Karl Buechner

Karl Buechner (born December 23, 1970) is an American musician from Syracuse, New York, best known as the frontman for the metalcore band Earth Crisis. He is also the singer of Freya, Path of Resistance, Vehement Serenade, Apocalypse Tribe and 1000 Drops of Venom.

Karl Buechner
Birth nameKarl Buechner
Born (1970-12-23) December 23, 1970
Syracuse, New York, United States
Genres
InstrumentsVocals, bass
Years active1988-present
Associated actsEarth Crisis, Freya, Path of Resistance, Vehement Serenade, Apocalypse Tribe, 1000 Drops of Venom, A Perfect Murder

In the mid- to late 1990s, Buechner attained a great popularity within the hardcore music scene as the frontman of Earth Crisis due to their outspoken advocacy for the straight edge and vegan lifestyles.[1] He has been featured and interviewed by CNN, CBS, The New York Times and Fox News, and addressed the Congress about teens and substance abuse.[2][3][4]

Early life

Karl Buechner was born on December 23, 1970[5] in Syracuse, New York.[6] He has German and Irish roots.[7] In his early teens, Buechner got into punk rock through his cousin and skateboarding, becoming a fan of bands such as the Dead Kennedys and Subhumans, as well as having traveled to other cities to participate in skate competitions.[5][8] Around the age of fifteen, he saw the Cro-Mags' video "We Gotta Know" that "was the spark that set off" his love for hardcore punk music and, years later, he would describe The Age of Quarrel as "still the greatest hardcore album of all time".[9][10] During that time, Syracuse was going through a lingering recession where crime and illegal drug trade began to proliferate. Many of Buechner' skater friends started using drugs and alcohol, one of whom died while others were progressively affected, which motivated him to become straight edge.[9][11] His and other Earth Crisis members' families also suffered from tragedies and random acts of violence at the time, including robberies.[12] According to Buechner: "to an extent we were kind of the products of [those] experience[s], but we didn't join with it, we rebelled against it."[7]

Most of Buechner's family is vegetarian. He became a pescetarian at the age of sixteen after his sister handed him a PETA magazine with photographs of caged animals in a slaughterhouse. At eighteen, he transitioned into vegetarianism and shortly afterwards veganism, getting into animal liberation issues through conversations with his grandmother.[9][13][14] The first vocalist of Earth Crisis, DJ Rose, states that he and Buechner traveled to Albany where they met Dave Stein and Steve Reddy, who also taught them about animal rights before they established the group in 1989.[15] Subsequently, Buechner became a volunteer at the Syracuse Wildlife Rehabilitation Center where he witnessed animals that were doused with gasoline and tortured in different ways, leaving "quite an impression on" him and which he attributes to the anger expressed in their early records.[16]

Buechner graduated from Henninger High School in 1989.[11] He attended college to become a history teacher with the intention of supporting a career in music or sports, but left it after two years when Earth Crisis was signed by Victory Records.[17][18]

Career

Karl Buechner started playing bass and formed his first band, Mainforce Patrol, at the age of sixteen. In 1989, he became a member of Earth Crisis but their initial lineup was short-lived. He kept the idea of the group alive and continued writing songs, restarting them in 1991 as the new vocalist and releasing five further albums.[19][20] In 1995, their drummer Dennis Merrick was seriously injured and, as he recuperated, the rest of the group formed the hardcore-oriented band Path of Resistance, releasing their album Who Dares Wins in 1996.[21] Earth Crisis disbanded in 2001 and reformed in 2007, releasing three more albums so far.

In early 2001, he began singing for Freya (formatively titled Nemesis and End Begins after EC songs) with two members of Earth Crisis plus two other members. They were named for the Norse goddess of fertility and their lyrics took inspiration from history, mythology and more personal issues, without addressing veganism or straight edge directly because not all members follow the lifestyles.[18][22] They have released five studio albums so far.

In late 2005, Buechner joined Canadian band A Perfect Murder for a tour, replacing vocalist Kevin Randel.[23]

Since 2008, he is the frontman of the supergroup Vehement Serenade along with Mike Couls (Cro-Mags, Skarhead, Cold as Life), Jamin Hunt (Sworn Enemy), Eddie Ortiz (Subzero) and Pauly Antignani (Sworn Enemy).[24] In 2013, they released their debut album The Things That Tear You Apart.[25]

In 2016, he formed the metalcore band 1000 Drops of Venom.[26] Since 2017, he is also the frontman of Apocalypse Tribe and they released a split album with Rob Aston's Death March on August 25.[27]

Influence

Karl Buechner has been cited as an influence by artists such as Jamey Jasta of Hatebreed,[28] Greg Bennick of Trial[29] and Sean Ingram of Coalesce.[30]

Discography
Earth Crisis
Path of Resistance
  • Who Dares Wins (1996)
  • Can't Stop the Truth (2006)
Freya
  • As the Last Light Drains (2003)
  • Lift the Curse (2007)
  • All Hail the End (2010)
  • Paragon of the End (2013)
  • Grim (2016)
Vehement Serenade
  • The Things That Tear You Apart (2013)

Guest appearances
Year Song Artist Album Source
2004 "No Truce" A Perfect Murder Unbroken [31]
2004 "Still Here" Agnostic Front Another Voice [32]
2007 "Addiction" Damnation A.D. In This Life or the Next [33]
2010 "Pedestals" Such Gold Pedestals [34]
2011 "The Only Life I Know" Lionheart Built on Struggle [35]
2019 "Believer of the Truth" Nueva Ética La Conquista [36]

References
  1. Haenfler, Ross (2006). Straight Edge: Clean-living youth, hardcore punk and social change. Rutgers University Press. p. 65. Nationally, several leaders have emerged over the years, moral entrepreneurs looked up to by the masses of sXe kids. [...] Karl Buechner of Earth Crisis and Rick Rodney of Strife were tremendously popular.
  2. Krist, Josh (November 28, 1996). "Onward, Vegan Soldiers". Phoenix New Times. Archived from the original on September 26, 2017. Retrieved September 26, 2017.
  3. Sutherland, Sam (July 1, 2006). "The Complicated Contradictions of Straight Edge Punk". Exclaim!. Archived from the original on June 7, 2015. Retrieved September 26, 2017.
  4. "Earth Crisis Bio". Thegauntlet.com. Archived from the original on April 29, 2011. Retrieved October 2, 2017. And after attracting national attention for their message through such mediums as MTV, ABC World News with Peter Jennings, CNN, TBS and 48 Hours, lead singer Karl Buechner was invited to speak on a panel in front of the US Congress in Washington DC regarding straight edge and drug and alcohol use among young people.
  5. Trudell, Danny; Barr, Brian (December 21, 2012). "The lost interview with Karl from: Earth Crisis". Isolated Zine. No. 3. Canton, Ohio. pp. 18–21. Retrieved October 10, 2017.
  6. Harkins 2015, 6:57-7:12.
  7. Schüftan, Jo (April 22, 2010). "Earth Day with Earth Crisis" (video). Hornsuprocks.com. Manhattan, New York City (published April 26, 2010). Event occurs at 2:44-3:03 in part 1 (heritage) and 4:11-4:18 in part 2 (quote). Archived from the original on September 27, 2017. Retrieved September 27, 2017.
  8. Harkins 2015, 12:44-13:56 and 16:54-17:17.
  9. Burgess, Aaron (July 1996). "EARTH CRISIS - par Aaron Burgess - juillet 1996". www.hardcore-punk.net. No. 101. Alternative Press. Archived from the original on September 23, 2017. Retrieved September 26, 2017.
  10. Oates, Brad (January 1998). "EARTH CRISIS - par Brad Oates de Heckler #5 - janvier 1998". Heckler. No. 5. www.hardcore-punk.net. Archived from the original on October 6, 2017. Retrieved October 6, 2017.
  11. Seely, Hart (October 22, 2009). "Palace Theatre in Syracuse to present "EDGE" documentary featuring Karl Buechner". The Post-Standard. Archived from the original on October 29, 2009. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
  12. Conway 2016, 41:10-41:56.
  13. Allis, Gregory (July 13, 2013). "Interview with Karl Buechner from @EarthCrisis; Playing #Syracuse TONIGHT 7/13 @victoryrecords". Livehighfive.com. Archived from the original on May 5, 2016. Retrieved October 5, 2017.
  14. Hiller, Joachim (August–September 2011). "EARTH CRISIS | Vegan Warriors". Ox-Fanzine (in German). No. 97. Archived from the original on June 8, 2012. Retrieved October 2, 2017.
  15. Bellino, Vince; Rettman, Tony (November 23, 2017). "Earth Crisis: A Firestorm to Purify (Straight Edge Book Excerpt)". Decibel. Archived from the original on December 5, 2017. Retrieved July 22, 2019.
  16. Harkins 2015, 5:42-6:20.
  17. Harkins 2015, 11:39-11:51 and 13:57-14:19.
  18. "Freya interview". Lambgoat.com. January 26, 2007. Archived from the original on September 26, 2017. Retrieved September 26, 2017.
  19. Lundgren, Johan (January 4, 2010). "Karl Buechner / Earth Crisis, Freya, Path of Resistance". happinessisalltherage.wordpress.com. Copenhagen, Denmark. Archived from the original on October 2, 2017. Retrieved October 1, 2017.
  20. "EARTH CRISIS: New Video Interview With KARL BUECHNER Available" (video). Blabbermouth.net. Syracuse, New York (published December 28, 2008). December 21, 2008. Retrieved October 1, 2017.
  21. Downey, Ryan. "Path of Resistance". AllMusic. Archived from the original on October 2, 2017. Retrieved October 1, 2017.
  22. "Freya Bio". Thegauntlet.com. Archived from the original on May 2, 2011. Retrieved October 2, 2017.
  23. Sharpe-Young, Garry (2005). New Wave of American Heavy Metal. Zonda Books Limited. p. 11. ISBN 9780958268400. Retrieved November 3, 2017.
  24. Allis, Gregory (September 10, 2012). "Interview with Mike Couls and Karl Buechner from Vehement Serenade; Playing East Coast Tsunami Fest". Livehighfive.com. Archived from the original on May 5, 2016. Retrieved September 27, 2017.
  25. Paul, Aubin (September 11, 2012). "Vehement Serenade (Earth Crisis, Cro-Mags, Sworn Enemy) debut new material". Punknews.org. Archived from the original on September 16, 2012. Retrieved September 26, 2017.
  26. "1000 DROPS OF VENOM: Members Of Earth Crisis, The Path Of Resistance, Unholy, And More Form Vicious New Act; Track Leaked + First Show Looms". www.earsplitcompound.com. September 16, 2016. Archived from the original on September 20, 2016. Retrieved October 2, 2017.
  27. "News". www.indecisionrecords.com. Archived from the original on September 12, 2017. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
  28. Jasta, Jamey (November 24, 2017). "Episode 311 - Rex Brown (Pantera)". The Jasta Show (Podcast). No. 311 (published December 4, 2017). Event occurs at 14:52. Retrieved December 8, 2017. Q: What are your thoughts on Earth Crisis? Did Karl Buechner influenced you? I've always noted some similarities between his vocal delivery on Destroy the Machines and yours, and also in your lyrical style.
    Jamey Jasta: Yes, absolutely. Love Earth Crisis, I even like Slither, that's how much of a fan I am, I didn't jump ship on Slither. Karl's my man [...] definitely, Earth Crisis is an influence on Hatebreed, musically and in my vocal style.
  29. "Trial {Between Earth & Sky} interview with Vocalist: Greg Bennick. 2010". vistafanzine.blogspot.com. Vista Fanzine (published March 14, 2012). 2010. Archived from the original on September 9, 2016. Retrieved December 8, 2017. I was always influenced by artists who did things that were new, different, or intense in ways I'd not heard before: Karl Buechner from Earth Crisis had such a powerful voice, and the way he changed his tone from record to record was always fascinating to me.
  30. Ellis, Jackson; Herget, Liesl (2000). "Interview: Sean Ingram of Coalesce". Verbicide. No. 3. www.verbicidemagazine.com (published June 15, 2001). Archived from the original on December 8, 2017. Retrieved December 8, 2017. Q: Musically and lyrically, who have been your major influences?
    Sean Ingram: [...] Musically, Phil Anselmo and Karl Buechner.
  31. White, Adam (March 4, 2004). "A Perfect Murder and A18 recording". Punknews.org. Archived from the original on October 2, 2017. Retrieved October 6, 2017.
  32. "Agnostic Front - Another voice LP (2017, GF, lim 500, white)". www.rebellionshop.com. Archived from the original on October 2, 2017. Retrieved October 6, 2017.
  33. Gluck, Michael (August 9, 2007). "Damnation A.D. - In This Life Or The Next review - Lambgoat". lambgoat.com. Archived from the original on October 2, 2017. Retrieved October 6, 2017.
  34. Shultz, Brian (November 9, 2010). "Such Gold Pedestals EP". Alternative Press. Archived from the original on November 17, 2010. Retrieved October 7, 2017.
  35. "Lionheart (USA) : Built on Struggle". www.spirit-of-metal.com. Archived from the original on March 1, 2016. Retrieved October 5, 2017.
  36. "Alle Videos". Laut.de. Archived from the original on July 7, 2019. Retrieved July 20, 2019.

Works cited
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