Saturday night, January 13, 2024, we open the new blues year with KAI STRAUSS & THE ELECTRIC BLUES ALL-STARS. A German blues band from the European “premier league.
The times when European artists simply imitated North American productions are long gone. Whether one regrets it or not, the blues has become global and is championed by musicians who keep the memory of the blues alive and – with the best of them – give it their individual soul that makes the blues special. Singer and guitarist Kai Strauss belongs to this small circle. “Even as a teenager I was infected by the magic of a Buddy Guy, Albert King or the Vaughan Brothers,” says the musician who grew up musically in the German blues stronghold of Osnabrück and who, according to the trade magazine Bluesnews, is considered one of the big names in the European scene.
From his professional start, when he teamed up with Texas, USA-born singer Memo Gonzalez in 1995, to his successful career as a solo artist, Kai Strauss has proven to be a guitarist and singer with power and originality. Several German Blues Awards confirm his relevance as a bandleader, but he is also a sought-after sideman and has performed in recent years with such American luminaries as Jimmy Johnson, Mike Wheeler and Grammy-nominated Lurrie Bell.
