Felix Rabin Band

Coming to Barnoldswick Music and Arts Centre on Thursday 9th April
The Félix Rabin Band

Félix Rabin operates in a musical space powered by contrast — where the flamboyance of a modern guitar hero meets the inward pull of a deeply reflective songwriter. His music lives in that friction point: moments of restraint and vulnerability giving way to sudden bursts of raw power, as layered arrangements peel back to reveal the burning instinct of the soloist at the centre.

A fragile, searching vocal cuts through thick, immersive textures before the band erupts, creating space for Rabin's guitar to speak with clarity, force and intent. The result is dynamic, cinematic blues-rock — music that breathes, surges and strikes, never standing still for long.

Influenced by the contemporary blues lineage of Gary Clark Jr. and John Mayer, Félix Rabin is firmly rooted in pop-rock tinted blues, with flashes of funk woven into the grooves. His sound draws deep inspiration from the boldness, excess and expressive freedom of the great icons of the 1960s and '70s, yet it is filtered through a distinctly modern personality — an introverted outsider, a "good boy" on the surface, with an incandescent frenzy simmering just beneath.

The journey began, fittingly, with the blues — and a fascination with the feline, fluid playing of Stevie Ray Vaughan. Coincidence or destiny? In 2015, Félix commanded the jam sessions at the Montreux Jazz Festival, the very stage where, 25 years earlier, Stevie Ray Vaughan had so electrified David Bowie that it reshaped his career. When Rabin let his guitar ring out at Montreux, it was the legendary Quincy Jones who invited him to his table, offering personal encouragement and praise — a moment that marked a turning point.

From there, Rabin sought validation on British soil. In the country of Pink Floyd and Michael Kiwanuka, he built his reputation the hard way — first in small clubs, then steadily progressing to larger stages. His growing reputation caught the attention of Wishbone Ash, who invited Félix to join them on their UK tour, a powerful endorsement from a band with over 50 years of guitar-driven legacy.

In 2019, Félix crossed the Atlantic to the United States — a proving ground where only players of real substance survive. There, he recorded his first studio album with acclaimed Californian producer Ross Hogarth, whose credits include Van Halen, Ziggy Marley and R.E.M., placing Rabin firmly on the international map.

Momentum surged at the dawn of the new decade. After winning Best Act at the Giants of Rock Festival in early 2020, Félix spent a month touring across ten European countries — from Oslo to Paris, Cardiff to Berlin — supporting Samantha Fish on her European and UK tour. Later that year, he released the six-track EP Pogboy, built around titanic guitar performances that pay respect to the masters while asserting his own unmistakable voice. Just as the ascent gathered pace, the world came to a halt.

Following a quieter 2021, Rabin reignited the flame in 2022 — returning to Giants of Rock as the previous year's winner, delivering more than 50 shows across Europe, and writing the material that would shape his next chapter. A first single from the new EP arrived in September 2023, signalling an artist still moving forward, still refining his sound.

2024 and 2025 became a whirlwind of growth and momentum, and now, in 2026, Félix Rabin returns armed with fresh, powerful new material — sharper, bolder, and more assured than ever. This is blues-rock that simmers, explodes, and stays with you long after the final note fades — delivered up close and intensely personal in the intimate setting of Barnoldswick Music and Arts Centre.