“One of the most versatile musicians on the UK scene right now”- Metal Injection
“Intense and intelligent…exceptional vocals…a huge talent” – Hit The Floor
“Karnivool meets John Mayer and Jeff Buckley” – Already Heard
“An insanely talented multi-instrumentalist” – Leon TK
Influences / FFO:
Karnivool | Tesseract | Incubus | Monuments | Bjork | Jeff Buckley
Sleep Token | Bring Me The Horizon | The 1975 | Enter Shikari
John Mayer | Muse | Toska
MAXI'S SOUND
A perfect marriage of vivid and pop-inspired hooks, progressive composition, and modern technicality, Maxi Curnow’s new EP hits hard and immediately captivates, embracing everything from sweeping cinematics to planet-shaking carnage. Crafted with Producer George Lever (Loathe, Sleep Token), Maxi's new music delivers a consistent string of melodic earworms, nailgun riffs, and impassioned vocals that beckon the listener into a state of total immersion.
Haunting, vivid and honest with a strong central theme of recovery,
each song draws on our most formative experiences.
BIOGRAPHY
Maxi’s diverse background inspired him to embark on a raw and visceral dive into storytelling, focused on the process of recovery from traumatic events. Each honest, heavy, and heartfelt song draws upon Maxi’s most formative experiences – including his work as a front-line firefighter.
Throughout 2014’s groundbreaking 25-minute odyssey “Stem” (during which no single section is repeated), the uniquely hard-hitting film for his 2015 single “If We Make It”, and 2016’s widely respected LP Transition, Maxi’s compositional, technical, emotional, and in-studio skills have combined to create an all-encompassing experience.
A synergy between intelligent messages, precisely chosen tones, and impactful visuals.
Following the global online success of “Far Gone”, a collaboration with YouTube guitar guru Rabea Massaad (Toska, Dorje), Maxi has proven himself ready to emerge onto the global stage. This new EP finds him fully prepared to step once more into the spotlight as a solo artist, and find out what the future has in store.
Our feelings and beliefs are preserved through sound like bubbles in amber.
Themes of past trauma, introspection, self doubt, mental health and above all, recovery intertwine to be one with the music. There's a dedication to being honest and real in a confusing world of mixed messages.
COLLABORATORS
Forrester Savell (Karnivool, SikTh, Animals As Leaders, Twelve Foot Ninja) to Acle Kahney (Tesseract), Luke Martin (Plini), Mike Malyan (Monuments, Disperse, The Algorithm), John Browne (Monuments), Anup Sastry (Skyharbor, Jeff Loomis, Marty Friedman, Intervals, Devin Townsend), Dave Hollingworth (Toska, Dorje), Doug Harper (Rick Astley, Gary Barlow, Book of Mormon), Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club, and Tim Laws (Gabrielle, S Club 7, Liberty X, Pixie Lott, The Saturdays).
Maxi’s background includes composing music for the BBC and Universal, his works are used on Louis Theroux, Sky Sports, Jay Z V Kanye, Netflix, Channel 4, Heart FM, Smooth FM and many more.
"If We Make It" - Maxi Curnow | Firefighter Music Video
Tar & Honey - Maxi Curnow | Official Music Video
!! New EP Taster !!
TIMELINE
Maxi’s introduction to industry composition was as a studio assistant for Tim Laws (Gabrielle, S Club 7, Liberty X, Pixie Lott, Saturdays) from whom he first learnt how to write pop to a brief. Later they would go on to co-write production music together for the BBC.
Around this time he also started training and working as a sound engineer at Ronnie Scotts… Two very different worlds that he was equally inspired by.
Maxi’s first release in 2014 STEM was praised for being unique in its approach. “A through-composed, twenty-five-minute behemoth of a song and home to some of the most original musicianship I’ve ever experienced – was, in a word, immense. In two words: fucking mental. STEM represents music as it should be. Maxi Curnow’s lack of ego, compositional prowess, unique musicianship, and friend list have all added up to what has to be one of the prog releases of the year.” - Leon TK
In 2015 Maxi was hired as a writer and producer, working alongside Forrester Savell (Karnivool, Animals as Leaders) for project and EP of the same name “Glasseyes”. This was the start of Maxi’s career in composition in a professional capacity.
In 2016 Maxi released his debut album “Transition” Working with Acle Kahney (Tesseract) and Luke Martin (Plini) “‘Transition’ is a soulful, prog rock-influenced record that has seen the 23 year old be described as “Karnivool meets John Mayer meets Jeff Buckley.” - Already Heard
During this time Maxi had been working as a Firefighter for Surrey Fire and Rescue Service alongside his music. Maxi wrote most of his album while on call, hoping his pager would’t go off!
Transition drew upon Maxi’s experiences working as a firefighter, it’s where he began to embark on a raw and visceral dive into telling stories to help others;
The main single from the album “If We Make It” achieved something that had never been done before: Combining a national safety campaign with a music video to save the lives of new drivers. The video ( https://youtu.be/BjL79zq4sqA ) Incorporates Maxi’s actual Firefighting crew and a live drill of a RTC “Road Traffic Collision” After seeing incidents like this first hand, Maxi decided that something had to be done to raise awareness, and he used his music to do this.
2017 - Stem 2.0 featuring Dave Hollingworth (Toska, Dorje) Toby Peterson (The Omnific) Doug Harper (Rick Astley, Garry Barlow, Book or Mormon) Mike Malyan (Monuments, Disperse, Algorithm)
“STEM 2.0 is even more ambitious than the original. STEM 2.0 is just not something you can take for granted – especially considering that this is not merely a technical masterpiece, but one overflowing with emotion.” - Leon TK
Alongside his own musical releases, Maxi has dedicated a lot of his time writing and playing with various bands and singing on music with other artists including Rabea Massaad, Anup Sastry, Modern Day Babylon, Friend For A Foe, Atrium, Clockwork, Silhouettes.
