Karen is a five piece band whose two guitar players are Art-School members (front man/guitarist Riki Kinoshita and guitarist Masafumi Todaka) and whose rhythm section is made up of two former Downy members. Singer Achiko provides the contrast to all that arty/indie testosterone with her mild, crooning vocal style.
Obviously something of a side-project due to the fact that Art-School is still quite active, the band nevertheless manages to produce solid releases with a sound independent from that of its Frankenstein's Monster origins. Sure, some of the guitar tones and playing can echo that of Art-School's dreamy, indie, emo-rock sound and Riki's occasional backing vocals only serve to amplify that echo, but Karen's overall vibe is much more suave and contemporary. It's obvious that the band knows how to pound out a song, but in Karen they all fall back a bit, instead simply keeping things very tight and stripped down. Given the chance, the band does toss in some tricky rhythms and the production is generally louder and more raw than on any regular AAA release. You can lead a horse to water and all that...
They also mix things up with a few lines of saxophone, oboe and other instruments rarely seen in your typical rock set-up. The atmosphere is extremely hazy and reverbed-out, a nod to the heavily effected shoegazy sounds of early '90s groups like Mazzy Star and The Sundays. The songs themselves follow suit, being generally slow and subtle. Achiko often lets her voice ring out for what seems like ages, with nary a waver or wobble in her crystalline tone.
One final note. While the name Karen could be thought of as the Japanese word "かれん" pronounced "kah-ren," looking at their almost exclusively English song and album names, it would seem to be more likely that it is simply meant to be pronounced as "care-en." Though that could be incorrect and any insight would be appreciated.
"Lorraine"
MySpace
Members:
Achiko - Vocals
Kinoshite Riki - Guitar
Todaka Masafumi - Guitar
Nakamata Kazuhiro - Bass
Akiyama Takahiki - Drums
Albums:
Maggot in Tears - 2008
Sunday Girl in Silence - 2009
"Marine"
