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Born and raised in Sheffield, now London-based, in-demand guitarist Simon Kaviani has just released ‘Undertow’ the first single to be lifted from his forthcoming debut album as ‘Kaviani’. Pre-lockdown, Simon spent time as a session guitarist, touring with multi-platinum artists Joe Lynn Turner (Deep Purple/Rainbow) and Eric Martin (Mr. Big) as well as touring with Damon Johnson & Ricky Warwick (Thin Lizzy/Alice Cooper/Black Star Riders). Here is everything that you need to know about the artist known simply as Kaviani…
You have just released ‘Undertow’, the first single to be lifted from your forthcoming debut album, when it reached midnight and the single was released to streaming sites, were there any nerves? Or was it more a case of relief that it was actually out there?
I wouldn’t have said I felt nerves or relief – it’s an odd feeling as you spend so much time building up to the release, then when release day comes, you’re online all day promoting it, posting, replying to comments, keeping everything going, etc, so it’s all a bit stressful really.
Then you have to keep posting during the week which feels odd as you spent a day really hammering away at your socials, so I feel that there’s a line to be tread between pissing people off and promoting your work as it’s your livelihood, a small part of which you’ve spent months creating. So there’s lots going on in my head during a release!
What was it about ‘Undertow’ that made it the obvious choice for you as the lead single?
I wanted to make a statement with the first single. It’s a fast, ferocious song, with a ripping solo and it also hits hard lyrically. It’s also the heaviest song on the album so for that reason, I wanted it to be the first single and it will also be the first song on the album for the same reasons.
The video for ‘Undertow’ has a classic power trio line-up, as does 2019’s video for ‘Don’t Let The Bombs Drop, Daddy’, who plays with you on the album?
Everything on the album is actually played by myself apart from the drums, which are played by Joe Lazarus and the bassline on ‘Undertow,’ which is played by the brilliant Bjorn Englen (DIO/Yngwie Malmsteen/Quiet Riot) who I toured with back in 2019 in support of UFO on their farewell tour.
Just because of logistics and lockdown, it’s very much been a solo project, where I actually wanted to get my mates involved playing parts. For the same reason, Joe doesn’t play drums on every song as I had to use programmed drums for a couple of songs, whilst all the studios were shut…I wasn’t going to let lockdowns get in the way of this album!
‘Undertow’ scored highly in the iTunes Rock Chart, alongside some illustrious names like Slipknot, U2, and Stevie Nicks…that must have made great reading!
Yeah, that was exciting! It’s nice seeing your song go up the charts, seeing how far it reaches and how long it spends there. I’m still building my fanbase and gaining momentum so one day soon, I hope to be climbing the Official Charts!
Apart from heaps of hooks and loads of killer guitar, what can we expect from the debut album?!
Haha, well you’ve pretty much nailed it there! Most of the songs are up-tempo, there’s a big ballad in there with a very special guest singing on it (I can’t reveal who just yet!) You can expect a mix of honest lyrics and tongue-in-cheek lyrics as well as the odd lighter moment…it’s not all doom and gloom!
‘Don’t Let The Bombs Drop, Daddy’ was your debut single I believe, in what ways have you grown as a performer and lyricist since then? Let’s be honest, you can’t be short of subject material nowadays!
Well, you can’t, this is true! I try to not write too much about relationships, which is an easy go-to for any songwriter. I try to keep it interesting like with Flat Screen Suicide or Don’t Let The Bombs Drop, Daddy.
As a performer, it’s hard to say because I’ve only played one gig since lockdown, unfortunately! Lyrics-wise, my editing has gotten a lot better! And not being afraid to just write, write, write and see what happens whereas, in the past, I would be afraid just to put the pen to paper.
‘Don’t Let the Bombs Drop, Daddy’ is obviously a deeply personal track that deals with your Iranian heritage. In the few years since its release, issues such as immigration and the refugee crisis have accelerated greatly; do you despair at the lack of humanity that has crept unopposed into the era of the current UK government, or is it a case of seeking out the good in other people and focussing on that instead?
It’s hard not to despair but then that’s a pretty morbid way of looking at things. Every generation I’ve spoken to, it’s always been the same – so nothing seems to have changed really, whether you lived in the 40s, 50s, 60s, etc – there has always been something happening, someone to be angry at, some government fucking things up. Although I do feel we are at a certain point where we are fucking things up in a massive way…hopefully not past the point of no return.
I feel as humans, we should be always trying our best to help others less fortunate. Picking people up instead of knocking them down. ‘Passing it forward’ instead of being selfish. There are a lot of good things happening and lots to be grateful for – I guess it’s just human nature a lot of the time to seek out the negative in everything.
Earlier this year, you released a charity single ‘Gimme Some Sunshine’ to help raise awareness of mental health issues, the proceeds went to UK mental health charity SANE, tell us about the work that SANE does and how it benefited you during the various lockdowns of the last 185 months or so?
SANE is a great charity that does some brilliant work and during lockdown, a lot of charities struggles as all their forms of fundraising were stopped. I managed to raise £1000 for them, which is amazing, but I always want to do more because of the important work they do.
They aim to tackle the lack of information around mental health issues and treatments and strategies whilst aiming to improve the quality of life of people affected by mental illness. SANE is also independent of government funding so it really needs donations, unlike some other charities.
Being able to reach out and find someone to talk to who can help is a huge thing. I feel so indebted to my therapist – I genuinely don’t know what I’d have done without her. Therapy can be really expensive though and also finding a good therapist can be hard. I’d like to see more government funding put into this area (something I’d be actively keen to work on) to help people with the costs as it’s not something where you go and have a couple of sessions and you’re all sorted. You’d be surprised how much shit people have to unravel in their lives and that takes time and therefore money also.
Born and raised in Sheffield, now based in London, what’s the biggest stumbling block that you have faced as a Northener in London?
Finding somewhere that does decent fish and chips! I’ve still not had a decent one down here yet!
I’d say the biggest thing would be money. I have to find a balance of working loads of hours and taking every gig I can, in order to live in pretty much the most expensive city in the world, whilst completely self-funding my studio time, photoshoots, videos, gigs, etc. It’s not cheap and it’s hard to make any money back that you’ve put into making your music, especially with the pittance artists get from streaming and especially since March last year. Unless you’re Ed Sheeran, getting a bazillion plays every month, you basically make nothing and you have to find other ways to monetise your music and online presence.
So it all comes down to money really so that’s my biggest challenge and something I’m working on by looking at other avenues to monetise my music.
What do you take personally from performing with artists such as Joe Lynn Turner, Eric Martin, and the duo of Damon Johnson and Ricky Warwick?
I take a hard lesson on how to graft, give your all on stage, then after you’ve given all the sweat and energy you can muster, how you get out in the crowd for an hour or more, talking to fans, having pictures taken, etc. These guys worked their asses off when I toured with them and it was so great to see. I learned so much from doing those shows. It’s not just about guitar playing and singing. Charisma, charm, graft, how you carry yourself…it all comes into play too.
What band out there at the moment do you feel that Kaviani would be best suited to open for?
I’d be best suited to open for anyone who wanted an act to warm up and entertain the crowd, get them singing, get them in the mood and give them great bang for their buck…so shoegazing indie bands are out I guess! I’d love to tour with a current act but I’d also love to support some of my musical heroes too, who generally fill arenas and are entertaining. That’s what we are at the end of the day – entertainers.
What are your first musical memories? And what was the lightbulb moment that made you go “I want to do that”?
My mum cranking all her songs up in the car on the school run. This would range from Michael Bolton to Rod Stewart, OMD to Bucks Fizz, Dolly Parton to Gene Pitney. That’s probably where I get my pop sensibilities from. I’ve always had this strange sense I wanted to do music but it wasn’t until I heard Billy Corgan singing, ‘The world is a vampire,’ that I was absolutely hooked and I just wanted to play music and be in a band…which is kind of funny as there’s no music when he sings those words.
Are you a guitarist that also sings, or a singer that also plays the guitar?
Oooosh, great question…ermmmm…I’d have to say a guitarist that also sings. I’ve never considered myself a singer per se but since moving to London, I’ve really been working on my voice, and singing take after take in the studio really helps you to hone your chops. But the order in which things happened was I was a guitarist first, songwriter second, then a singer.
What’s your guitar of choice?
Jeez, this is like killing babies! It would have to be my Strat or LP Gold Top. But I’ll always have a soft spot for a ‘V’ as Schenker is the reason I play lead guitar.
What was the last gig that you attended as a fan?
Iron Maiden in Vegas & LA way back in 2019. I did a little US road trip with the aforementioned Joe Lazarus and had such an amazing time!
What current issue are you particularly passionate about?
I have three main ones – homelessness, the elderly, and people with Alzheimer’s
The album that you have in your album collection/Spotify playlist that would surprise most people?
Michael Bolton – Greatest Hits!! I was brought up on this by my mum growing up. There are some absolute bangers on there showcasing some of the finest pop/rock songwriting. It was actually on that album, reading through the liner notes as a really young kid that I saw this name ‘Mutt Lange’, who wrote the song ‘Said I loved you…but I lied.’ I don’t know why but since then I’ve always wanted to meet/work with him and I followed his work ever since, from being 7/8 years old.
What new albums have you been enjoying in 2021?
The new albums from Biffy Clyro, Mike Vennart, and Mammoth WVH (this guy has some serious chops and vocals and great songs to boot!)
What are your plans for 2022?
World domination!! Well, I am half Iranian so it’s in my blood! I’m out touring Europe for a month with a guitar virtuoso but I can’t say who as the dates haven’t been released yet! That will be from 14th Jan – 10th Feb. Then I come back to the UK and play a handful of my own dates, with a couple of singles being released whilst all this is happening.
The album is coming out in May so I’d like to play a festival or two next year and play more of my own shows. I’ve got lots of plans so I’m making as many as possible and I’ll see how many I can cross off the list by this time next year…
How active are you on social media and where can people connect with you?
I have a love/hate relationship with social media. I need to be better at it for sure, as it’s such a valuable tool, but I am active on there. I’ll always chat to people and reply if anyone reaches out. The best way to connect with me is Instagram first, then Facebook. Subscribing to my YouTube and Spotify would be brilliant also.
Spotify
All images from the artist’s Facebook page.
