Truly, it takes a big man to cry, but it takes a bigger man to laugh at that man.

Actually, “Suck my dick, you two-faced, no-good fuckhead. I hope you burn in hell, you L.A. Cunt,” were the words that reunited Karma To Burn after a seven-year hiatus.  

Forged deep in subterranean West Virginia in 1994 by two careless and angry young men, William Mecum and Richard Mullins, Karma To Burn initially gnashed its teeth at the conventional wisdom you need a whining, posing douche-bag at a microphone stand to play rock and roll. They were of a mind to create a power trio free of this biologically inferior component. In the absence of lyrics, they titled the songs by number. Before they’d counted as high as their educations permitted, Roadrunner Records offered to release their debut album . . . on the condition that they get a singer.  The base beliefs of Karma To Burn—that true power was in the instrument, the extension of the body, free of the eviscerated flesh and mind—never wavered. Except when they were offered cash. Then it fell like Satan from the stars.

The first record, compellingly titled Karma To Burn, featured such nods to convention as vocals, lyrics, and song titles. However, just as Dr. Frankenstein could not make his creation a man by swaddling it in men’s clothes, our heroes were likewise unable to make Karma To Burn anything but an instrumental outfit. Exercising their God-given right to stick to their baseless, narrow-minded convictions, they responded to those trying to convince them that their hatred for lead singers was misguided with the trained response, “Now not having a singer, that’s what’s called being a man.”

They carried on as a three-piece, jettisoning drummers hither and yon before recruiting the madman Rob Oswald. They released two more albums of instrumental heavy rock, Wild Wonderful Purgatory and Almost Heathen, to astonishment and accolades. Accolades almost begat money. Almost money begat opiates. Opiates begat differences, and differences decimated Karma To Burn in 2002.

In 2009, with the maturity of three screaming, biting five-year-olds Mullins, Mecum and Oswald put aside their differences. Soon after minting the phrase “L.A. Cunt,” Karma to Burn booked a small reunion tour, to the consternation of all innocent bystanders and the furious joy of all participants. They followed that tour with a summer stampede across Europe, including Download Festival (UK), Hellfest (FRA) and Graspop Metal Meeting (BEL), where they unveiled the latest in their numbered paeans to pandemonium. Bees attacked. LPs sold out. They have no choice but to carry on, and so there will be more to come. In November 2009, Karma to Burn returns to Europe, and in December support Monster Magnet in the UK. In the glorious spring of 2010 there will be a new Karma To Burn record, brought to you by the almighty hand of Austrian Metal Giant Napalm Records.

Naturally, when we first sat down to concoct a video for 20 we thought to hire some genius who would yet again juxtapose religious iconography and bodily waste. However, we found no such horrifying, blasphemous excuses for video directors in Hollywood. We were told in fact time and again “American people will no longer stand for vulgar, nonsensical displays that masquerade as art.” Undaunted we used our entire video budget to hop a jet to the most depraved city on the planet, Berlin.

There we met Nat Fowler, a man who once lived in Baltimore for 27 years straight. He demanded we allow him to create a dream video directed from an idea that came to him in a dream. We agreed as he also agreed to let us pay him in dream dollars and primitivist painted paper masks. We mutually bellowed inanities and fired pistols into random crowds to conceptually evoke the hideous irrationality of the collective unconscious.

Using a few simple and surreal ingredients this may or may not be that video.

ROADBURN Festival official website

Further to the 2009 Reunion Tour that took us all around the States and Europe, we are happy to announce to those who missed the shows, and to those who didn’t get enough, the release dates of the video shootage of those historic moments:

25.11.2009 – Finland & Spain

27.11.2009 – Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Benelux & Italy

30.11.2009 – Rest of Europe

15.12.2009 – USA

12.01.2010 – Canada

Run to your next door store and get it ! There are many extras you definetely don’t want to miss like the legendary performance at Dynamo Festival in ‘97 and many more.. in total the DVD contents will burn your ears and fry your brains with more than 3h30 of fucking good Stoner Metal !!!!!

Please note that during our UK tour this next december as support act for Monster Magnet, we will also play in Edinburgh (Scotland) a show on our own at the Cabaret Voltaire on the 8th Dec !!!

here is the link :
Cabaret Voltaire ONLINE PRESALES

Internationally known rock group KARMA TO BURN stars William Mecum, Richard Mullins and Rob Oswald who have written and performed Karma To Burn’s #1 Mega Hit “TWENTY”, and top Singles “30 and 34″ are pleased to announce their rock band KARMA TO BURN have signed with Napalm Records.
KARMA TO BURN has sold many albums worldwide. KARMA TO BURN, the original rock band recently reunited to tour for the first time in 7 years. VH1 has ranked KARMA TO BURN’s “TWENTY” as one of the “100 Greatest Songs of the ’90s”. KERRANG Magazine named KARMA TO BURN one of the top 25 most influential hard rock acts of all time.
“William, Robert and I are proud to announce our new partnership with NAPALM Records,” affirms Richard “Little Dickie” Mullins. “We’re thrilled at the opportunity for a renewed vitality for our rock band, KARMA TO BURN. We eagerly anticipate an unstoppable connection between the songs we work so hard on and the fans of classic, directly in the eye of the storm riffage that we make our music for. While trends have come and gone, NAPALM has stayed the course and supported a loyal fanbase all over the world. William, Robert and I have taken great pride in doing the same. It’s this shared passion for great music… spearheaded by great songs… presented in a timeless fashion… that’s assured William, Robert and I that NAPALM Records will be where our future hits find the perfect home.”

“Who would have thought William, Robert and I would be working on a follow up to ‘Almost Heathen’ 8 years later?” said Richard Mullins from the Occult graffiti riddled balcony of his lavish ….Laurel.. ..Canyon.. ..Gothic.. ..Castle….. “Not only are we thrilled with this new partnership with NAPALM Records, we are also excited to work on this new KARMA TO BURN album for the creative opportunity artistically. We had unfinished business when our gorilla sized heroin habits took over, overturning our cars and our lives, there came an accounting in which we fell before the Grim Reaper as wheat in winter, as lambs under the knife, so it allows us to continue the musical journey we started early in our careers. As songwriters we cherish this experience. We’re having a blast in the studio recording some incredible rock music. Our beloved ….Appalachain.. ..Mountains…. taught us musically that lightning really can strike twice… so we’re ready to continue the KARMA TO BURN rock odyssey with NAPALM Records, and soon all necks will feel the steely bite of our soul- thirsting axes, wielded by the unforgiving iron hand of the new KARMA TO BURN full length. ALL HAIL!”

Matte or Der M-Hund shown here greeting Rob with a native “muhfuckaz” in his rich Bavarian accent will be helping us acclimate to European culture and ideals during our 6 week tour. He has promised us “mah stone-col’ skeelz bustin’ tha heads an’ mah superstar collectin’ skeelz hat mo’ important foe yo’ purposes tha a record bidness translatin bitch,” and it seems reasonable since none of us speak European and my ipod touch’s English to Euro translator app sucks. (Side note do not waste 99 cents on that app, instead buy Digital Chocolate’s Rollercoaster Rush, awesome 2-d graphics and role playing as a rollercoaster rider is as intense as it sounds, completely paid for itself 37 times over the first time I drove past Magic Mountain without pulling in. Grab Big Air!)

Europe we are here, keep an eye out for us:

Bellicose posturing by Dickie with fork brought to you by Mecklenburg County Jail in wonderful Charlotte North Carolina.

Big Ass Small Dog,

Strom