Helzuki CD

By October 2005 they had found a new English drummer, Lex, and had decided on a band name: Helzuki. In an industry where true originality is gold dust and only the conveniently packaged and categorised succeed, Helzuki plough their own furrow.

Leah (piano/vocals) comes from a classical background in piano and has never taken a singing lesson; which fits with her musical philosophy of combining the rough and the polished to create something inbetween via a blistering, intense live delivery. Musical influences are predominantly singer-songwriters of the grand scale but outside the mainstream: Bowie, Morrissey, Bjork, Elliot Smith & Tori Amos.

Matt (bass) comes from a harder musical place, thus he's responsible for the driving, heavy but funk-laden bottom end that shapes the sound. He's inspired by creative bass players like Nick Oliveri & Scott Reeder (Kyuss), Billy Gould (FNM) and Stuart Zender (ex-Jamiroquai). As you'd expect, playing in a guitar-free band is a bassist's dream and he thrives on the challenge and space which sonically surrounds him.

Lex (drums) is the newest member of the band; his style being a perfect dose of controlled aggression and white knuckle drumming. Heroes are Danny Carey (Tool) & Chad Smith (RHCP). His music taste is fiercely eclectic and he plays a bigger part in songwriting than most drummers would; Lex has been the missing link in the evolution of Helzuki.

The live shows are where the pay-off comes: the stage personas are refreshingly simple, free of artifice and pretension, and the music more than speaks for itself. The band have played gigs all over London at venues like the Clapham Grand, Bull & Gate and The Purple Turtle and have recently recorded their debut, a 7 track mini-album, which is due for release as 2007 dawns. They've come a long way in the last year and whether it's as a result of praise from promoters, venues, other bands or new fans there's no doubt that Helzuki fill a gap in the overcrowded musical market that no other band does.