Darrin Kohavi

Genre: Contemporary/Classic Pop

Admit it. Everyone wants to be able to say they knew a band "before they were big." With newcomer Darrin Kohavi, here's a very promising chance to do just that. The young multi-instrumentalist and vocalist released his debut 5-track EP entitled Please Believe Me in late 2008, and it's slowly starting to seep into the mainstream consciousness. Darrin started playing classical piano at 8 (who doesn't these days?) and subsequently learned guitar, bass, and vocals. While this EP is his first formal release, he's also working on a full-length album with funk musician Derrick Briscoe to debut later in 2009. But in the meantime, his EP gives listeners a vast spectrum of audiological style to contemplate while they wait. I believe Darrin's appeal lies in his personalized blend of contemporary, fully accessible and radio-friendly pop with a distinctly unique classic pop sound; the easiest comparison is Abbey Road-era Beatles, and it's surprisingly accurate. While the Beatles are perhaps the most referenced "influence" in all of music, Darrin manages to rearrange their groundbreaking style into one of the freshest manifestations in years. His piano musings are controlled and cool, and paired with his surprisingly trained voice it creates a compositional style expected of someone with far more years of experience. So while his sound isn't exceptionally risky, it's still impressive for such a young artist. The talent is obvious here; time will only prove to enrich Darrin's abilities.

Audiogoldfish has been fortunate enough to host one of the tracks off the new EP, free for download here and only here. The track is "Stay Near," a catchy tune that highlights Darrin's breadth. Hit the link below to check it out.

Click here to download "Stay Near."

And click here to stream the entire 5-track EP.