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Andy Mckee with Calum Graham

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Andy McKee is among the world’s finest acoustic guitarists. His youthful energy and attention to song structure and melodic content elevates him above the rest. He entertains both the eye and the ear as he magically transforms the steel string guitar into a full orchestra via his use of altered tunings, tapping, partial capos, percussive hits and a signature two-handed technique.

McKee’s crossover success has helped him to achieve millions upon millions of YouTube viewers, underscoring his emergence as one of today’s most unique and influential artists. He has been featured as a cover story in both Acoustic Guitar Magazine in the U.S. and Acoustic Magazine in the UK, and is also the figurehead of the unique Guitar Masters tours. McKee’s tour dates have taken him through Europe, Asia, Australia and North America, including tours with legendary acts including Prince and Dream Theater.

Andy McKee

Connect with this artist:

www.andymckee.com

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Artist Bio

Andy McKee is one of the world’s finest acoustic guitarists and it’s evident from the accolades he’s received throughout his career. It’s his youthful energy, attention to song structure and melodic content that elevates him above the rest. After nearly a decade without releasing new studio recordings, McKee returns with his six-track EP, Symbol, out Friday, September 17 on Mythmaker Records in conjunction with Cruzen Street Records.

“These are my interpretations of tunes that really inspired me,” says McKee. “I wanted to give listeners a chance to hear what I hear when I listen to this music. I also wanted to branch out a bit and include music that isn’t originally for acoustic guitar.”

While Symbol is a collection of inspired renditions, they are important song choices; artists that deeply influence McKee and song’s that connect to his musical past. He pulls from the catalogues of greats like Michael Hedges, Preston Reed, Billy McLaughlin and Prince. There’s “Ragamuffin,” the EP’s lead single, which is a nod to one of McKee’s biggest influences, Michael Hedges.

McKee notes that “Michael was not only a revolutionary guitarist on the technical side, his ability to compose for solo guitar was also genius. Most importantly though, he was able to search inside of himself and consistently pull up very human and evocative themes that made him a true artist. I’ll always be grateful for his music.”

One track that might catch fans by surprise on Symbol is McKee’s gorgeous rendition of Prince’s “Purple Rain.” In 2012, McKee played alongside Prince in his band on the “Welcome 2 Australia” tour with the song being one of the setlist highlights.

“I had originally come up with the ‘Purple Rain’ arrangement to open the shows with while I was on tour with Prince in Australia,” recalls McKee. “I have played it occasionally since then while touring and figured I should finally get a recording of it down. One thing that I learned from Prince while we were on the road is that we both really admire Joni Mitchell. I used that as a reference when trying to describe what I do. Although some of what I do on the guitar is technically demanding, I don’t ever really want that to overshadow the music.”

Another standout from Symbol is Mckee’s take on “Chattanooga” by acclaimed guitarist Preston Reed. “In my opinion, ‘Chattanooga’ by Preston Reed is one of the finest fingerstyle guitar pieces ever written,” says McKee. “It’s just loaded with texture, harmony, percussion, and melody. I love the key changes and chromaticism between some of the chords. This tune really inspired me a lot.”

McKee, like many, was infatuated with the Rocky IV soundtrack, specifically the Vince DiCola compositions “War” and “Training Montage.” For Symbol, McKee and DiCola joined forces to craft “Rocky IV Medley.”

“That was about as surreal as it gets for me,” says McKee. “I became a fan of Vince’s work when I was six years old and I bought the soundtrack to the film on cassette. I used to listen to it all the time on my Sony Walkman and I really found that my favorite tunes were the instrumental tracks which were “War” and “Training Montage” from Vince. Those tunes awakened my mind to the possibility of being moved by music with no words. To be able to recreate those tunes with the electric guitar and play with Vince is really something I could never have dreamed of.”

Andy McKee entertains both the eye and the ear as he magically transforms the steel string guitar into a full orchestra via his use of altered tunings, tapping, partial capos, percussive hits and a signature two-handed technique.

McKee’s crossover success has helped him to achieve millions upon millions of YouTube viewers, underscoring his emergence as one of today’s most unique and influential artists. His song “Drifting” became one of the first YouTube viral videos with almost 60 million views. He has been featured as a cover story in both Acoustic Guitar Magazine in the U.S. and Acoustic Magazine in the UK. He also curates his own annual guitar retreat called Musicarium. McKee’s tour dates have taken him through Europe, Asia, Australia and North America, including tours with legendary acts from Dream Theater to Tommy Emmanuel.

Calum Graham

Connect with this artist:

www.calumgraham.com

Born in Fort St. John (BC) Composer Calum Graham has been building a name for himself across the globe for the last 12 years with his passionate solo acoustic guitar prowess and was recently named one of the World’s Top 30 Guitarists under 30 by Acoustic Guitar Magazine. 

Calum plays the Acoustic, Baritone, and Harp Guitar in his live set and his original melodies embraces elements of folk, world, soul, blues and jazz – all built upon the foundation of the fingerstyle technique.

“The most promising young guitarist I’ve seen. His command of the guitar is already really impressive!”

- Andy McKee

Graham’s musical journey first took flight when he began playing the guitar at the age of 13. In the summer of 2010, Graham attended the Canadian Guitar Festival and entered the prestigious Canadian Fingerstyle Guitar Competition. Impressed with his original compositions, the judges awarded Graham with a first place finish; a feat no other teenager has accomplished in the history of the festival. The clip of his winning performance has now generated over 1 million views on YouTube. Shortly afterwards, he was invited to play at the 2010 Olympic Games in Vancouver, and again 2 years later at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.

As Calum Graham’s name continued to grow in Alberta and across Canada for his guitar work and musicianship, Graham proved that his talent was not limited to his extraordinary ability to play the guitar. In 2011, Graham won the Canada’s Walk of Fame nationwide “A Song For Canada” contest based on his poetic acuteness. His winning poem was used in the song “I’m Here, (A Song For Canada)”. The song was performed by Chantal Kreviazuk and co-written by Graham, Raine Maida (Our Lady Peace) and Stephen Moccio (“I Believe”, 2010 Vancouver Olympics theme song/”Wrecking Ball” - Miley Cyrus)”.

“Calum’s entry resonated strongly among the judges. His poem celebrates the cultural mosaic that is Canada.  He has captured the diversity of this country – something that we as a nation are renowned for and proud of.” -Stephan Moccio

 In the late winter of 2012, and with two albums already under his belt, Graham teamed up with iconic Fingerstyle Guitarist Don Ross. The result was an instrumental acoustic duet album titled, “12:34”. Recorded at famed 'Metalworks Studios' (Toronto, ON), and released through CandyRat Records, the album featured six originals by Graham, three by Ross, and a cover of the OutKast hit song, “Hey Ya!”.

Not long after the release of “12:34”, Graham saw a loyal following begin to grow and it wasn’t long before his unique sound started to find a wide and appreciative audience.

In November of 2013, Graham released a solo instrumental album titled “Phoenix Rising” (CandyRat Records). The title track has already generated over 4 million views on YouTube, with other songs also notching impressive numbers. The success of the album enabled Graham to expand his global fanbase and he soon began touring internationally, both on his own and with the likes of Don Ross and Andy McKee.

With Graham bringing an innovative sound to the industry, it wasn’t long before Canada’s top booking agency, The Feldman Agency, also counted themselves a fan of Graham’s music. So much in fact, that in July 2014, they decided to partner Graham with renowned Canadian producer Gavin Brown (Billy Talent, Metric, The Tragically Hip) on his “Sessions X” series. The series was recorded at Toronto’s Five-Star “Noble Street Studios” and features Graham alongside a number of acclaimed musicians including; Tears For Fears, Feist, Three Days Grace, Metric, and Ron Sexsmith.

 In September 2014, Graham teamed up with IMAX composer Steve Wood to write the musical score for 'Humpbacks', an underwater 3D adventure documentary for IMAX and other giant screen theatres. Narrated by acclaimed actor Ewan McGregor, the film is directed by Greg MacGillivray (“The Living Sea”, “Everest”), presented in association with Pacific Life and was released February 13, 2015 to IMAX theatres worldwide.

Graham just recently released his fifth studio album 'Tabula Rasa' which was crowd funded by fans across the globe and produced by world renowned Acoustic Guitarist, Antoine Dufour. Adding an extra dimension to his compositions, the album introduces Graham’s soulful vocals to his audience for the first time. The album was released in March 2016 and features a combination of his exemplary instrumental guitar work punctuated throughout with elements of folk, blues, and pop in his vocal songs with guest performances by Antoine Dufour and Bass Guitar Extraordinnaire, Michael Manring.

Calum is currently working on releasing new music in the coming months on his YouTube channel, and continues to tour throughout Canada, the US, and Europe.

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