art, emotion, nature, people, mysticism, passion, travels, activism, community, higher consciousness, compassion. A Perfect Circle, Macha, The Mars Volta, Failure, Dredg,
Klinkt als
Muse, Macha, Tool, Kyuss, Dredg, A Perfect Circle, Isis, Quicksand, Failure, Queens of the Stone Age,
Platenlabel
None
Type label
Kaura is an American, progressive, alternative rock band from Los Angeles, California.
Kaura is a band formed in 2005 by Malcolm Guess and Benjamin Jones. The band has been invited to open for the likes of Tool, Rob Zombie, and Entrance Band by Bill Graham Presents in San Francisco. The band’s sound is Kaura
recognizable by its trademark use of ancient instruments like Hammered Dulcumer,Indonesian Gamelan, and Indian Tabla as well as delayed guitars, and an epic and aggressive sound. The band self-released a debut EP in 2005 which featured Paz Lenchantin from A Perfect Circle and Zwan on the track Dividing Lines. Guitarist Ben Rojas joined the band shortly after the bands first EP was recorded along with multi-instrumentalist Yosh!, which allowed them to perform with the dulcimers, gamelan, and other instruments they wrote and recorded with. The band did some of the recording for this album with Producer/Engineer Sylvia Massy, known for her work with Tool, System of a Down, and Rick Rubin among others. The band has Kaura - That Which Define Us (Limited Edition)
developed a strong and dedicated fanbase across the globe through its extensive video blogs which have documented their world travels, and their recordings.
The band toured America in the Spring of 2008, including a stop at Austin’s South by Southwest Music Conference and at the Guitar Hero 3 Rock Fest. They debuted some new songs songs on the tour that may be on the upcoming album. In May of 2010, the band released a special advanced edition of their first full length album entitled ‘That Which Defines Us’ to its fans on Myspace. It is a deluxe CD and DVD package and includes two new music videos and an hour long making of the album documentary. The artwork was created by Bay Area artist David Ho [6] The album was worked on by Ken Andrews of the band’s Failure and Year of Kaura - Untitled (Bonus Track) the Rabbit, Alex Newport known for his work with At the Drive In, The Mars Volta, and his own band Fudge Tunnel. Most of the album however was produced and mixed by Kaura’s singer and guitarist Malcolm Guess. The band is expected to release the album through a label in later 2010 or early 2011. The band moved to Los Angeles in 2010 where they are currently recording an acoustic EP and DVD that features their songs stripped down featuring the hammered dulcimer that is prominent in their music. They are also expected to resume playing live in the fall of 2010 according to the band’s website.
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, which has gotten attention as well as continued airplay on radio stations including L.A.'s "World Famous" KROQ FM. 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), Adam LaBay (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.
The band spent the next 4 years travelling throughout the world collecting instruments, touring, including stops at South By Southwest, and writing and recording what would become their first full length album, That Which Define's Us. The recording process included sessions with Tool and System of a Down Producer/Engineer Sylvia Massey and will include live staples 'One Becomes Two' and 'Silence'. Released as a deluxe package CD/DVD to Kaura Street Team members in Spring 2010, the band hopes to find a label to officially release the album later in the year. 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”.
