Everything Must Change
It’s been a challenging eight years since the release of Karnataka’s last studio album, Secrets Of Angels, but sole original member Ian Jones is back with a new line-up and a new burst of creativity that’s captured on Requiem For A Dream. A dramatic evolution but the band insist the spirit of the original band still flows through them. Jones and new vocalist Sertari set the record straight.
Words: Rich Wilson
If the hat fits… Karnataka co-founder Ian Jones (opposite) was “blown away” when he heard Sertari sing.
Images: Roman Hajduk and Emmanuel Ojomo
“I listened to the songs and just thought, ‘Oh my God, this is up my alley and I love this.’ I messaged Ian to say if he was still looking for someone, I was happy to sing a couple of songs.”
Sertari
Prolific isn’t a word that readily applies to Karnataka over recent years. Following the release of their last album, Secrets Of Angels in 2015, the band toured sporadically before that line-up effectively dissolved in 2018. Some five years on, they have returned with a raft of new musicians, along with a new singer, Sertari (aka Nicola K) to front the band. With only Ian Jones remaining as the sole continuous member, the pressing question is: what happened?
“That’s a real difficult one to cover without getting into legal territory,” suggests Jones in a manner that implies the issues weren’t restricted to mere ‘musical differences’. “It’s difficult for me to be honest about the reasons but in general terms, I think we reached a point with that line-up where it was fairly clear it wasn’t going to go any further. The writing had ground to a halt and it was just difficult to progress anything. I don’t put stuff out on social media as it’s just pointless. It ends up with mudslinging and that’s really to my detriment. If I start defending myself, it’s a distraction and I don’t feel comfortable doing it. It was a decision that I felt I had to make for the band and the whole project to have a future. Not all changes are voluntary.”