By: Rob Cavuoto
There was a time when rock bands weren’t so darn one-dimensional. Think back to the days of Led Zeppelin, Queen, etc., and it was a time that it was accepted for a hard rock-based band to be able to mix things up with piano ballads and other musical detours. The Australian quartet, Strange Karma, is a most-welcomed throwback to this aforementioned era, as evidenced throughout their new release, Volume 1.
Comprised of brothers Martin Strange (singer) and Paul Strange (guitar), as well as Doe Prijono (bass), and Jason McDonald (drums), Strange Karma has just issued their kick ass debut, which runs the gamut from vintage hard rock anthems. I had the chance to chat with Martin Strange to talk about the band and what lies ahead for them.
Strange Karma
******
Rob Cavuoto: Tell me a little about the bands origins?
Martin Strange: My brother Paul and I started out playing acoustic shows in Sydney and ultimately always wanted a powerful band. After returning from the UK from our first band experience we joined up with Jason and Strange Karma was born.
Rob: How do you define your music and how do you want it to be classified?
Martin Strange: We define our music as a New Rock sound inspired by some of the most influential bands of all time.
Rob: Where do you get your inspiration from when writing songs?
Martin Strange: We get our inspirations from listening to a lot of different types of styles and what is happening around us at a particular time, real life experiences and imagination.
Rob: What has the highlight been for you in launching your band?
Martin Strange: The highlight has been performing in some of the most famous venues in the world and the accomplishment of releasing an album that we are proud of.
Rob: Tell us about the songwriting process for the band? Did each member contribute to the writing of the release?
Martin Strange: The songwriting process varies on this album because all of the songs have been written in different times, songs like “America” and “Time” where put together just before the recording, some of the others were written in the UK before Strange Karma, and then you have “Indian Sun” that we were performing from the beginning as a duo acoustic act.
Rob: What do you want fans to take away from your music?
Martin Strange: We want our fans to be entertained from the first to the last track of the album and experience the power and the passion of our live shows.
Rob: Who do you hope this CD speaks to and what do you want them to take away from it?
Martin Strange: We hope the CD speaks to people that have been craving for a fresh and exciting new rock band a band that truly delivers the passion and the music that once was king in the music industry which is now no more. We want the listener to take the album for what it is, this album the beginning of something special.
Rob: How did you come up with your name?
Martin Strange: When Jason joined the project we were thinking of names for the band, Strange Karma came up and it sounded cool so we ran with it.
Rob: When can we expect to see you guys on tour?
Martin Strange: We are working on putting a tour together as soon as we can, keep an eye out for future announcements.
Rob: What does success look like to you?
Martin Strange: Success is being able to do what you are made to do!
