New Album - Fos - 'Captain Free'

London based Greek born artist Katerina Koutouzi, aka Fos, is releasing her third album “Captain Free” on the artist's own label, Near The Exit Music. The captivating melody of the main song from which the album takes its title, dominates this record. 'Captain Free' takes you on a journey from Dalston neon market stalls reflected in kerbside puddles to the silvery darting fish swimming in the clear Greek island waters. Squidgy beats and airy synth complemented by a gentle voice full of promise, blow over the listener like a familiar summer breeze.

Katerina has recorded, produced and mastered this record herself and you can feel that this is a song that has been lovingly nurtured into being. When she was a girl, Katerina grew up on a small Greek island and her island memories paint a sort of glorious technicolor-nostalgia over this beautifully formed, catchy electro pop song conceived in the bustling city.

The rest of the album takes the listener on a sailing trip through varied musical waters. The whole album evolves around the theme of sailing on one's sailboat in the vast blue as a symbolic metaphor on the meaning of life and being alive.
Following in the footsteps of her second album “Rock”, “Captain Free” is a well crafted assortment of all the different elements that Koutouzi likes to play with.

Fos brings together traditional acoustic instruments like the daouli Greek drum, ancient instruments like the conch-shell, other acoustic instruments including the piano and the accordion, an electronica style of programming beats using pebbles, shells and bells. Katerina often sings in different languages, using the sound of a language as another sound tool but also using voice as an instrument. This contemporary approach blends styles such as dance music, song structures using simple archetypal melodies, ambient soundscapes using her own field recordings of natural sounds like the sound of waves and minimal instrumental explorations. The pieces sometimes sound like a sound collage of different instruments and natural sounds, but with an overarching aim of creating a certain atmosphere and an emotional reaction.

In 2010 her second album “Rock” was described by Rough Trade as "a blissed out avant folk-pop revelation. A masterful piece of work... a thing of wonder". Music critics from all over the world praised her music production style.

The music of Fos has been played on various radio stations including BBC Radio 6 by Tom Ravenscroft, Tom Robinson and Nemone. Fos has played live on Resonance FM, NTS Radio, performed live for the online dance music TV channel Boiler Room and at various festivals and venues across the UK including the National Portrait Gallery in London.

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