Karmacoda
San Francisco, California, United States | INDIE
Music
Press
"Masterpiece"
Although Massive Attack and Portishead were very succesful once in the 90s, trip-hop is an underappreciated genre. Not that anyone really hates trip-hop, but there're so many labels that don't want to risk with a trip-hop band.
Karmacoda is one of those bands which deserve more success than they have. Their second album is even better than their debut album, with lots of excellent songs like 'Firefly' (which reminds me of Teardrop) or the rather ambient tune 'Transitory'.
The excellent value of this album is proved by the fact that Kamacoda made a remix album based on it, called 'Altered Evidence: Late Night Remixes'. Concluding, it's a truely outstanding album that makes you think once again about the value of the trip-hop genre. - MP3.com
Splendid Music Review for Evidence:
If you're going to do "trip hop", you'd better have a Class-A female vocalist to step up and satisfy your listeners expectations of the genre. Unless you're Tricky, in which case a gruff and incomprehensible drawl is fine. This San Francisco-based four-piece seem committed to exploring a sound that parallels the very best of that genre, but they still make a populist push in terms of the relaxed atmospheres and lush arrangements on display. Karmacoda's ace in the hole is Heather Pierce, whose voice is so gorgeous that it's impossible not to get wrapped up in its sexy cool -- think Mimi from Low without the guilt. - Splendid Music
On Evidence the mellow trip hop beats glide like a cruise down Highway #1. Karmacoda creates a lush groove, that like love, can go on forever. On songs like “Where you Sleep” they reinvent electro lounge pop and tone down the electronics to do what they do best - add atmosphere. Singer Heather Pierce's vocals are incredibly soulful, with emotion that supersedes electro and trip hop which eschews any feelings, save for melancholy and paralysis.
- Music Dish
Karmcoda puts out a straight up, cool vibe. Heather Pierce has a beautiful voice which she uses to compliment Brett “B.” Crockett’s haunting vocals. She takes the lead, and quite skillfully on songs like "Tragic” and “Awaken". If you’re looking for some hot indie beats to bounce down the strip with, then Karmacoda is for you. I think these guys would sound great in an acoustic setting. Great sound, I can’t wait to see them play live someday. Favorites: (4) Front of My Room, (8) WhatWithAll - South of Mainstreet
What a completely refreshing change these guys are. At one point as much as I love punk rock, and I do, I long for something else, something new, here they are. Trip hop at it's finest. I can't wait to hear more from these guys.
- Fog City
In 2004 Karmacoda released Altered Evidence: Late Night Remixes. Karmacoda's music is a kind of manual about how to create aural atmospheres, where human feelings and sensations are conducted to their highest levels - maybe, paradoxically, too high to be human... If we are not able to fly, Karmacoda teaches us how to simulate that. The splendor is up there, and Karmacoda is a direct high-way toward it. This is an extreme recommendation for every trip-hopper. - Tripofagia
Funky chill-riffic remixes slither slide and samba – perfect for summer lounging and getting intimate with strangers. My picks: If You and I (by Polywog and Frogger), Das Brennende Brett RMX, Rocket Fuel Remix (by DJ Rafael Acevedo), Your Love (by DJ Amber and Russ Arteaga), My Mind is... Reckless (by Den Jones) and Tyler Stone’s Tragically Hip Mix. - SF Gloss
Karmacoda's 'Evidence' is full of extremely well-written and perfectly produced tracks. Heather Pierce, B., Brian Templeton and Rafael Aceredo did a good job along with engineer Brett Crockett from Sola Music Studio. Tracks like 'All that Depth', 'Awaken' and 'Firefly' will shake up the triphop world. Check'em out and buy the album today! - Triphop.hu
Discography
Recomended - CD 2001
Evidence - CD 2004
Altered Evidence: Late Night Remixes - CD 2004
Illuminate - CD 2007
Ultraviolet Live - CD 2009
Karmacoda's music can be heard on many internet and broadcast radio stations.
Photos
Bio
It is a simple objective really; create music to reflect the emotion of a specific time and space in the modern world.
After a year-long hiatus working in the studio, San Francisco artists Karmacoda return with their highly-anticipated third album, Illuminate. The album features 12 fresh tracks and represents a major move forward for the group, containing songs with strong hooks, melodies and an engaging evolution of their groove-laden electronic sound.
Launched as a collective effort between songwriters, Brett “B.” Crockett and Heather Pierce in 2001, Karmacoda laces their electronica/trip hop foundation with elements of rock, pop and jazz, creating truly addictive sonic recreation. Outfitting themselves with the turntable magic of DJ Rafael Acevedo, Eric Matsuno’s hypnotic bass, B. on vocals, guitar and keyboards and the soaring lead vocals of Heather, Karmacoda’s vibe is immediately engaging, particularly live.
Illuminate, which was mastered by Andy VanDette (U2, David Bowie, Moby, Garbage, Smashing Pumpkins) at Masterdisk, NYC is currently being presented to the music industry for radio, label and licensing opportunities.
History / Discography:
The summer 2001 release of Karmacoda's debut Reco mended garnered an overwhelmingly positive response and a happily surprised Karmacoda began receiving inquiries as to when the new group would perform live. Because Karmacoda began primarily as a studio project, the challenges and limitations of playing the material live were not a primary concern during writing and recording. Following the formation of the full, performing core of the band, Karmacoda's live shows quickly became popular throughout the San Francisco Bay Area, grabbing the attention of local promoters and clubs and a burgeoning fan base. By integrating a live VJ who creates real-time custom video projection, the band's musical vision was not only being heard but literally seen. The music on Reco mended was heavily featured in film and television soundtracks and won several music awards including the 2003 IMG Music Award for best independent song used in film and television for their track Swan.
Karmacoda's second album Evidence was released in August of 2003, receiving critical acclaim, being extensively featured in film and television and winning several independent and international songwriting awards. With the release of Evidence Karmacoda's international exposure and fan base began to grow exponentially leading to hundreds of thousands of visitors per month to their site, with nearly half originating from outside the US.
In 2004, Altered Evidence: Late Night Remixes, featuring remixes of the tracks on Evidence was released to additional critical acclaim and extensive international sales, particularly through downloadable music stores such as iTunes.
In 2006, Karmacoda began exploring the new realm of writing film soundtracks by contributing songs and scoring the entire soundtrack for the full-length feature Voyeur. 2006 also saw the band completing their groundbreaking new album Illuminate.
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