And the Hello there and welcome to So Dijaker on Songwriting, episode 143.

This is Simon and this is Brian.

And joining us today is an English guitarist, songwriter,

producer and singer, not to mention the creative mastermind

behind one of the most successful British bands of the last two decades

Kasabian.

As this episode reaches you, he's just released his superb debut solo album,

the self-recorded and produced the SLP, a stylish musically eclectic tour The Force that surprises

and delight in equal measure and is sure to earn him scores of new admirers.

It's our great pleasure to welcome the excellent Serge Bizorno to the show.

We met with Serge a couple of months ago at his publicist office down in St Johnswood, London

and found him to be a very nice and thoroughly engaging chap as you'll hear in a couple of minutes. Our guest was born in Newton Abbott, Devon in 1980 and grew up in Leicester in the East Midlands.

Serge originally wanted to be a footballer and had trials for Nottingham Forest but

abandon that notion after picking up a guitar for the first time in his teens as Britpop fever crypt the country

He was particularly inspired by the legs of Oasis but at the same time he developed an interest in dance music citing DJ Shadow in particular as a major influence.

While at college in 1997, Serge formed a band with singer Tom Megan, bassist Chris Edwards and guitarist

Chris Karloff. According to legend, Serge recruited Tom after hearing him singing at the top of his lungs in a local park.

Originally performing under the name Saracuse, they later changed it to Kasabian,

the surname of Charles Manson's getaway driver.

They did their first gig under their new name in 1998 and after a few years of toil, their

fusion of rock and roll and electronica found considerable favor with the listening public.

Their self-titled debut album, released in 2004 and mostly recorded in an isolated farmhouse

...