ION INDIE MAGAZINE January 2016, Volume 20 | Page 45

Das Ist KrashKarma
By Dr. X
KRASHKARMA.
Krash-effing-Karma.
KRASH-MOTHER-EFFING-ULTRA-MEGA-SUPERKARMA! Sounds a little excessive, hey? Oh, I get it--you haven't seen KrashKarma yet, have
you? Well, I strongly suggest that you get your music-lovin' ass out there-somewhere...wherever you have to go and do it to it! Like, as soon as you can...ASAP! Then
you will know exactly what the hell I'm talking about here. I'll try to explain; but, somehow,
I don't think my mere words can do KrashKarma justice. Like I said...I'll try.
When you do finally have the privilege to catch a live performance of KrashKarma, the show
will not be something that you soon forget—shit, you won’t forget it! I mean, that's why you
are here…because you love music. Readers of ION Indie Magazine love music--period. Of
this I have no doubt. If you didn't love music, you'd probably be reading some hoity-toitypolitical-try-to-hard-to-be-clever-music-like magazine such as...hmm, I don't know...Rolling
Rock or some shit. Wait--isn’t that a beer? Ha! What’s the difference? The point is, this is a
band that's about what you all are into: THE MUSIC.
So, who ist das KrashKarma that I'm freaking out about over here? KrashKarma with a “k”-just like as in AmeriKa with a “k”...exactly. I see some German-like qualities in the accent...I
dig it!
KrashKarma is RALF DIETEL (vocals & guitar) and NIKI SKISTIMAS (vocals & drums). HELL
yeah man! I'm talking about a dynamic Rock-to-Hard-Rock duo of pure awesomeness! More
on that in a bit.
Currently, KrashKarma has established its home base out of Los Angeles. But don't let that
fool you. These two are world-wide and according to their touring schedule, are rarely ever
home. I follow KrashKarma on various social media sites and it seems that every other day,
I'm seeing posts form all around Germany or pictures of gigs from London, UK. When they
aren't taking Europe by storm, they are all over--I mean back and forth and up and down
and all around the states.
I remember the first time I saw a KrashKarma performance. Hell, I remember it well. It was
in a smaller bar/venue in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. My band, American Zer0s, was on the
same bill that night as a support act. I had never heard of them before. I had seen a tall
pretty blond girl hanging around their merch table. At rock shows, it happens. Honestly, it
never occurred to me that she was in the band, and on some level, that probably makes me
an asshole. I'm the first to admit GUILTY...at least this time. I noticed a tall dude. Noticed?
Shit, you couldn't miss him. I mean, if I stand up somewhat straight, I'm only five-foot-nine