The KGB is a unique combination of three diverse musicians united by a determination to push at musical boundaries.  Evocative songs are given an edginess and unfamiliarity by a combination of powerful and fluid vocals, otherworldy acoustics and left-field experimentalism. The result is music that transcends easy categorisation; unsettling and complex while also deeply beautiful and heartfelt.

Singer, guitarist and songwriter Kate Garrett grew up in Dorset and started out on the folk and roots scene aged 15, in various groups including the acapella Trio Hysteria. After relocating to Oxford, she joined rock group The Mystics. Signed to Fontana (now Mercury) Records, the ensuing time of rock’n’roll madness also saw Kate begin work on her solo debut in LA with producer Jonathan Nesmith (son of Monkee Mike Nesmith). Released in 2001, Vertigo brought together Kate’s acoustic roots with complex, highly-structured songs and the sonic intensity of avant-garde rock. Kate performed solo and with a number of line-ups until, finding her perfect musical partners, she formed the KGB in 2004.

Having grown up in Israel and the West Coast of the USA, Gabriel Solomons’ musical experience encompasses rock, hip-hop and traditional Hebrew music. Inspired, amongst others, by Trilok Gurtu and the Mahavishnu Orchestra, he combines these diverse influences with a mixture of drum kit and percussion, adding texture as well as rhythm.  Barney M Brown has played since the age of 7 and won a scholarship to the Royal College of Music to study Baroque cello, during which time he taught himself guitar and began writing songs. Since then he has combined releasing three albums of his own songs with a career as a busy session musician. Barney switches effortlessly between graceful melodic lines, driving bass rhythms and anarchically exploiting the sonic range of the cello.

In the past year in the KGB have built a reputation in Oxford and beyond for their intense and powerful live work, and have recently released their new Homefront EP .Recorded at Courtyard studios in Oxfordshire, with producer Andy Lovegrove, this record is out on the Oxford label Beard Museum.  A track from Vertigo is also included on a recently released compilation from the same label entitled Beard Museum #1.