Karma to Burn

OK, I'm not doing a random music selection today...i want to talk about a cool band called Karma to Burn.

Karma to Burn is a trio from Morgantown, West Virginia who play instrumental music. Labelled as "Stoner Rock" most often, they provide heavy beats with groovy riffs that make your head bang...sometimes unwillingly!

They have 3 full length albums available...the first, released in 1997 on Roadrunner Records is Self Titled and actually contains tracks with singing. Its my least favorite of the three...I just think this band does a better job without a singer holding them back. There is one amazing song on this album though - its the last song on the disc...it's called SIX. (After this album, ALL of their song names were numbers - they figured if there are no lyrics, they can't give them names!)

Six happens to be my favorite KtB song in their library. On the album, its almost like a bonus track....a long silence and then the song starts. (There is an edited version of this song on iTunes)
Anyway, this song has a cool dark opening....kinda quiet bass groove with some atmosphere (maybe even a double tracked bassline)... The drums kick in slowly and when the guitars hit, it creates a VERY nice buildup....about 1:10, the main riff slides on in and I picture like a chase scene. (Actually, K2B really evoke chase scenes in a lot of their tunes) Pick this song up for 99 cents to see if you like this band!

Their 2nd studio album is called "Wild Wonderful Purgatory"....this is when they started their Instrumental Only journey as a band. This is the first album I heard from these guys and I've always been into instrumental music. I liked what I heard here...I won't go into too much detail but each song has a different flavor to it but it all comes together as an album...a nice flow. Very nice introduction to a cool band!!

Their 3rd album is my favorite...its called "Almost Heathen" and it came out in 2001. The name describes the music perfectly. It's a darker album than their previous two efforts and contains less tracks....it seems more polished....solid. All 10 songs on this album RULE. This band can really create a groove....

Unfortunately, Karma to Burn broke up in early 2002 when their bass player (Rich Mullins) joined another band Speedealer.

Fast forward to 2009....and Karma to Burn reunites and does a reunion Tour in Europe and the US, kicked off at the Download Festival. They are currently working on a new album that is expected to hit the shelves (digital or otherwise) later this year.

I recommend this band if you like instrumental, heavy music that has serious groove.

Enjoy it. Comments welcome!

First Game - Random in iTunes

Hey there!
First of all, i'll let you know I have a somewhat large iTunes library, topping out at 9745 items worth 23.1 days of music if played nonstop.

I'm going to hit the random (or shuffle) button in iTunes and discuss my thoughts on the first 5 Songs/Artists that come up. Here goes:

Band: Mammoth Volume
Song: Noara Dance
Album: Noara Dance

OK this song is pretty groovy. It's heavy, very blues based fuzz rock. These guys are from Sweden. I gather they are into bands like Kyuss, Fu Manchu etc, though they do have some interesting riffs in terms of timing and flow. Over all, cool song from a pretty cool band.

Band: Public Enemy
Song: Night of the Living Baseheads
Album: It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back...

This is the first Public Enemy song I ever heard. Man I loved Chuck D! He was so cool...his lyrics were awesome, the beats were cool and new. They had a dude with a giant clock around his neck, some military guys doing kicks and chops in the background all the time, and a cool DJ! Some cool scratching with samples too. This song definitely has the anti-drug message but somehow its still hardcore.

Band: Dungeon Family
Song: They Comin'...
Album: Even in Darkness

This group is a collaboration between many southern hip hop groups including Organized Noize, Goodie Mob and Outkast. It definitely has the southern vibe to it but without the annoying beats and bad rap. In other words, I really like this song...its got a dark ominous vibe with a cool guitar sample...

Band: Buckethead
Song: Johnny
Album: Acoustic Shards

This song is an instrumental acoustic guitar song which sounds kind of triumphant overall. Buckethead recorded this album in his living room with a single mic all recorded live with no overdubs. Impressive acoustic stuff for sure. Check it out if you haven't and don't be thrown by his appearance. He's an incredible guitar player!

Band: Tool
Song: Mantra
Album: Lateralus

This is kind of a tough one since its mostly just ambient noise....i love this album though. Its got a lot of killer riffs and Maynard's voice is amazing. The band came together very nicely on this. Tighter than....well, tigher than you can imagine! Heavy and dark prog metal...how could you go wrong?

Well that's my 5 for today. Not sure how often I will do this but it was kind of fun to hear some random stuff.