Karma Glider
SHOEGAZE | INDIE ROCK
Photo X Stacy Lee
Montréal outfit Karma Glider propose a modern strand of indie rock, punctuated by elements from shoegaze, post-punk and noise pop. Cavernous vocal melodies, glittering guitar parts, corrugated synthesizer motifs and booming rhythmic influx are layered atop elegantly scattered samples. Touching on themes ranging from juvenile zeal and drug abuse all the way to love and spirituality, while employing raw materials from Britpop or 90s alternative as well as hip-hop-inspired sampling methods, singer-songwriter Susil Sharma crafts uplifting tracks infused with a low-key punk attitude.
Sharma first made waves under the moniker Heat, releasing Rooms (Kitsuné) and Overnight (Topshelf/Sleepless) to critical acclaim, both albums charting via !Earshot and NACC, while landing songs on television series for networks such as HBO, NBC and CBC. Heat also toured internationally, sharing the stage with artists including Interpol, Bully and Alvvays. Sharma later worked as a session and touring musician alongside Kandle, Munya and Cadence Weapon, as well as for Théâtre La Licorne. In parallel, he worked on new material, experimenting with new recording techniques, which led to a pair of independent releases: Inception 2 (2019) and Keep the Dream Alive (2020). Still drinking from the lo-fi well, but looking to harness a wider sonic palette, Sharma reached out to bassist Jean-Philippe Bourgeois (Adam Strangler, Fefe Dobson) and drummer Jean-Philippe Godbout (Gazoline, Laurence-Anne) to form Karma Glider, a new rock & roll outfit. The trio was later joined by guitarist Charlie Neufeld (Heat, Reversing Falls) and keyboardist Wesley MacNeil (Night Lunch).
Karma Glider’s debut, Future Fiction (July 7th, 2023 via Mothland), was recorded with co-producers Adrian Popovich and Joseph Donovan at Mountain City Studios (Tricky Woo, The Dears, Sam Roberts Band, etc.). Its songs reflect on friendship, finding a spiritual path in the face of the unknown, and the importance of being carried by – and carrying – your loved ones, conveying a strong all-loving ethos through fuzzed-out guitars and an ever-veering rhythm section. Megan Lapierre at Exclaim! describes the EP as “post-punk and shoegaze-laced indie rock”. The Montrealers followed with Ocean Honey Violence (June 21st, 2024 via Mothland), this time digging deeper into psychedelia and experimenting with a tape recorder, while drawing inspiration from indie trailblazers such as Primal Scream, The Jesus and Mary Chain and Spacemen 3. Written and recorded in the span of a few months, the sophomore effort cleverly walks a fine line between heartfelt songwriting and nonchalant yet on-point production, prompting Stephan Boissonneault to write: “This bundle of songs feels immediate — not sat on and over-contemplated — but made on pure instinct, which is what art should be about.” (7/10, Cult MTL)
The Montréal indie rockers drop their first full-length, From the Haze of a Revved Up Youth, on July 11th, 2025 via Mothland. Sharma describes the album as “a blend of Britpop, post-punk, and garage rock, where crooning baritone vocals soar over psychedelic guitars and urban beats.” Karma Glider are to release its first single, “Love Bleeds”, on April 29th, 2025. RIYL: Fontaines D.C., The Strokes, DIIV, etc.
CONTACT:
QC: PHIL@MOTHLAND.COM
CAN/US: JULIANA@MOTHLAND.COM
Bandcamp/ Spotify /Apple Music / Youtube
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“Right down to the EP cover, this bundle of songs feels immediate — not sat on and over-contemplated — but made on pure instinct, which is what art should be about. Future Fiction was a pretty safe record that dabbled in shoegaze with a small hip hop influence. Ocean Honey Violence is more experimental and less straightforward, sometimes to its detriment and sometimes to its success. Maybe it could have been cooked a bit more, but there are some stellar moments nonetheless.”
“Former Heat frontman Susil Sharma has unveiled a new, post-punk and shoegaze-laced indie rock project called Karma Glider.”
“Faced with an endless glut of niches and sub-genres coming at listeners with a dizzying consistency, Karma Glider do what any artist with a plan would – pull from a multitude of sources to carve a space all their own. There’s a true indie heart beating under all the subdivisions of pop that the band deploy here. Beneath the intermittent feedback, bursts of processed field recordings and sparkling guitar parts, Revved Up Youth is a collection of songs about how wonderful and sad it is to love and lose.”
“Élégant et frénétique, le nouveau microalbum de Karma Glider est les deux à la fois. Un an après Future Fiction, le groupe montréalais continue, avec son dernier-né, de proposer un rock accrocheur et chaotique, en se concentrant sur une facette peut-être plus contemplative et planante qu’on associe aux sonorités shoegaze et néo-psychédélique. L’ensemble d’une vingtaine de minutes nous précipite dans un véritable voyage sensoriel qui nous fait explorer tant le tumulte que le calme inhérents à la musique de Karma Glider.”
Landmark Events
Shared stage with
RIDE, L.A. WITCH, Death From Above 1979, DAIISTAR, ZOPA, Nyssa