Gig preview: Karima Francis, The Voodoo Rooms

A FEW years ago, Karima Francis was being talked up as music’s next big thing. Her debut album, The Author, attracted comparisons to Joan Armatrading and Tracy Chapman, but while the Blackpool singer-songwriter was promoting it, she became ill with the anorexia that put her promising career on hold.

Now she’s back with a new album that she hopes will give her a second chance.

“Just to have the chance to do a second record is flattering and overwhelming,” says Francis, who appears at Voodoo Rooms on Sunday. “And the fact that it has been received so well – what more can I ask for?

“I didn’t go in the studio thinking that I needed to better the first record, so the pressure was off.

“It was quite old-school in that we got the songs together, worked them out and went and recorded it. It was a nice experience. I know it is quite a sad record and it is probably hard for a listener because it is quite emotional, but it’s also really honest.

“A lot of people are saying nice things about it so I’m very excited,” she adds.

With her striking voice, Francis has a reputation for reducing audiences to putty, and those heading along to her Capital gig are in for a treat.

“It’s quite intense and dynamic and also very honest,” she says. “I like to talk to people when I’m on stage and a lot of people also pick out that I am quite talkative.

“I don’t want the audience to think they are separate from me, so I like to talk to them and make sure that everyone is OK.

“I’m quite personal with people that watch my music.”

• Karima Francis, The Voodoo Rooms, West Register Street, Sunday, 7pm, £8.50, 0131-556 7060