One eskimO

Biography

One eskimO’s striking sound and presentation can be traced back to 2004, when Leontiou first hit the UK Top 10 with his solo debut single, “Story Of My Life.” His album, entitled “SOME DAY SOON,” proved equally successful, selling more than 200,000 copies and catapulting the soulful young singer to pop success. But, the experience left the gifted young vocalist strangely unfulfilled, as if he were merely a spoke in the great wheel of music industry marketing.

The idea for One eskimO began to gel on a long flight home after a promo tour for Leontiou. Rather than continue on the same unsatisfying path, Kristan did something both brave and rare – he walked away from success to create something he could be proud of. After some R&R, Leontiou reached out to drummer Adam Falkner and the two began writing songs and developing a distinctive new sound. “We wanted to create something really cinematic and dreamy,” Leontiou says. “We wanted to create a magical world of our own.”

Sonic inspiration came from a variety of diverse sources, from The Beatles and The Fugees to Massive Attack and UK hip-hop/folk duo Nizlopi. Bassist Jamie Sefton and guitarist Peter Rinaldi were brought in to complete the group, which then spent long hours in rehearsal, building a multi-layered foundation with largely acoustic instrumentation.