Elias Khouri Live at Revel

Elias started playing guitar when he was 13 years old, playing mostly air guitar to his dad’s record collection. His dad’s collection is comprised of nearly every genre. But Elias’ was into guitar, as the instrument that took front stage and that’s where Rock bands such as Led Zeppelin, Santana, Aerosmith, and The Eagles became his main focus. After acting out the part, he now wanted to be a Rock Star.  One summer day his dad heard him playing air guitar to Eddie Van Halen’s lead guitar and his dad made him a bet that he could never play it, the bet was $100. Elias practiced for 6 weeks straight day and night, playing the tune and imitating it, until he finally got it. He called his dad in the room and played it for him, earning his first $100. As time went by, he focused mainly on the music of the 70’s, the energy, the depth and the soul of that music gave Elias the drive to become more and more like his rock and roll idols. By 14 years old, Elias was already getting the attention of folk and rock and roll local musicians, by attending and performing at the area’s open mic sessions. But it wasn’t very easy at first, here comes this kid with a afro and a guitar, ha ha ha…yeah, he was the new kid in town and he did not look like everyone else and he could tell that they did not take him seriously. Until, he got up on stage and he started playing and all you heard were screams and cheers and loud ongoing applause. They heard the sound of his guitar and they watched the energy and intensity of each note as he played and immediately this doubt was replaced with instant respect. By 15 years old, Elias started exploring other styles of music, exploring Soul and R&B groups from the late 60s and early 70s, but still staying true to his original style, Rock & Roll, as he started playing steady gigs and shows at local venues.