Member Since: 5/27/2004
Band Website: karn8.com
Band Members:
Kirst - Vocals
Bones - Guitar/Bass
Leigh - Drums
Click to Email Band
Influences: Queen Adreena, Alice in Chains and The Doors
Sounds Like:
"Karn8 are a different breed to the commercial pop rock of say Garbage but then, that's always been their way. Yet by all accounts they are, just as marketable. It is obvious that Karn8 are a band capable of making a change, time will tell. I will be the first to say that I have faith. Indeed with a new album on the horizon, we shall see. One thing is for sure, the band have found their sound, just where they like it deep down, in the dirt. And now they are on the rise. Enjoy."
Dom Smith @ Talk Magazine
"Karn8 drew a somewhat bigger crowd, and it wasn't a surprise when vocalist Kirst took to the stage. With her long blond hair, stockinged legs and figure hugging outfit she'd be enough to stop a man in their tracks. But with hips writhing, lips pouting and hair tossing added to the mix, everyone stopped in their tracks, transfixed by this utter beauty and her gloriously hypnotizing stage presence. The music, well think scuzzy low bass ripping through each song, scuzzy keyboards adding to the filthy sound coming from the stage, ah it was just filthy. It felt like I should be in Soho at times - and it felt all the better for it!"
Fearandwonder.com
"The first thing you’ll notice with Karn8 is the gorgeous Kirst, gothic cabaret version of Alison Goldfrapp and soon-to-be pin-up to thousands of teenagers across the country. Yet they share more than just the sexual tension found in Goldfrapp’s music, managing to filter the same dance-pop hooks via the likes of Marilyn Manson and Queen Adreena. ‘Rotton’ goes down on you like the promises of illicit sex down the back streets after kicking out time at the local club. In short it’s the sort of sleaze dear old mum and dad warned you about, with Kirst's velvet vocals purring over a thumping rhythm section coupled with grinding guitars and dark, dark synths.
The video itself is a pretty good example of how to do things on a shoe string budget without making it boring. Consisting of shots of the band playing their arses off in some deep, dank room interlaced with Kirst lying under a pile of earth in a bath tub, it uses sheer kinetics and the band’s charisma to keep things from getting dull. Hey, it may not have the production values of say...Michael Jackson’s Scream (the single most expensive video ever produced at $7,000,000) but it does let the song speak for itself"
- Matt Harold @ GIITTV
"How can I describe this record? What I mean is, how do I convey this strange feeling I'm getting from listening to it. The artwork takes on a fairly dark theme, the band photo is positively metal and the opening chords suggest an angsty onslaught of hardcore screams. What you don't expect is a really sleazy, but very dance-couture collection of songs that takes the Bodyrockers, Nelly Furtado and Allison Goldfrapp and mixes them with a heavy slice of that cock-rock ballsy guitar rock and adds a bit of goth to the dancefloor grind.
"Mirror Mirror" is the real gemstone, with guitars that take on a fuzzy beauty while the vocal suggestively drools the lyrics in a style reminiscent of Brazilian Girls. You really should check them out!"
Saur @ The Mag
"Mirror Mirror is as sexy and dark as ever, with Kirsts vocals creating that strangely seductive, yet utterly filthy sound which has become the hallmark of Karn8"
- LaLa @ Ultimate Sound
"Imagine 'Mechanical Animals'-era Marilyn Manson filtered through a clinical understanding of the sexual dynamics of rock 'n' roll. Guitars grunt and grind, synths provide a layer of casual otherworldliness and Kirst's vocals add a menacingly intimate edge. A sultry yet sharp accumulation of good ideas and interesting influences, Karn8 burn bright."
- Ones To Watch @ 44 Caliber
"Sleazy, dirty, Rock N Roll, this is a band to grind to, to fuck to, or to simply rock the fuck out to. This EP is perfectly polished, no rough edges in sight and it shows, Karn8 are currently leaving their mark on the UK Rock scene. These guys (and girl) are going to be huge!"
- Emma @ Noizefront
"This little EP is definitley one that cries out for rotation. With only three tracks to play with here you can rest assured that more songs will no doubt have the same atmosphere and intentions. Karn8 are definitaley working hard and becoming a great band with no doubt a dedicated underground fan base. If Queen Adreena vs Garbage vs metal laced with an industrial underline is something you want to check out - I urge you to do so."
- Nickie @ Devolution
"One thing is for sure, vocalist Kirst isnt just a pretty face, the girl can sing, and she has a seductively sweet voice that lingers long in the mind and is as addictive as the music itself."
- Steve @ Rock Of Ages
"With a strong Misfits style image and confident stage presence Karn8 grind their way through a buzzy, industrial tinged rock set with a professionalism that puts them out in front of most unsigned bands."
- Sophie @ Southscene
"Karn8 have got the show. They received a fantastic response from their ever-eager audience, and really got the crowd going with well known songs."
- Nobin @ Ultimatesound
"Karn8 occupy the space between Queen Adreena's violent, goth-pop exhibitionism and Rachel Stamp's sleazy gutter glam. With coyly interweaving vocal lines, blood-curdling screams and more pronounced instrumental roles."
- Jenny @ 44 Caliber
"Mirror Mirror' is an awesomely catchy slab of pop influenced metal which brings to mind Roxy Saint meets Human Waste Project all wrapped up in Karn8's own hypnotic grooves, again the vocals shine o n this song and the band are tight and energetic throughout."
- Paul @ Scratch The Surface
"Karn8 are a paradoxical mix of the brutal and the beautiful, blending a nice line in crushing metal riffery with sugary female vocals. Fronted by the very beautiful and just slightly deranged blonde bombshell Kirst, Karn8 are lent to a sound not dissimilar to Queen Adreena in their more shouty and structured moments by her suitably Katie Jane-esque voice. This comparison is more evident on the furious scream of B-side Mirror Mirror"
- Alison B @ BubblegumSlut
"Karn8 live in a dark, dirty, damp corner of some rank basement and are putting their nightmares to music and crawling the walls to escape. Musically they inhabit Queen Adreena type sounds only heavier with reinforced iron rods and a nod to all things dark and heavy; big swinging beats, grumbling bass cut through with grating guitars and a dark glam synth stomp. Kirst provides those oh so sweet breathless whispers before nailing you to the floor in Canabalistic Queen and stating Fu*k with me and Ill fu*k you over; who am I to argue?"
- Grebo @ Vanity Project
"To describe Karn8 as 'female fronted metal' over simplifies them. The solid groove and synths along with Kirst's vocals give them a distinctive sound of their own. The energy of their playing comes through well on the EP but is no substitute for the visual experience of them dominating an audience. Karn8 have built the layers up on the EP to give a powerful wall of metal. "Mirror Mirror" being the best example of this. An epic track that you want to listen to again. In fact the whole EP feels a little more accessible than I expected."
- Kevin @ Josaka
"What Garbage might have sounded like if theyd swapped commercial-esque pop clichés for hard edged rock and roll excess"
- Mike Spall @ Southscene
"I love the moment at the end of Canabalistic Queen where the girl singer, her rival left face down in mud, disappears into the night, turning back only for one last caustic remark, Bitch!"
- Sarah @ GIITV.com
"I've been looking forward to Karn8 hitting Pompey for a couple of months now - they had to cancel a previous gig here, and boy, it was worth the wait! I don't know what to call them, sexy electro metal goth, more metal than goth though and with a swagger and a swing in their tail. It doesn't matter, all you need to know is that they rock in a dark come here and make love to me kind of way. They make me think of Queen Adreena with more of a groove and less of the mad look though, more master and servant do as I tell you type thing, especially in the way front lady Kirst patrols the stage, wiggles her hips. She has that hard cold stare that you just don't mess with. The music is heavy yet danceable, a blast of guitars and strict beats that are totally infectious. It has the black clad amongst us dancing in traditional goth style. They look like the kind of people who would handcuff you in a dungeon and torture you very slowly, or is that just me getting carried away? Rock music should be dirty and sweaty and Karn8 are just the band to get you to there."
- Grebo @ Organart.com
"Sex & sleaze, this band makes you feel dirty in the best kind of way. A rare band to have the luck of possessing a female vocalist who can kick it with the big boys, with a voice that drips sex and a bass line to move your soul, this is YOUR band. Goth rock with a dark, perverted twist, your music collection won't be complete without them."
- Noizefront
What the other bands say.......
Karn8 have taken the initiative to make the music you found yourself wishing people like Manhole and Garbage had gone on to make before it all went bad. Listen long enough and you can pick up musical elements of Tool and even Iron Monkey in places, AND they combine it with electronica. One thing that's for sure though; they're doing it a hell of a lot better than one of their more 'regal' counterparts from the UK. Hal, Interlock
Record Label: Wicked Boy Records
Type of Label: Indie