While building his career from the ground up in Istanbul, 25+ year veteran singer-songwriter/guitarist Demir Demirkan recorded and performed with Turkish musicians and bands mainly as a member of the Turkish Heavy Metal band The Pentagram a.k.a. Mezarkabul. Internationally, he recorded and performed with world-renowned names like Mike Stern, Al Di Meola, Dave Weckl, Trilok Gurtu, Omar Hakim and Phil Galdston to name a few.
His audience’s relationship with Demir has solidified through the years with love, sincerity, and a confidence in him that he delivers albums and performances with authenticity and uncompromising creativity.
Beginning at age 19, Demir Demirkan has produced and released close to 50 solo and collaborative albums and singles ranging from blues, rock, metal to film and TV series soundtracks composed for symphony orchestras, choirs and Anatolian instruments.
Internationally, he recorded and performed with world-renowned names such as Mike Stern (Blood, Sweat & Tears), Al Di Meola (Return to Forever), Dave Weckl (Paul Simon, Madonna, Robert Plant), Trilok Gurtu, Omar Hakim (David Bowie, Sting, Madonna, Dire Straits, Journey, Mariah Carey, Celine Dion) and Phil Galdston (Madonna, Celine Dion, Earth, Wind & Fire) to name a few. In addition, he has co-written and produced countless albums for many successful pop and rock artists and bands.
Demir is a rockstar in Turkey and is starting to lay his foundation here in the states. On June 14th he is going to release his new album Elysium In Ashes, and today Glide is excited to premiere the tune “Hold My Hand”. Despite whatever tender connotations the title my imply, “Hold My Hand” is still a soaring heavy rocker with plenty of Demir’s signature guitar shredding. The song deals with emotion (more on that below), but it is also a fist-pumping party anthem that feels celebratory. As a whole it brings to mind some of the better hair metal anthems of the 80s, but with strong, more substantive lyrics and way more technical guitar shredding.
Demir shares the story behind how the song came to life:
“I wrote ‘Hold My Hand’ to my 3 year-old son, Atlas. As I was writing songs for my album Elysium In Ashes, him and my wife were away, out of the country and I had missed them a lot. I started writing the lyrics first. It started out as a letter to him and then turned into a whole story which I envisioned in mind. I had refused to have a child for the longest time until my early 40’s and when he decided to come into our lives, the world I knew so well ended and another one opened up. I consider myself very very lucky and I am very grateful that he chose to arrive into this world and I am changed forever. I am a better man because of him and in fact never knew that I was capable of so much love and had so many things to give him, which I never thought I had. The backbone of the song plot is inspired by the movie ‘The Big Fish’ by Tim Burton, which hit me deeply at the time I watched it.”
LISTEN:
Elysium In Ashes is out on June 14th. For more music and info visit demirdemirkan.net.
