I started My Ruin initially as a solo project after leaving my former band
Tura Satana which I originally founded in 1993 under the name Manhole.
After releasing two albums and touring the world with Tura Satana, I felt it was time to move onto something else in my life musically and see where a new path would take me.
I recorded [Speak and Destroy] which I released through Snapper Music UK in 1999, collaborating with various musicians who helped me to write and produce what many would consider to be the first official My Ruin album. For me, it was more like my experimental / transitional album. I hired a band to tour [S&D] which also featured a few of the musicians who worked with me on the album but it wasn’t until 2000 that My Ruin really took shape and form.
I met Mick Murphy through a mutual friend on February 5th
at a party in the Hollywood Hills and the rest is history. Mick and I recorded our first album together a few months later at Grandmaster Recorders with producer and friend Nick Raskulinecz. [A Prayer Under Pressure of Violent Anguish] was released in 2000 on Snapper Music UK and soon to follow was our live session album [To Britain with Love and Bruises] which was recording on November 29, 2000 at Stanbridge Farms Studios in Sussex, England on the eve of our [Prayer Under Pressure] UK tour.
In 2003 My Ruin signed with Century Media Records worldwide
and released the EP [The Shape of Things to Come].
The EP included a 13 minute film-noir style movie and quickly set the tone for
our 3rd full length album [The Horror of Beauty] which included the video for the ‘anthemic’ single [Made to Measure] and the ‘making of the video’ short movie.
[The Horror of Beauty] was recorded @ Sound City & Deadzone Studios and co produced by Nick Raskulinecz, Mick Murphy & Todd Osenbaugh.
In 2005 Mick and I started our own imprint label Rovena Recordings
and released our 4th full length album [The Brutal Language] which was
produced by Mick and mixed by Nick Raskulinecz @ Studio 606 West.
[The Brutal Language] was our first album played entirely by Mick and was distributed via Undergroove Records in the UK and Bayside/33rd Street Records in the states.
In 2007, Rovena Recordings signed a distribution deal with Cargo Records UK
and released our 5th studio album [Throat Full of Heart] in January 2008.
Co-produced by Mick Murphy & Duane Burda and recorded at The Hobby Shop, [Throat Full Of Heart] also included our first DVD [Tell Your God to Ready for Blood] created & edited by Mick features 2 ½ hours of behind the scenes footage including the making of our album, music videos for [Ready for Blood & Religiosity] as well as my mini movie [Through the Wound] which documents my injury to recovery from the car accident that I was involved in the night before My Ruin was scheduled to begin recording in October 2006. In late 2008, we released our first live album & DVD [Alive on the Other Side] which was recorded earlier in the year @ Rios in Leeds, England while on our [Tell Your God UK Tour]. The live album has a raw almost bootleg feel to it and also comes with a 2 ½ hour up documentary style tour DVD of My Ruin and an enhanced CD with videos for [Slide You The Horn & The Beauty Medley]
We are a DIY band and we always will be. We like to do things our way.
We do not spend a lot of time touring but we do spend a lot of time writing and recording our music. In the end that is what people will remember the most and that’s what is most important to us. Over the years, My Ruin has had a revolving rhythm section and an interesting cast of characters both live and in the studio, including 4 bass players and 6 drummers. While some were with us longer than others becoming a real part of our lives, most did not play on our albums and were just hired to tour with us. The idea of My Ruin began as a project in which I planned to work with various musicians in the studio and on the stage, something that would always be changing. That is how it has been on every album with the exception of Mick who has been a constant as my guitarist, co-writer, producer and partner for the last 9 years. Mick also became my husband recently when we tied the knot and made it official on Christmas Eve 2008 in Knoxville, Tennessee.
This brings us to 2009 and where we are today. It seems that My Ruin has come full circle and with this, we have decided to keep it just the two of us. We have already begun writing what will be our 6th full length studio album but have decided not to rush the process. We want to truly enjoy ourselves, celebrate our new married life and make this year as memorable as possible. We have also decided to take a break from playing live with My Ruin for a while so that we can focus on a few other things we have wanted to pursue. We are not ending the band we are just taking some time out. Mick & I have shared many amazing moments with certain people over the years which we will cherish and remember fondly. There have been highs, lows and everything in between.
It’s all part of rock & roll.
We will continue to update our blogs with news, interviews, photos, videos
and all the usual tidbits of information on what we are doing. We hope those of you who have been with us on our journey will continue to enjoy the music we make and follow us into the next chapter of our band.
Here's a quote I saw today that made me think about the priorities in life;
"Imagine life as a game in which you are juggling five balls in the air. You name them - work, family, health, friends, and spirit - and you're keeping all of these in the air. You will soon understand that work is a rubber ball. If you drop it, it will bounce back. But the other four balls - family, health, friends, and spirit are made of glass. If you drop one of these, they will be irrevocably scuffed, marked, nicked, damaged, or even shattered...You must understand that and strive for balance in your life."~Brian Dyson
I hope that you have been able to keep things balanced, I am trying harder to! ROCK ON! Karen :)
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