KRONA
The concept that time is endless mirrors the hybrid theory behind Krona, a band whose name is a reformulation of the Greek word for time, "chronos." This innovative New York City trio possesses an eternal, amorphous sensibility that beguiles the listeners into losing themselves in a world where myth becomes reality, truth is relative, and music is a synonym for poetry. A svelte recombination of trip hop, dub, drum 'n' bass, and ambient, Krona rise out of the depths like the sonic soulchild of Massive Attack, Bjork, Thievery Corporation and Portishead, crafting songs for the soundtrack to the new millennia.
Even the infinite must have begun somewhere and, in the case of Krona, it all happened four years ago in Boston when its three principles converged post-college to individually pursue careers in music. Call it fate, kismet, or sheer luck, but these three souls collided and clicked. Andrew's forte was the guitar, Mich handled the trumpet, and Stacy Briscoe brought the celestial vocal stylings. They began experimenting with ambient concepts and unstructured songs, which proved to be too mellow for a club environment, as Briscoe remembers with a wry grin; "People just sat there... lethargic. It was hard to pull off in a club setting, let me put it that way." The group added a drummer and a bassist to their live show, though they continued to regard themselves as a three-piece. "That's when our more mainstream influences started to affect us, because we wanted to be more accessible," Briscoe freely admits.
The added instrumentation in the live setting gave Krona more versatility, even as they started writing songs that were more sonically complex, lyrically revealing, and traditionally structured. As for the process, "There's no principle," according to Briscoe. "The three of us collaborate in the truest sense of the word. I might bring in a progression, Andrew might start a riff and I'll start singing something on top of it or Mich might come in with beats and then we'll build around that. There's really no rhyme or reason." Briscoe handles all the lyrics, though often it takes her awhile to assimilate experiences, "There's a time lapse," she muses. "It takes a while for my emotions to filter through my brain. Unless I'm really pissed off, because then I'll just go home that night and write it out."
In January 2001, the group relocated to New York in hopes of landing a record deal. In another stroke of blind luck, Briscoe was introduced backstage at a show to Gary Kurfirst of Radioactive Records, the man who had been responsible for discovering Shirley Manson of Garbage and Live, who was immediately impressed with their demos. Wanting to hear more, the band spent the next several months flitting up and down the East Coast, self-producing a series of tracks in various home studios. They recorded close to twenty songs -- reworking some older material, coming up with new songs on the spot, and even interpreting Led Zeppelin's Mid-Eastern-tinged epoch "Kashmir."
In the end, the band pared it down to ten tracks (though astute listeners will discover the hidden track "You Think with my Brain, I Feel with your Body") that take you on a mind-altering journey beyond conventional confines and expectations. Songs like "Air Crash" and "Heretic" swirl with a smoky sensuality, while "New Green" is a haunting lament that recalls rain swept days of loss. Simply titled Krona, the disc is an undeniable primal expression, much like their current live show. A karmic trip along the light fantastic, the band's intense performance is complemented by a barrage of visualizations and displays, which only serve to intensify the experience.
So close your eyes, take a deep breath, and relax. Welcome to a world of endless possibility. Let Krona be your guiding light.
Read more...