Draft:Karna (rock band)

KARNA (ukr. КА́РНА) is a Ukrainian rock band from Ivano-Frankivsk.

Early Years (1997 — 2010)
The band was formed in 1997 in Ivano-Frankivsk. Initially, the band's style was positioned as "Ukrainian alternative nu-metal." Over time, they began using their own definition of "Hutsul-metal". .

In the spring of 1997, Viktor Vdovych initiated his band and named it "Karna". Guitarist Oleksandr Merkulov joined the band, and Viktor Vdovych became the vocalist-bassist. With this lineup, they performed several shows until summer. In the summer, Vladyslav Yarun arrived in Ivano-Frankivsk searching for a musical group. After a comical meeting with Viktor Vdovych, he became the lead guitarist of the band, while Oleksandr Merkulov switched to rhythm guitar. At this time, drummer Andriy Mykhailov and vocalist Vladyslav Melnyk joined the band. With Vladyslav Melnyk (vocals), Vladyslav Yarun (lead guitar), Oleksandr Merkulov (rhythm guitar), Viktor Vdovych (bass guitar), and Andriy Mykhailov (drums), the band began its stable work. In the fall of 1998, Oleksandr Merkulov left the band and moved to the USA, and Oleksiy Yarosh took over as the rhythm guitarist. In the spring of 1999, Oleksiy Yarosh left the band for military service, and Roman Hryhoriv became the new rhythm guitarist. In the summer of 1999, drummer Andriy Mykhailov left, and Mykola Chervonetsky became the new drummer. In the spring of 2002, vocalist Vladyslav Melnyk left and moved to the United Kingdom, and former rhythm guitarist Oleksiy Yarosh became the new vocalist. From this point, the band underwent significant changes and changed its style, introducing new songs "Smittya," "Letymo," and "My budemo razom." In the fall, Roman Hryhoriv left the band, leaving Vladyslav Yarun as the only guitarist.

The band started working on their first album with the following lineup: Oleksiy Yarosh (vocals), Vladyslav Yarun (guitar), Viktor Vdovych (bass guitar), Mykola Chervonetsky (drums).

In 2003, Karna released their first album "Letymo."

In 2007, the band saw the departure of Viktor Vdovych (founder of Karna) and Mykola Chervonetsky, with Maksym Maslak becoming the new bass guitarist, and Oleh Bilous the new drummer.

With this lineup, the band began working on their second album.

The second album, "KARNA," released in 2010, entered the top 100 albums of the Ukrainian independence era according to the music publication Karabas Live.

In September 2010, guitarist Vladyslav Yarun announced the dissolution of the project. However, former band members formed a new project named ExKarna. The lineup remained unchanged, except for the guitarist—Andriy Demyanov took Vladyslav Yarun's place. In the fall of 2011, ExKarna changed its lineup, keeping only vocalist Oleksiy Yarosh from the former members. Later, the band changed its name to "Mol'fa."

Translation: Hutsul-metal (2013 — present)
In 2013, the band KARNA resumed its activity with a new vocalist, Oleksiy Shmanov, and the return of the former bassist Viktor Vdovych, while Vladyslav Yarun and Oleg Bilous returned as guitarist and drummer, respectively. Defining their stylistic concept with the term "Hutsul-metal," the band continued to work.

At the end of June 2014, the first single of the band in its renewed lineup, "Za tebe krov moya," was released. In 2015, Pavlo Korsun replaced Viktor Vdovych. The first music video of the revived band, for the song "Malyenka," was released in 2016, followed by "Party na Prykarpatti" (directed by Viktor Skuratovsky) in 2017, which was named the best Ukrainian metal video of 2017 by "The Best Ukrainian Metal".

On November 17, 2017, the band released their third album, "Hutsul-metal," which marked the creation of a new, eponymous genre. The album was presented in Kyiv, Lviv, and other cities and entered the top charts of iTunes and Google Play. Between album releases, the band actively performed both locally (initiating the first Ivano-Frankivsk rock festival "Rock-Vybuch" and across Ukraine and abroad.

In the fall of 2018, the band embarked on a nationwide tour #hutsulmetalvkozhnuhatu, covering 12 cities and gathering a full house in the capital.

On March 14, 2019, KARNA released a new video for the song "Vitrolom" from the "Hutsul-metal" album (2017).

On April 19, the musicians announced that Oleksiy Shmanov was leaving the band to focus on his main project Entree, and Oleksiy Yarosh returned as the vocalist. On May 7, the band released the single "Prometey", which was Yarosh's first studio release with the band since 2010.

On February 3, 2021, the band presented a new animated clip for the song "Synevir." According to the musicians, "Synevir" is their musical protest against the logging of the Carpathian forests and timber smuggling.

On July 9, 2021, the band presented a cover of the song "Dvoje" by the band Fantom-2. The cover and video were dedicated to their fellow countryman Roman Matiyash, as well as to all those who have created and continue to create modern Ukrainian culture

On November 24, 2023, Karna gave their first solo concert in Kyiv in two years of war. In early December 2023, the band released a new clip for the song "Proshu pana do smereky." The shooting took place in the National Nature Park "Hutsulshchyna" (Kosiv region). The video was directed by Viktor Skuratovsky. Also, the song featured guest growl vocalist Viktor Novosolov, known for his participation in the bands "ANNA" and Kompas.

Etymology of the title
In pre-Christian belief, Karna is a deity embodying the mourner for the deceased. It is also an embodiment of punishment, sorrow, and death on the battlefield. In Indian mythology, Karna is one of the main characters in the epic "Mahabharata", the strongest warrior, an embodiment of valor and honor.

Current members

 * Oleksiy Yarosh - vocals, rhythm guitar (1998–1999, 2002–2010, 2019-present)
 * Vladyslav Yarun - guitar, backing vocals (1997–2010, 2013-present)
 * Pavlo Korsun - bass, backing vocals (since 2015)
 * Oleh Bilous - drums (2007–2010, 2013-present)

Former members

 * Oleksiy Shmanov (band Antre) - vocals (2013–2019)
 * Maksym Maslak - bass (2007–2010)
 * Anna Dobrydneva - backing vocals, keyboards (2006–2009)
 * Viktor Vdovych - bass (1997–2007, 2013–2015)
 * Vladyslav Melnyk - vocals (1997–2002)
 * Mykola Chervonetsky - drums (1999–2007)
 * Andriy Mykhailov - drums (1997–1999)
 * Oleksandr Merkulov - rhythm guitar (1997–1998)
 * Roman Hryhoriv - rhythm guitar (1999–2002)

Studio Albums

 * Letymo (2003)
 * KARNA (2010)
 * Hutsul-metal (2017)

Singles

 * "Za tebe krov moya" (2014)
 * "Chekaty budu" (2015)
 * "Poltergeist" (2016)
 * "Malyenka" (2016)
 * "Prometey" (2019)
 * "ARKAN" (2019)
 * "Synevir" (2021)
 * "Dvoje (Fantom 2)" (2021)
 * "Boyko" (2021)
 * "Dobryi vechir" (2021)
 * "Mama Halychyna" (2022)
 * "Vitrolom - serzhant Yarosh akustika" (2022)
 * "Richard z gir" (2022)