybe even save their life if you are really lucky. Transcendence.

Isaac: So, what’s your favorite thing to do when you aren’t writing/producing/playing etc?

Koukie: Supporting my insatiable thirst to find out what lies behind the horizon. Getting to know as many different areas and people as possible so that I can slowly fill out the complex puzzle of human race. And the only way I am able to gain that kind of wisdom, is through a direct experience. I’ll throw myself into something and stay there for as long as I figure out how it works. I don’t have to succeed in that particular field because I am not there to make a career, I am just visiting in search for adventure and conducting social research. I already have a job, and that’s sharing my findings through music. My favorite activities will change depending on the sector of life I’ve embarked upon and am currently exploring passionately. So I guess the answer to your question is, my favorite thing to do when I’m not writing/producing/playing etc, is claiming my birthright and embracing the fact that for me this world is nothing more than something to explore endlessly.

Isaac: Now for our non-music question: Name five things you can’t live without?

Koukie: Music? Ha. It’s not true, I’m sure I could live without music, I just really, REALLY don’t want to. Interesting question actually. Some of my colleagues were recently listing things they could never give up in their life, amongst them being coffee, wine, meat, sleep, chocolate etc. And it made me wonder. If we rise above the level of survival and basic human needs to sustain oneself, I actually don’t think there is anything I couldn’t really live without if I decided to. Except love. It is really important for me to love and be loved by people that are dear to me. Without the comforting sentiment of birth of love between two individuals, even if the relationship doesn’t last, I would lose all purpose of life and wither away. I find affection such a beautiful thing.

Isaac: WOW! I love your response.

Isaac: What is the most trouble you’ve ever gotten into when you are performing or on the road that you can let us in on?

Koukie: That’s a great question. But funny thing about trouble is that so far we have been very lucky and have had only great experiences gigging. I hope it continues that way.

Isaac: Knowing what you know now, would you do it again?

Koukie: Yes. And probably exactly the same way I’ve done it. Just because your predecessor-self didn’t know as many facts as you do now, doesn’t mean they were intuition-less and couldn’t follow their instincts. Sometimes knowing too much can mislead you and stop you from going after your dream. Nevertheless, I believe we should thrive to grow and learn more every day but that is a different topic altogether.

Isaac: If you were not performing, what do you think you would be doing professionally and why?

Koukie: I would either be a doctor, a detective, or a lawyer. A doctor because of my compassion, love for humanity and unstoppable desire to save the world. A detective because of my strong intuition, inquisitive nature and distinctive sense of right and wrong. And a lawyer because despite of possessing all of the above, I am also rattled by cognitive dissonance and dualism I see around me every day. Nothing is ever black or white, and any fact can be looked at from an angle where it contradicts itself in seconds. Now how does one make up its mind about anything when possessing this prism of a perception? Everything is relative, it is just a case of which point of view you’ve chosen today. Mad!

Isaac: What’s your motto or the advice you live by?

Koukie: Never stop believing in miracles. Only then anything will actually be possible.

Isaac: Ten years from now you will be….

Koukie: Ten years older than now :-)

Isaac: As a great send off, tell us about one of your greatest moments as a performer.

Koukie: It would have to be the moment I had the good fortune to hear my diary being translated into 100 different instruments. A moment when a full symphony orchestra graced the staged with me to perform my creations. Seeing what I had heard in my head when it was just me and a keyboard in my bedroom, materialize in front of my eyes and take off like a space ship, was actually unbelievable. Performing with a wall of sound like that behind me, was like flying a magic carpet through the sky. I don’t like to exaggerate but it was absolutely incredible. I wish everyone could experience a triumph of that intensity in their life, whatever it might be. It is a feeling that I hold dear to me and long to relive again, again and again. - Junior's Cave