Karl Clews - Electronic Press Kit
Artist biog:
Karl started his professional career as a bass player in the mid 90s while living in Paris, where he had the great honour of performing with the likes of Manu Dibango, Laurent Voulzy and MC Solaar. On his return to London, he became a stalwart of the session scene, performing and recording with David McAlmont, Sugababes, and Ronan Keating, among many others, and touring with international names including Dr John, Jamiroquai, and Los Secretos, while simultaneously leading his own neo-soul/r&b band, Harambé, with whom he released two albums on Universal and toured Japan.
On moving to Galway in Ireland, Karl established his YouTube channel, on which he demonstrates his unique ability to utilise classical guitar style techniques to arrange and perform solo pieces - bassline, harmony and melody simultaneously - on the bass guitar. This earned him a large following online, and the channel continues to grow steadily. Karl began to use these techniques to showcase his own compositions, and so far has released three commercially available albums - Dissident, Navigator, and Nomad - of original material in a jazz-funk-fusion style. This led to him picking up a number of endorsements, including one with Bogart Basses in Germany who now manufacture a Karl Clews model, The Broadsword bass. In turn, these endorsements led to Karl being invited to perform and lead clinics demonstrating his solo techniques at trade shows and jazz festivals across Europe, including Mannheim Guitar Summit, the Padua Guitar Show, Frankfurt Musikmesse, and the London Guitar Show, the Suwalki Blues Festival, Pori Jazz Festival and a recent Concert for Ukraine held in Helsinki.
Karl started his professional career as a bass player in the mid 90s while living in Paris, where he had the great honour of performing with the likes of Manu Dibango, Laurent Voulzy and MC Solaar. On his return to London, he became a stalwart of the session scene, performing and recording with David McAlmont, Sugababes, and Ronan Keating, among many others, and touring with international names including Dr John, Jamiroquai, and Los Secretos, while simultaneously leading his own neo-soul/r&b band, Harambé, with whom he released two albums on Universal and toured Japan.
On moving to Galway in Ireland, Karl established his YouTube channel, on which he demonstrates his unique ability to utilise classical guitar style techniques to arrange and perform solo pieces - bassline, harmony and melody simultaneously - on the bass guitar. This earned him a large following online, and the channel continues to grow steadily. Karl began to use these techniques to showcase his own compositions, and so far has released three commercially available albums - Dissident, Navigator, and Nomad - of original material in a jazz-funk-fusion style. This led to him picking up a number of endorsements, including one with Bogart Basses in Germany who now manufacture a Karl Clews model, The Broadsword bass. In turn, these endorsements led to Karl being invited to perform and lead clinics demonstrating his solo techniques at trade shows and jazz festivals across Europe, including Mannheim Guitar Summit, the Padua Guitar Show, Frankfurt Musikmesse, and the London Guitar Show, the Suwalki Blues Festival, Pori Jazz Festival and a recent Concert for Ukraine held in Helsinki.
|
|
An example of one of Karl's solo bass arrangements.
|
|
|
One of Karl's original compositions.
|
|
|
Karl performing live with his trio, Fusion Drive.
|
|
|
The Karl Clews Trio live at Arthur's Jazz Bar in Dublin, 2023.
|
Internet links:
Website: www.karlclews.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/karlclewsbass
Youtube: www.youtube.com/karlclews
Instagram: www.instagram.com/karl.clews
Spotify: open.spotify.com/artist/4rQGnSKHWz470v8rqncY7L
Apple/iTunes: music.apple.com/us/artist/karl-clews/1238438088
Bandcamp: www.karlclewsbass.bandcamp.com
Website: www.karlclews.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/karlclewsbass
Youtube: www.youtube.com/karlclews
Instagram: www.instagram.com/karl.clews
Spotify: open.spotify.com/artist/4rQGnSKHWz470v8rqncY7L
Apple/iTunes: music.apple.com/us/artist/karl-clews/1238438088
Bandcamp: www.karlclewsbass.bandcamp.com
Gallery:
