Born in Columbus Ohio, Brian Kahanek grew up nearby on an 80-acre farm full of corn and alfalfa fields where they bred beautiful Arabian horses and sold the yearly harvest. Helping his dad work the farm, feeding the horses, and listening to music of all genres were part the daily life.
When Brian was 10, the Kahanek clan moved to his father’s birthplace of San Antonio Texas, a hotbed of Texas style blues. It was here that a family friend got Brian his first guitar, a $100 acoustic from Ruston's Western Wear store on the outskirts of the city. Even with strings so high that you could shoot arrows with them, he was hooked and never looked back.
Fast forward to age 15… Brian was knee deep in The Police, AC/DC, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Led Zeppelin, Ozzy Osborne, George Lynch, Black Sabbath, ZZ Top and Jimi Hendrix to name a few.
Cutting his teeth by playing every chance he got, Brian graduated High School and left home to study music at The University of North Texas in Denton. What he didn’t realize was that he would be playing more sessions and gigs than attending classes.
With the lure of his own artistic vision at heart and a choice to make, he left his studies at the university for a very different school, the life of the touring musician and the pursuit of his identity as an artist. Honing his skills as a guitarist and singer, Brian worked the Texas club circuit for 6 years winning over regional critics and fans.
Finally in 1998 he gave in to his childhood dream and moved to California, the land where everything is possible. It is in LA that he really set out to change things, but in reality things would change him. The City of Angels is where he found his own voice going against the superficial grain, and in 2001 Brian embraced his muse and dove in headfirst.
In 2004 Brian released the underground hit “Real Life” and is currently working on his second CD, tentatively titled “Suicide King”.
Brian Kahanek’s “Gemini”, an instrumental track from “Real Life”, appears in a coveted position within the hottest video game of the year “Guitar Hero II”. To describe Brian’s music, it’s best summed up in this statement from a loyal fan. “To watch Brian play is to go to that ‘wishing well place’ we all seem to find while listening to great music.”