Who is kari?
I’m a chocolate-eating artist who lives for music!
What were your dreams when you were a child?
I was a tomboy when I was little and I liked dinosaurs and wanted to be an archaeologist for several years. I also wanted to be a cop or a superhero for a while. But already when I was in kindergarten I really loved music and often sat with the piano we had on the kindergarten.
What did you do before joining Ashbury Heights ?
Since I always wanted to sing and do something with music I tried to come closer to that goal. A few years after I graduated from music school I moved to Stockholm to continue my modelling career that I now celebrate 5 years as and later I also started working at a clothing store and as a moderator at a website. I did all this while dreaming about music.
And you didn’t sung for another bands before?
I did sing in one band but that one was never serious. I was a little too shy when it came to my voice so I didn’t dare to sing alone in front of other people for a long time.
One day in the beginning of October 2008 when I logged in on my MySpace I had got an interesting email. It was Anders who asked me if I would be interested to be the new singer of Ashbury Heights and I immediately said yes. He also told me that he was going to have auditions later that year and asked if I had anything recorded. I said yes and sent him a recording. I got an email back shortly after where he said that I should call him and after a couple of hours on the phone I was the new singer! He liked my singing and enthusiasm for music so much that he said that he didn’t have to look anymore. I was the one.
I had some troubles with a few of the songs because they were a little low. But I only see that as an opportunity to train myself to get a larger range.
We have made some alterations on some songs but not because I couldn’t sing them. Since I have a larger range on my voice I could actually do harmonics he had wanted to use but couldn’t earlier since they were too high for the female part.
How would you describe yourself as a singer? What are your strong points?
As an opera singer in the base I have gotten a good foundation as a singer. Even if I have changed the style of my singing I still have had help from that technique.
I have a warm voice that can be soft but I can also have attitude. I see singing as a form of theatre; you have different roles to play depending on the feeling in the song you sing.
How do you deal with your nervousness?
I actually don’t deal with it. I get nervous, can’t breathe and then I just think “A what the hell” and I just do it! I think it’s good to be a little nervous but I’m longing for the day when I’m not. *laughs*
It’s your second show you played today at the Gothic Festival how was it? How did you get over your nerves?
I was really nervous at the beginning but when we had our sound check everything was like a puzzle and the pieces finally fell together. In that moment I grew up and found myself on stage. I felt like a wreck after the gig in Poland and even if it worked well for a first gig I still was not happy with it. Now after the gig here in Belgium I feel much surer about myself. Everyone has given me such good comments and even though we had some sound problems (not as bad as we had in Poland) I feel great!
Well, Anders has always been the one who made the music and lyrics so it’s still AH. But everyone changes and the music will too. We are a team and I have shown interest in being a part of the creative side of the band, not being only a singer. I joined the band because I liked the music, not to walk in and change everything.
A big thank you to all the people who were at the Gothic Festival and for the great support everyone gave us!