Karate Coyote

Upon forming in 2007, Columbus pop-rock combo Karate Coyote became the toast of the city’s music scene. They opened for major touring artists, got into regular rotation on CD102.5 and attracted all sorts of attention from the kind of people looking to launch (or ride) a band to stardom. 2010 debut album “Inner Animals,” was a shiny, punchy pop record with promise.

They were racing up a mountain until all of the sudden they were falling off a cliff.

“After ‘Inner Animals,’ it just seemed like it went from super-fast, things were happening and things can happen, looking forward on the horizon — and then it went from that to almost like rock bottom,” singer-guitarist Ryan Horn said.

First came the sudden departure of singer Sam Corlett in summer 2010 to focus on visual art and her other band, Maza Blaska. Karate Coyote was not prepared to exist without Corlett, a key architect and core component of the group’s sound, so the band scrambled to replace her with April Kitchen, a friend of Horn’s.

It wasn’t a good fit. Kitchen later found a vehicle for her theater background and abrasive punk sensibilities in Slave Labia, but she never quite jibed with Karate Coyote’s gleaming pop-rock sound. Earlier this year, she quit.

After two years of confusion and stalled attempts to progress, the remaining members were discouraged. Their situation resembled one of those movies where the popular kid in high school has to learn what it’s like to approach life’s challenges like everyone else.

“It’s just hard to go from being what I would consider kind of Columbus’ baby,” Horn said. “We don’t have this buzz anymore. The buzz we had is lost. It’s like we’re starting new.”

Starting from scratch five years into your career is daunting, especially when you’ve invested so much hope in your band. Losing a second lead singer was a requiem for Karate Coyote: Were they up for slugging it out?

You can probably see where this is going. As guitarist Eric Vescelius put it, they loved being Karate Coyote, no matter how many people were paying attention.

“It was kind of this super-cliché ‘Varsity Blues’ sort of moment, like, ‘Go team!’ We want this still,” Horn said.

One factor in the decision to forge ahead was the blooming of keyboardist Kendra Jados, a timid presence who tended to be outshined by Corlett and Kitchen. In the past two years, Jados came into her own as a performer. Furthermore, she knew Kitchen’s parts well enough to pare Karate Coyote’s three-way vocal attack down to two. They’ve been rehearsing as a five-piece and feeling formidable.

That said, Kitchen was deeply involved as the band honed its songwriting, and she’s all over the self-titled album Karate Coyote is releasing with a show Friday at Skully’s. A tightly wound web of guitars, keyboards and voices, it’s a document of a transitional period the band emerged from intact, ready to begin climbing again.

“I think it’s the best thing we’ve ever written thus far,” Horn said. “And I hope we have a chance to make another record and to feel that way about that record.” - Columbus Alive

Another Columbus band that is seeing national success is Karate Coyote. They are led by dual vocalists Kendra Jados and Ryan Horn, but make no mistake, the other members don’t take a back seat. With Ted Bigham on drums, Nic Jados (Kendra’s brother) on bass, and Eric Vescellius on guitar, Karate Coyote is a well-rounded band with a unique sound . Karate Coyote is going places. They currently have two EP’s (Move and Little Victories), and two full-length albums (Inner Animals and Karate Coyote) all of which have been released independently. Despite not having a record contract, the band has achieved success through publication in various magazines, both locally and nationally. They have also been heavily promoted by the Columbus radio station CD102.5 (formally CD101) and have played at a number of shows that CD102.5 has put on. The band also competed in an online contest held by Universal for the film “Scott Pilgrim vs. The World”. The video for their song “ICU2” came in 8th nationally. Their tours have taken them all over Ohio, but also as far as St. Louis, Mo and Austin, TX. With their truly original sound, it won’t be long before more cities get to enjoy a run-in with Karate Coyote. - The Social Shark Tank

Next up was the new look Karate Coyote without the recent departing of singer April Kitchen. This band keeps impressing me with their continued perseverance through all (the departure of April, a great portion of their gear stolen, among others). The thing is, not only are they surviving, but they seem to thrive on the hardships, as they excel to a higher level after each brush that would seem to cripple most bands. And under the Scarlet & Grey lights (excellently done by David Allyn Haberman, one of the best in all of Columbus) they’ve never shined a more complete professional look. With the loss of April, singer Kendra Jados has had to take more of the singing load, and my god is she owning it. She’s never seemed so comfortable on stage and her voice is really starting to show off that impressive range she’s been harboring in all this time. She takes your ears hostage from the very beginning and doesn’t let go til she’s preciously satisfied every inch of each drum. It’s definitely going to be something to keep an eye on as the band moves forward with her as the main female voice because if it’s this outstanding this little after April’s departure, the possibilities will be endless with more time. The same could be said for male voice Ryan Horn. With these new set of songs (from their soon to be released album on 9/28) Ryan has really taken the vocals to be his own with his creative hip wing and is flying this band into it’s completely own identity. KC seems to really be honing in together, which is a dangerous thing for unsuspecting listeners as each of the members (Eric Vescelius on guitar, Nic Jados on bass, Ted Bigham on drums, with Ryan and Kendra pulling double duty on guitar and boards) are some of the best at their respected positions with off the chart music IQ levels. This band is becoming increasingly polished which was on full display this night. They had such a mature look, like they had been together for decades, and their sound was so tight it’s impossible for me to put current words on it as there is just nothing that grasps the performance. It’s an absolute musical nirvana to watch this young talent fully grow into its potential, leaving one to be completely speechless. This is definitely not the Karate Coyote of old and is poised to leave a permanent stamp on Columbus (and more?!) with this new album. This band is not to be missed, keep a very close eye out of them.
- I am tuned up

When Kendra Jados graduated from Ohio State, she had never heard of BuckeyeThon. Four years later, Jados, vocalist for Karate Coyote, is scheduled to perform during the fundraiser.
BuckeyeThon is an OSU student philanthropy event that raises money for Nationwide Children’s Hospital Hematology and Oncology Department. The 12-hour dance marathon that took place last February raised more than $450,000 for the cause, the most in the history of the event.

The dance marathon has been expanded to two, 12-hour shifts this year to incorporate increased student interest and participation. Karate Coyote is scheduled to play two sets during the event at the Ohio Union, midnight Friday and 3:30 p.m. Saturday.

The band has opened for Rogue Wave, Matt and Kim and other indie rockers, and has played at Columbus’s larger arenas like the Lifestyle Communities Pavilion, but BuckeyeThon is unlike shows Karate Coyote has played before.

“This is a little bit different because it’s for a different cause,” Eric Vescelius, who plays the guitar and synthesizer.

BuckeyeThon representatives contacted the Columbus natives and asked them to play at the dance marathon.
“They approached us,” said drummer Ted Bigham. “They were really excited to have us play.”

For the players, BuckeyeThon is more personal than just any other gig.

“I think all of us have had someone touched by cancer,” Vescelius said. “Even if it isn’t our biggest show, it is a really big deal for us.”

New to the BuckeyeThon scene, Jados is excited to play at the event.

“This is really cool for all of us to learn about and be a part of,” she said.

With two spots during the event, Vescelius said Karate Coyote plans to play songs the crowd knows to get participants involved.

But for its shows at BuckeyeThon, the band plans to play its usual style using harmony and melodies.

Bigham said in addition to performing, the band will give away T-shirts, albums and other prizes during its sets.

Ryan Horn, guitarist and vocalist, said Karate Coyote is like a modern Fleetwood Mac.

“The idea is lots of harmony,” he said.

The band is aiming to embody BuckeyeThon’s motto, “For The Kids” with the performance.

“We know people affected by cancer, so this is a really big deal for us to help out in any way possible,” Bigham said. - The Lantern

BuckeyeThon, Ohio State University’s annual dance marathon, will feature two performances by Karate Coyote, a Columbus-local band.

Kendra Jados, lead singer and keyboard player of Karate Coyote, said the band is looking forward to performing at BuckeyeThon.

“We’ve never done Buckeyethon before, this is first time I’ve heard about it, so I think this is so cool,” Jados said. “Especially when you’re dealing with children that have cancer, they’re like rockstars, so they should be honored for their strength and their courage. We’re just really happy to be a part of it and help raise money for treatments and for services that families have trouble affording.”

Karate Coyote will play two one-hour sets, Friday at midnight and Saturday at 3:30 p.m. The band plans to play songs from their debut album “Inner Animals” and their most recent self-titled album “Karate Coyote” along with some covers and “surprises,” Jados said.

Ryan Horn, guitarist and singer, came up with the name ‘Karate Coyote.’

“Unfortunately, there’s no real deep meaning or purpose for it except that he thought it sounded and we all ended up liking it because of the alliteration to it,” Jados said.

Karate Coyote relies heavily on melodies and harmonies.

“You get sort of a pop melody on top with an interesting time signature on the bottom,” Jados said describing the band’s sound. "If I had to come up with a tagline, I think it’d be pop rock with an edge."

Chris Hudson, who runs booking at the Scarlet and Grey Café, said “It’s kind of interesting to watch them (Karate Coyote) continue to grow now. Each show they're doing a little bit different.”

“Their older stuff was more like indie pop, but I would say the newer stuff is a little bit more mature, like a more polished indie sound with a little bit more rock to it now,” Hudson said.

Christian Taylor, a second-year in women’s, gender and sexuality studies, has seen the band perform more than 20 times. He compared Karate Coyote to The xx because the band has many duets.

“They’re really energetic,” Taylor said. “Must-see live, I think would be a good way to put it.”

Both Hudson and Taylor plan to attend the dance marathon to see Karate Coyote.

According to The Lantern, there were more than 3,400 students registered for the BuckeyeThon as of Jan. 28. The event begins Feb. 8 at 8 p.m. The marathon has been broken into two 12-hour shifts this year. The second shift will begin Feb. 9 at 11 a.m. Last March the event raised more than $450,000, a record high in the event’s history. The money was donated to the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Hematology and Oncology Department. BuckeyeThon has other multiple events throughout the year including a basketball tournament and a 5K run.

Each dancer is committed to raise at least $100 in order to participate. The money is raised in a variety of ways from “canning,” writing letters and other hosting other events.

Jados is happy to be a part of the cause because she and the band have been affected by cancer on a personal level.

“I know we’ve all known people who’ve been affected by cancer or have family members that have had it, so this cause we feel really strongly about,” Jados said. - UWeekly