West Virginian instrumental institution Karma to Burn are kicking off a month of North American touring on Jan. 7 and by astounding coincidence, that same date will mark the official US release of their latest album, Arch Stanton (review here). That record saw issue earlier this year on FABA/Deepdive Records, and it will be the former who reportedly will handle the American pressing, which the trio seem fit to hand deliver from city to city on their cross-country (plus Montreal and Vancouver!) run.

It’s a hell of a slog and while I’m sure places like Albuquerque and Mesa, Arizona, will be vaguely tolerable in January, I don’t think anyone could accuse Karma to Burn of going easy on themselves this time out. The band has spent much of the last several years focusing on Europe, but it seems they’re ready to dive headfirst back into the North American market. Hard not to root for them in the endeavor.

I had thought it was only for those on their mailing list, but it looks like they’ve also made a warts-and-all live recording from an earlier-2014 London gig available for free download as well, as the PR wire informs:

KARMA TO BURN: Instrumental Stoner Rock Legends Announce 2015 North American Tour Dates; Arch Stanton To See Stateside Release Next Month

West Virginia instrumental stoner rock legends, KARMA TO BURN, will bring their bong-ripping riffery and glassy-eyed grooves to the stage next month on a mammoth live expedition. Scheduled to launch on January 7th, 2015 in Ohio, the band will crumble thirty-three stages across the US and Canada, coming to a close in their home state on February 13th, 2015. The band will be joined by special guests, Canadian riff rockers, Sierra. In the meantime, turn up and tune out to the sounds of KARMA TO BURN deafening London earlier this year. The show is downloadable for a limited time at THIS LOCATION.

KARMA TO BURN — guitarist Will Mecum, bassist Rob Halkett and drummer Evan Devine — will be touring in support of their Arch Stanton long player. Unleashed in Europe this Summer via Switzerland-based Faba Records, Arch Stanton is the band’s sixth studio album and third since reforming following their seven-year hiatus in 2009. Reminiscent of their now iconic Wild Wonderful Purgatory and Almost Heathen offerings, on Arch Stanton, KARMA TO BURN channels the true spirit of the riff rock ritual with seven monumental new shredders and “23,” a classic number never before heard, re-recorded for the first time ever.

KARM TO BURN:
1/07/2015 Ripper’s Rock House – Akron, OH
10/8/2015 Kung Fu Necktie – Philadelphia, PA
1/09/2015 31st Street Pub – Pittsburgh, PA
1/10/2015 Hard Luck Bar – Toronto, ON
1/11/2015 Casa Del Popolo – Montreal, QC
1/12/2015 Higher Ground – Burlington, VT
1/13/2015 Geno’s Rock Club – Portland, ME
1/14/2015 TT the Bear’s – Cambridge, MA
1/15/2015 The Shaskeen – Manchester, NH
1/16/2015 Saint Vitus – Brooklyn, NY
1/18/2015 Metro Gallery – Baltimore, MD
1/19/2015 Strange Matter – Richmond, VA
1/20/2015 Pour House Music Hall – Raleigh, NC
1/21/2015 The Earl = East Atlanta, GA
1/22/2015 Siberia – New Orleans, LA
1/23/2015 Mangos – Houston, TX
1/24/2015 Mohawk – Austin, TX
1/25/2015 Double Wide – Dallas, TX
1/27/2015 Launchpad – Albuquerque, NM
1/28/2015 The Nile Theater – Mesa, AZ
1/30/2015 Loaded – Hollywood, CA
1/31/2015 Bottom of the Hill – San Francisco, CA
2/01/2015 Starlite Lounge – Sacramento, CA
2/03/2015 El Corazon – Seattle, WA
2/04/2015 Rickshaw Theatre – Vancouver, BC
2/06/2015 Hawthorne Theatre – Portland, OR
2/07/2015 The Shredder – Boise, ID
2/08/2015 Area 51 – Salt Lake City, UT
2/09/2015 Lost Lake Lounge – Denver, CO
2/10/2015 Replay Lounge – Lawrence, KS
2/11/2015 Fubar – St Louis, MO
2/12/2015 Red Line Tap – Chicago, IL
2/13/2015 123 Pleasant Street – Morgantown, WV

In conjunction with band’s tour kick off, KARMA TO BURN’s Arch Stanton will see official North American release via Faba Records on January 7th, 2014.

KARMA TO BURN on Facebook
http://www.k2burn.net

Karma to Burn, “57”

…Actually it’s more like five weeks that West Virginia’s Karma to Burn will spend on the road across the US supporting their 2014 full-length, Arch Stanton (review here). The Morgantown instrumentalists, now with guitarist Will Mecum as the sole remaining founding member alongside bassist Rob Halkett and drummer Evan Devine, will head out right after New Year’s, starting Jan. 7 in Ohio and ending with a hometown gig on Feb. 13.

Those lineup changes have taken place and Karma to Burn have released a self-titled EP and a split with Sons of Alpha Centauri since their last round of North American touring in 2011, so it seems reasonable to expect some difference in stage presence given the different players, etc., but Karma to Burn‘s no-frills core might as well be carved in marble it’s so permanent, and they should be nothing if not recognizable.

Looking forward to finding out:

Karma to Burn on North American tour!

1/07 AKRON, OH @ RIPPERS ROCK HOUSE
1/08 PHILADELPHIA, PA @ KUNGFU NECKTIE
1/09 PITTSBURGH, PA @ 31ST ST PUB
1/10 TORONTO, ON @ HARD LUCK
1/11 MONTREAL, QC @ CASA DEL POPOLO
1/12 BURLINGTON, VT @ HIGHER GROUND
1/13 PORTLAND, ME @ GENO’S
1/14 BOSTON, MA @ TT THE BEARS
1/15 MANCHESTER, NH @ THE SHASKEEN
1/16 NEW YORK, NY @ SAINT VITUS
1/18 BALTIMORE, MD @ METRO GALLERY
1/19 RICHMOND, VA @ STRANGE MATTER
1/20 RALEIGH, NC @ THE POUR HOUSE
1/21 ATLANTA, GA @ THE EARL
1/22 NEW ORLEANS, LA @ SIBERIA
1/23 HOUSTON, TX @ MANGOS
1/24 AUSTIN, TX @ MOHAWK
1/25 DALLAS, TX @ DOUBLE WIDE
1/27 ALBUQUERQUE, TX @ LAUNCHPAD
1/28 PHOENIX, AZ @ NILE THEATER
1/29 SAN DIEGO, CA @ BRICK BY BRICK
1/30 LOS ANGELES, CA @ LOADED
1/31 SAN FRANCISCO, CA @ BOTTOM OF THE HILL
2/01 SACRAMENTO, CA @ STARLITE LOUNGE
2/03 SEATTLE, WA @ EL CORAZON
2/04 VANCOUVER, BC @ RICKSHAW THEATER
2/06 PORTLAND, OR @ HAWTHORNE THEATER
2/07 BOISE, ID @ SHREDDER
2/08 SALT LAKE CITY, UT @ AREA 51
2/09 DENVER, CO @ LOST LAKE
2/10 LAWRENCE, KS @ REPLAY
2/11 ST. LOUIS, MO @ FUBAR
2/12 CHICAGO IL @ RED LINE TAP
2/13 MORGANTOWN WV @ 123 PLEASANT STREET
04/23 Berlin Germany @ Desert Fest
04/26 London UK @ Desert Fest

https://twitter.com/k2burnofficial
http://www.k2burn.net/
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Karma-To-Burn/118432638215095

Karma to Burn, “55” official video

What’s really surprising about Arch Stanton, the new full-length from Karma to Burn, isn’t how the trio goes about its business. Led by West Virginian guitarist Will Mecum, the method is essentially the same as it’s been since 1999’s sophomore outing, Wild Wonderful Purgatory, in that the band cut a straight line, sans frills, to riff-led heavy rock and roll. Tracks are numerically titled, there are no vocals save for a bit of sampling on closer “Fifty Nine” (also as high as the numbers go this time around), and they stick so firmly to their approach that six of the album’s eight tracks are between four and five minutes long, and neither of the other two top six. For anyone who’s listened to them before, the ideas and the barebones feel with which they’re presented will be familiar. What’s really surprising about Arch Stanton is how much Karma to Burn can say without saying anything at all. Not counting a 2012 reworking of their famously vocalized 1997 self-titled debut (their label at the time, Roadrunner, forced them to take a on a singer; it didn’t last), dubbed Slight Reprise, the FABA and Deepdive Records-released Arch Stanton is Karma to Burn‘s sixth album, the follow-up to 2011’s V (review here) and their 2010 return, Appalachian Incantation (review here), as well as a slew of splits, EPs and singles. It is consistent with those two and with the output from Karma to Burn‘s first run on the aforementioned Wild Wonderful Purgatory and 2002’s Almost Heathen, but it’s also their first long-player to feature bassist Rob Halkett and drummer Evan Devine alongside Mecum.

Although it doesn’t manifest sonically in any massive stylistic shift — Mecum seems to be calling the shots either way — his guitar is certainly the defining presence in the band at this point if it wasn’t before, and it probably was — it’s still a big change. Former bassist Rich Mullins and ex-drummer Rob Oswald, aside from being there during the first run prior to their split after Almost Heathen, were a considerable presence in the band’s creative growth. Mullins having taken part in the band Year Long Disaster particularly led to the two groups essentially combining forces for a time, but that’s gone on Arch Stanton as well. Those days, it would seem, are over, and Karma to Burn have returned to the core of what they’re all about, which is Mecum‘s riffs and a straightforward instrumental heavy rock drive. They dip as far back as “Twenty Three” — which by the numbers comes from the Wild Wonderful Purgatory-era — but the rest of Arch Stanton is between “Fifty Three” and “Fifty Nine,” arranged over the album’s 37 minutes to maximize overarching flow over what I imagine breaks cleanly in half to form two vinyl sides, and “Fifty Seven” leads off with Devine‘s drums and winding feedback leading to a classic motoring boogie, thick, groovy and in heavy motion. As ever, Karma to Burn waste no time in reminding their listeners who they are and what they do, even if they’re introducing some new faces in the process. “Fifty Six” has a metallic feel in the initial guitar line, and “Fifty Three” slows the proceedings down for a time, but they cap the first half with a return to the swagger in “Fifty Four” that shows off some airy layering at first before the central riff emerges to mark the nod-ready progression, building efficiently before a somewhat understated payoff rounds out.

The grooves get larger on “Fifty Five” and “Fifty Eight” on side B, but the mood and overall vibe keep steady, though the fact that the chugging “Twenty Three” seems to have a simpler spirit than what surrounds could be taken as indicative of the creative growth of the band or at very least Mecum‘s songwriting. Karma to Burn have long been haunted by the specter of vocals, partially because of their debut, partially because, in collaborations with John Garcia and Dan Davies, they’ve flirted with the idea, and partially because the songs are so straightforward it seems there’s room for a singer. I don’t know if that feels less true on Arch Stanton because something has changed in Karma to Burn musically or if it’s interpretation based on how otherwise uncompromising the album feels, but it remains the case either way. True to the album’s title which also references the film, some snipped dialog from the closing moments of The Good, the Bad and the Ugly — famous Morricone score included — is worked into “Fifty Nine,” and that seems particularly fitting, though somewhat ironic since that was a European film set in the American west and Karma to Burn are an American band who at this point have found greater success touring in Europe. Nonetheless, they end with a big push, and bring Arch Stanton to a finish sounding refreshed in their purpose and clearheaded about what it is Karma to Burn should be some 20 years on from the band’s founding. Whether or not Mecum‘s bringing in Halkett and Devine will signal a new period of productivity — two live albums, an EP and a split with Sons of Alpha Centauri all being released since the start of 2013 would hint that perhaps it will — it’s hard to say for sure, but if Arch Stanton proves anything, it’s that like their goat mascot on the Alexander von Wieding cover art, they ride tall and destructive through whatever battle may be raging around them.

Karma to Burn, “53” official video

Karma to Burn on Thee Facebooks

Deepdive Records

When you need an ass kicked and you need it kicked in a hurry, call Karma to Burn. Led by guitarist Will Mecum, the West Virginian outfit has been stomping mudholes with their particular brand of straightforward heavy rock and roll for 20 years now, and as “53” from their new H42 Records split 7″ with UK rockers Sons of Alpha Centauri shows, there’s no slowing down in their point-A-to-point-B, no frills, no bullshit approach. The instrumentalists have seen no shortage of changes along their way — Mecum is now joined in the band by bassist Rob Halkett and drummer Evan Devine, and Karma to Burn have had bassists, drummers, and even vocalists come and go — but their core ethic remains steady and there’s no getting around the fact that it continues to work.

The video features art by Alexander von Wieding and old war footage, but of course the draw is the song itself. “53” is a solid refresher of just what it is that has always made Karma to Burn such a righteous outlier. They never quite seem satisfied, never want to rest, and at what I’m sure is a coincidental four minutes and 20 seconds long, the song “53” hits with an underlying intensity of purpose that’s like listening to grinding teeth. Whatever they do, it’s their unwillingness to compromise their sound and the central riff-led take that has earned them such respect over the last two decades, but no matter how many bands they influence or what acclaim comes their way or passes them by, Karma to Burn keep their heads down, keep working. It’s easy to admire that.

Enjoy “53” below, followed by some more info on the Sons of Alpha Centauri split vinyl courtesy of H42 Records:

Karma to Burn, “53” official video

Karma to Burn’s ’53’

’53’ is also part of the new Split 7″ of Sons of Alpha Centauri & Karma to Burn! This is the second 7″ featuring both bands and follows up the immense popularity of the first vinyl and captures the raw energy and driving rock fury of both bands yet again. This release will only be available on vinyl through H42 Records Artwork & Layout: Alexander von Wieding.

First Edition: 500
– 130 on orange-black vinyl
– 130 on white-blue vinyl
– 240 on black vinyl

Karma to Burn’s website

Sons of Alpha Centauri on Thee Facebooks

H42 Records webstore

Boy oh boy, Morgantown, West Virginia, must really have something against vocalists. First Karma to Burn has to basically be ordered to get one for their first record, only to swear them off forever afterwards (only to eventually merge with Year Long Disaster and employ one more regularly), then Treasure Cat comes along wanting no part of any singer’s ego, and now the bruising trio Hovel likewise can’t be bothered. Don’t get me wrong, I know first-hand what a pain in the ass singers can be, but there’s got to be at least one in West Virginia that the rest of a band would be willing to put up with. West by God has one. Maybe they’ll share.

It’s easy to get into the grooves Hovel proffers, what with the familiarly American doom riffs and quality bass fills of a song like “Taking off the Guv’nor,” or the decidedly Iommi-esque bent of “26 Inch Sonic Witch” — both audible at the band’s MySpace. The second of those tracks comes off Hovel‘s Fuzzbuster/26 Inch Sonic Witch 7″ (you can also hear the first on there), released by Seattle‘s Flotation Records in a limited edition of 500. Hovel also has a six-song self-titled EP they’re selling on the MySpace that one presumes the cuts “GammaMinusMachineMinder” and “Taking off the Guv’nor” come from.

For being from an area rich in this kind of rock — could Morgantown be the official home of instrumental stoner riffing? — Hovel fit right in with a second generation of quality guitar-led jammers like Admiral Browning and Nitroseed in losing nothing of the doomed experience for lacking in throat. Ah hell. Whoever was singing would probably just blather on about cars and chicks anyway. Might as well let the crowd enjoy the riffs unencumbered. Take a listen to “Taking off the Guv’nor” and see if you don’t agree:

Taking off the Guv’nor