Kaura - Heavy/Crossover Prog

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"Kaura (pronounced kay-aura) was born from the vision of infusing the aggressive power of hard, yet melodic rock with the haunting and ethereal sounds of ancient instruments. In the short time since the band formed in 2005, they have been invited to open for TOOL, Rob Zombie, and Godsmack by Bill Graham Presents, and had A Perfect Circle’s Paz Lenchantin play on their self released EP. In addition, they traveled to the distant lands of India, Thailand, Bali, Cambodia, Laos, and Nepal to seek out instruments and experiences to fully realize their vision; all of which was captured on video and made into their “Travels” DVD. “We wanted to have the ability to infuse hammered dulcimers with distorted guitars, gamelan bells and tabla with tribal drums to create this really expansive depth of sound.” Benjamin explains. The Berkeley-based band came to be after many years of envisioning the message, mood, sights and sounds that would be used to create the unique palette from which the vision of Kaura would be painted. Comprised of Malcolm Guess (vocals, guitar, tabla), Benjamin Jones (drums, percussion), Michael Cates (bass), Ben Rojas(guitar)and Yosh(hammered dulcimer, gamelan, percussion); the band sought to not only carve out a unique musical voice but also a different lyrical voice. “The lyrical focus is more on themes of evolution, re-birth, social and personal consciousness rather than the standard self-loathing, angry at-the-world fare of most hard rock bands” says Guess. Drawing from his experience as a sound engineer, Guess recorded and produced Kaura’s self-titled 5-song EP released in mid 2005. Returning from their travels in early 2006, they began writing material with their new instruments and the inspiration of their adventures. Though they have accomplished and created a lot in the short amount of time being a band, Guess suggests “We’ve but only hinted at what’s to come”. The bands long awaited full length album is set for release in Summer/Fall 2009.

Source: www.myspace.com/kaura"
Really well done production, brilliant vocalist, incredibly talented musicians, and a tendency towards prog to boot! How can you go wrong? 

They sound quite proggy to me, especially with the use of esoteric themes and compositional techniques coupled with extensive use of foreign instrumentation.

Edited by CoolJimmi - May 11 2013 at 00:13

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CoolJimmi Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Forum Senior Member Joined: November 30 2012 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 180	Topic: Kaura - Heavy/Crossover Prog Posted: May 11 2013 at 00:04
	"Kaura (pronounced kay-aura) was born from the vision of infusing the aggressive power of hard, yet melodic rock with the haunting and ethereal sounds of ancient instruments. In the short time since the band formed in 2005, they have been invited to open for TOOL, Rob Zombie, and Godsmack by Bill Graham Presents, and had A Perfect Circle’s Paz Lenchantin play on their self released EP. In addition, they traveled to the distant lands of India, Thailand, Bali, Cambodia, Laos, and Nepal to seek out instruments and experiences to fully realize their vision; all of which was captured on video and made into their “Travels” DVD. “We wanted to have the ability to infuse hammered dulcimers with distorted guitars, gamelan bells and tabla with tribal drums to create this really expansive depth of sound.” Benjamin explains. The Berkeley-based band came to be after many years of envisioning the message, mood, sights and sounds that would be used to create the unique palette from which the vision of Kaura would be painted. Comprised of Malcolm Guess (vocals, guitar, tabla), Benjamin Jones (drums, percussion), Michael Cates (bass), Ben Rojas(guitar)and Yosh(hammered dulcimer, gamelan, percussion); the band sought to not only carve out a unique musical voice but also a different lyrical voice. “The lyrical focus is more on themes of evolution, re-birth, social and personal consciousness rather than the standard self-loathing, angry at-the-world fare of most hard rock bands” says Guess. Drawing from his experience as a sound engineer, Guess recorded and produced Kaura’s self-titled 5-song EP released in mid 2005. Returning from their travels in early 2006, they began writing material with their new instruments and the inspiration of their adventures. Though they have accomplished and created a lot in the short amount of time being a band, Guess suggests “We’ve but only hinted at what’s to come”. The bands long awaited full length album is set for release in Summer/Fall 2009. Source: www.myspace.com/kaura" Really well done production, brilliant vocalist, incredibly talented musicians, and a tendency towards prog to boot! How can you go wrong? They sound quite proggy to me, especially with the use of esoteric themes and compositional techniques coupled with extensive use of foreign instrumentation. Edited by CoolJimmi - May 11 2013 at 00:13

seventhsojourn Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator Joined: December 11 2009 Location: . Status: Offline Points: 4006	Posted: May 11 2013 at 05:28
	Another that might be a wee bitty ''light'' for Heavy but we'll see... http://kaura.bandcamp.com/ http://www.kaura.com/web/Welcome.html http://www.reverbnation.com/kaura http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaura_(band) Edited by seventhsojourn - May 11 2013 at 05:29

CoolJimmi Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Forum Senior Member Joined: November 30 2012 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 180	Posted: May 11 2013 at 13:57
	I imagined that would come up, which is why I put Crossover up there as a suggestion, as well