King Karma

There must be something in the air on the West Coast of Canada these days. First, Erol Sora put out an incredible debut disc, then now, along comes another Vancouver based band King Karma, who on their self titled debut put forth an amazing statement of classic blues inflected hard rock that will bring back hope to the rock n roll faithful.

Beginning with the radio ready "Breathe," which would be a natural when played next to such modern day radio staples such as Audioslave, this is a great disc from start to finish, without any filler in between. What you get here are 12 tracks of first class rock courtesy of a collective of musicians who know what they want and go for it. Whether it's the Bad Company by way of AC/DC thrust of "Blue Monday," the heartfelt balladry of "Mama's Pride" or "I'm Listening" to the balls out Zep influenced rock of "Into The Everlast" this album is truly a joy to behold. It's rare that a band gets everything right the first time around, but damn if King Karma hasn't accomplished what so many bands strive for and fail accomplishing : A true classic on their first attempt. Whether it's the crunchy guitars supplied by Markus Wolfe, the heavy bottom end from bassist Todd Ronning and drummer Rick Fedyk or the soaring vocals of Shaun Williamson, this is a band filled with more talent than 100 of your Green Days or White Stripes combined. If young listeners want to hear some real rock they just need to be directed to this release and they'll soon find what they've been missing all along. And, if you're a long time classic rock listener who thinks that they just don't make them like they used to, this will restore your hope that all is not lost when it comes to music that can be compared to the genre's heyday.

Superbly produced by the legendary Jimmy Johnson(Lynyrd Skynyrd, Rolling Stones, Amazing Rhythm Aces) it has the right clarity and sonics to ensure these compositions are fully heard in their best light. This is a world class release from a world class band, filled with great songs and great playing, and if you love classic metal and hard rock with both swagger and grace you owe it to yourself to pick this one up.
5/5 - ROCK N ROLL UNIVERSE - Los Angeles, CA

King Karma rocks, ladies and gentlemen. They embody everything we loved about Zeppelin, Sammy Hagar, Montrose and early Aerosmith, all wrapped up neatly in a Southern package. The record was produced by none other than Muscle Shoals Swamper Jimmy Johnson, along with Steve Melton and the band themselves, Todd Ronning on bass, Rick Fedyk on drums, Markus Wolfe on guitar and Shaun Williamson on vocals.

All twelve tracks are hard hitting, cutting- edge rock and roll, with a definite '70's and '80's classic rock vibe. On the set opener, "Breathe," King Karma blend influences as diverse as Deep Purple, Pearl Jam and Guns n' Roses into a tune that sounds great, especially loud.

For one of my favorite tracks, the power-ballad "Revolution Man," the band gets a little help on backing vocals from Jimmy Farrar (Molly Hatchet) and Jay Johnson (Blackfoot.) "Mama's Pride" is another really good, guitar driven track. In fact, from "Heaven's Burning" to the bass-guitar-drenched-rocker "Midnight Sunshine," this album rocks. It's all good. Rock radio, are you listening. Hello? This is the band you've been looking for. Kick ass! - GRITZ MAGAZINE - Atlanta, GA

Legendary producer Jimmy Johnson said King Karma is the best rock product he has worked on since Lynyrd Skynyrd back in the 70’s. Judging from what I can hear on this disc, he may be right.

King Karma has a bluesy southern hard rock sound. Former Atlanta Rhythm Section and Backbone Slide vocalist, Shaun Williamson has the perfect voice to front this band. After giving this CD a listen for the first time, I thought King Karma is quite similar to Skynyrd in sound. Considering how very few rock bands approach music in this fashion in this day and age, King Karma is a breath of fresh air. Whether its a ballad or a rocker, they play it, and play it well!

There are several stand outs on this disc including Breathe, Into the Everlast, Mama’s Pride, Heavens Burning, I’m Listening, Midnight Sunshine. Great vocals and killer guitar solos are plentiful on this disc. This is a disc for all southern rock fans, and hard rockers alike! Skynyrd fans will eat this up!
- HARD ROCK HIDEOUT - New York, NY

King Karma is a Canadian band that lives by the simple formula of plugging in, turning up and letting go, and they demonstrate as much on their self-titled CD, King Karma. With all the blue-based, hard rock fury you might expect from a band spearheaded by GIT trained guitarist Markus Wolfe, King Karma delivers heavy, riff-soaked crunch that never lets up - reminding the listener of the days when this kind of music was played all over the radio stations in North America, Australia, Europe and Asia. With Shaun Williamson on vocals, Todd Ronning on bass, and Rick Fedyk on drums, Wolfe has a solid band alongside him that provides the push, drive and impetus for his muscular solo work. Imagine an amped up Bad Company, updated for the new millennium, with a touch more aggression and attitude and you'll have a good starting point for understanding where Wolfe and King Karma are coming from. Check it out.

Guitarist Markus Wolfe, born in Vancouver and a founding member of King Karma, began his musical career in Los Angeles where he attended the world-renowned guitar institute, GIT. The faculty at GIT convinced Markus to lengthen his stay as a GIT instructor. Upon his return to Vancouver Markus joined musical forces with bassist, Todd Ronning. The pair formed a songwriting partnership and would later play with Paul Rodgers of Bad Company in Rodgers' solo band. Shortly after Markus caught up with Todd in Nashville where the two began shaping the sound that would ultimately be recorded on KK's critically acclaimed debut.

In May 2005, King Karma signed with Centurion Records (a division of Centurion Music Group Inc.) The deal would include the US and Canadian release of King Karma's debut album through Universal Music. - GUITAR 9 - Raleigh, NC

This quartet plays some badass bluesy hard rock, very edgy and with a dark flavor. Influenced by the likes of Zeppelin, Aerosmith, ZZ Top, Stevie Ray Vaughn, Black Crows, and even Alice In Chains, their music is gritty, tough as nails, rough, raw, and raucous. There are no frills and nothing fancy, just stripped to basics rock and roll.

The guitars are razor sharp, and the beat is heavy as lead and pounds like a jackhammer. None of the songs are very fast, they move along at a steady, heavy blues pace, but they make up in power what they lack in speed. Think of a tank or a bulldozer-moves slow, but powerful as hell, and you don't want to get in its way.

There are a couple of ballads on here, that show the band's more sensitive sign, those being "I'm Listening" and "Don't Take The World Out On Me". These songs have some folk influence, with acoustic guitars, hand percussions, and a mellower vibe than the other songs. They add a good contrast to the rest of the album. King Karma can certainly play, and they play up a storm of smoking hard blues rock here, that delivers a boot square to the ass! - BALLBUSTER MAGAZINE - Louisville, KY

Stunning ... can I stop there please.

King Karma have produced an album of music in its most organic form. This is blues based hard rock straight out of the 1970s but without feeling in the least bit dated. With echoes of Bad Company, Led Zeppelin and the other giants of that decade King Karma prove that, as in the old adage, less if often more.

Built upon the solid foundations provided by rhythm section Todd Ronning (bass) and Rick Fedyk (drums), the music is a gorgeous amalgam of hard rock guitar riffs and slower introspective acoustic passages, sometimes within the same song. Guitarist Markus Wolfe succeeds, where many more famous names have failed, in that he plays with true feel and purely for the song, rather than simply to show his undoubted technical ability. To round out the band there is vocalist Shaun Williamson, a man with more soul and raw emotion in his voice than a recording studio full of boy band wannabes and Pop Idol hopefuls.

Listening to album opener 'Breathe', a mid-tempo powerful rocker, it is obvious that we are in for something special, and this feeling grows as the band slip into 'Blue Monday'. With thundering drums and bass leading the way, Williamson delivers the magnificent melody with consummate ease. 'Into The Everlast' continues the trend, another rocking number containing excellent counterpoint guitar and vocal tracks. Then we have 'Revolution Man', which is without doubt the highlight of the album. A melancholic lament which flips between a quiet acoustic guitar verse and a more expansive chorus.

It would be easy to carry on extolling the virtues of each and every song, however suffice to say that there is not a weak link on this record. Whether the songs rock out like 'Heaven's Burning' or drift into the ballad territory as 'Don't Take The World Out On Me', there is not a single filler to be heard. 'I'm Listening' even brings back memories of Lynyrd Skynyrd with its southern flavoured tinges. Actually given that the album was produced by ex-Leonard Skynyrd studio whizz Jimmy Johnson, this is not entirely surprising. Johnson even goes so far as to say that King Karma is the "best rock product since we worked with Lynyrd Skynyrd back in the 70’s."

This is the album that Audioslave should have made, The Black Crowes have always wanted to make and Badlands may have made had events not turned sour. King Karma have produced one of the albums of year. As I said Stunning! - HARD ROCK HOUSE - London, UK

The self-titled disc by King Karma kicks to say the least. If you are looking for hard rock with a today's sound look no further than this group. They not only kick butt they have the genre down to a tee. There is no doubt that this group will be going places fast. I would think that this is a group that can carry itself alone in any venue large or small.

The music is sharp, fresh and new. If you like the sounds of Rainbow, GNR or AC/DC this group appeals to all from young high school rockers to people like myself who like to take a journey back in time when hard rock was simply hard rock!

(A must buy hard Rock Album!) - KANGAR INTERNATIONAL - Cape Town, SA

Listening to the sounds on their self-titled debut, it's no wonder why King Karma is quickly nearing superstar status. This release doesn't let up on the listener for one minute. From the first song "Breathe", King Karma perpetually pummels their fans with an old school metal sound that I'm glad still exists to this day. These guys are proving that rock stars still exist with a talented line-up of seasoned musicians with Shaun Williamson belting out heartfelt lyrics through rebellious vocal chords and Markus Wolfe working overtime with his impressive guitar stylings. Songs like "Mama's Pride" gets you on your feet with its fun, blues-infused sounds, which is reminiscent of Led Zeppelin's later work. King Karma even includes the required rock ballad with the story of the "Revolution Man". King Karma really has the chance to show their ass (figuratively speaking) to the rest of the music world and come out smelling like roses. - SOUTHBOUND BEAT MAGAZINE - Los Angeles, CA

There's a nice buzz going on about King Karma, a blues-based hard rock outfit that may just bring about the resurgence of this genre of music. For starters, famed producer Jimmy Johnson and sound engineer Steve Melton (Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Rolling Stones, Bob Seger, and Greg Allman) jumped on board after hearing their demos. The results of the King Karma/Johnson/Melton collaboration has garnered King Karma praise from the internet press, and WITR, an upstate New York's radio station who placed the band's debut in the top ten best CD releases of the year. One of the band's tracks, "Into the Everlast," was also voted 'Track of the Day' (over 6,000 other hard rock artists) on Garageband.com. This is just the beginning for this young band.

King Karma has a sound that's similar to the underrated early 90s group Cry Of Love, and interestingly, Steve Melton was the engineer on Cry Of Love's two releases. Markus Wolfe (guitar), Todd Ronning (bass), and Rick Fedyk (drums), who all hail from Vancouver, B.C., hooked up with Tallahassee, Florida's Shaun Williamson after a long search for the perfect vocalist.' Shaun, who sounds a helluva lot like Charlie Huhn (Victory, Foghat, ex-Ted Nugent), emits power and emotion, and he's clearly the perfect musical compadre for the other three guys. Song wise, the band's bluesy style comes off honest and comfortable whether it's during the meaty opener "Breathe," the mid-paced creeper "Blue Monday," or the aforementioned pounder "Into the Everlast." And there's a mixture of ballads ("Twilight Child" and "Don't Take the World Out On Me") and rockers ("Shake My Bones" and "Midnight Sunshine") to keep all fans of blues based rock happy.

The Bottom Line: It's really nice to hear a real rock band, one with soul, emotion, and enough edge to give them credibility. King Karma will appeal to classic rock fans looking for something new, bluesy hard rock fans, and fans of quality musicianship. Highlights are guitarist Markus Wolfe's blues-based riffs and screaming leads, the tightness of the rhythm section, and the emotive vocals of Shaun Williamson. King Karma should be played on every classic rock radio station in America! - METAL DREAMS MAGAZINE - New York, NY

The name King Karma first came to light for this particular scribbler during a recent conversation pertaining to Rob Lamothe, and, at a tangent, his possible involvement with this Canadian outfit. Although an independent release, this platter sounds pretty much major label, with a mix balancing punch with clarity, though great sounds matter not a jot if songs and performance are found wanting.

King Karma, a four piece, occupies that timeless twilight inhabited by the likes of Badlands, Bad Company - drummer Rick Fedyk is so Simon Kirke- Zeppelin, Cry of Love, Riverdogs, and more recently Audioslave. The latter would be proud to call "Into the Everlast" one of their own.

Opening track "Breathe" is Zeppelin by way of the Black Crowes with singer Stuart Williamson very Chris Robinson in his upper registers, as guitarist Markus Wolfe lays down the crunch with the minimum of fuss and the maximum impact. "Blue Monday" echoes Free with a hint of Skynryd's swamp hinterland, guitar lines recalling Allen Collins and vocals Paul Rodgers would approve of. The gathering drama of the Rob Lamothe penned "Revolution Man" with Jimmy Farrar of Molly Hatchet fame and Jay Johnson of Rossington Band and Blackfoot on backing vocals, sees King Karma make their own, while the "Man on the silver mountain" riffing of "Mama's Pride" sets the neck muscles a twitching and Williamson sidestepping neatly into Glenn Hughes territory.

It seems odd that a band of the clear ability of King Karma remain as yet without a major deal, but surely that oversight should be rectified ere long.

Check out their website at www.kingkarma.com and get hold of a slice of the real deal. - AOR DREAMZONES - Liverpool, UK