KARA hope you can take a moment to look at our band for your 2016/17 programme. We have
been headlining on the folk club circuit for some time now and had a brilliantly received debut
album. We are now starting repeat bookings with clubs and also looking further afield for new
audiences in clubs and at festivals.
NEWS: Album #2 “Some Other Shore” will be launched on 3rd June 2016 at The Convent, including
live gig stream, and with special guests.
Introducing KARA – Spirited acoustic folk with a Russian twist… Hammered dulcimer, guitar
and melodeon back the lead vocals of Daria Kulesh in original material laced with folk music from
around the world. Excitingly, we have Phil Underwood (of The Creole Brothers) joining us on
melodeon from February 2016 – see individual biographies below!
Press quotes:
"A stunning new band who should be huge" R2 Magazine ****
“Really interesting band, great instrumentalists, great vocalist” Mike Harding Folk Show
“A strikingly different combination… with new, mysterious tales to tell” Bright Young Folk
“Plenty of originality…the energy is impressive. ***” The Telegraph, Top Folk Albums 2014
“A unique & innovative folk quartet – a gem of a collection of songs” FATEA
“Original, captivating, evocative & beautifully constructed album” Folk All
Live performance links:
Please find attached links to a live video compilation from TwickFolk and one of our newer tracks
filmed at Anchor FC. Our album tracks are easily accessible on Spotify – search “Waters So Deep”.
A CD copy is available on request.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQr72my68bA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pg7Rcx54evg
Please visit our website as a one-stop place for full reviews, photographs, live performance video
links, testimonials for live performance and band profile. www.karafolkband.com and for a newsfeed
visit www.facebook.com/karafolkband. Of course, you are welcome to come and meet us at any gig!
Best regards,
Kate Rouse Mob: 07712 670621
DARIA KULESH * Phil Underwood * KATE ROUSE * Ben Honey
*
Our “haunting and enigmatic” (Sunday Times) lead singer Daria Kulesh combines “one of the
most refined and enjoyable voices around” (Folk All) with strong Russian heritage, conjuring a
beguiling romanticism. Dynamic delivery and passion come to the fore in her debut solo album
Eternal Child, described as "phenomenal" by FATEA Magazine and named Runner-up in 'Album
of the Year by a Female Artist' by FolkWords, among numerous other accolades. Daria writes her
own material for solo work and in KARA. “One of the most beautiful songs that I've heard in
years… truly extraordinary, and she's got a beautiful, beautiful voice” (Mike Harding).
*
New band member, melodeon player Phil Underwood, lives on his canal boat on the Grand Union.
He writes and plays lively, passionate and high energy songs and tunes with influences from
Britain to the American South. The leader of folk/roots fusion band The Creole Brothers, Phil
has also worked at the National Theatre’s War Horse production with John Tams, Nancy Kerr,
John Kirkpatrick and is the melodeon player with the Fishwives Choir. He has played many folk
clubs & festivals, including Glastonbury, Wembley Arena, the National Theatre and
BBC Breakfast & Songs of Praise, and has won international awards for his playing.
*
A defining feature of KARA is “the distinctive sound of the hammered dulcimer of Kate Rouse”
(FATEA); “the hammered dulcimer perfectly reflects the album’s character with its clear,
ringing tone, teamed with its exotic and animated qualities” (Bright Young Folk). Kate took up this
instrument about 9 years ago, embracing folk after her Durham music degree. She recently
recorded on BBC Folk Award nominee Ange Hardy’s new album Esteesee. Kate co-ordinates
the Family Programme for Folk Weekend Oxford.
*
Ben Honey’s guitar is the engine behind the energy of KARA and he has contributed many of our
original songs; “plenty of originality… the energy is impressive” (The Telegraph). Ben is also
a talented artist who regularly exhibits his work in London. He and our former accordion player
Gary Holbrook play together in a ceilidh band called Blackwood, playing Irish, English and
Scottish traditional tunes. Ben’s melodic modern folk songs are quickly taken up by our audiences
in live performances and post-show comments give them high praise.