Audio Karate

Childhood friends from Rosemead, California, formed Audio Karate with Art Barrios handling vocals and guitar, Justo Gonzalez on bass and vocals, Gabriel Camacho on drums, and Jason Camacho on guitar, the latter two being cousins. Their common passion for 1980s skatepunk and 1970s metal shaped the group’s direction, leading to the May 2002 release of their debut album Space Camp on Kung Fu Records, a collection of fiercely melodic SoCal pop-punk. Subsequent shows alongside the Ataris, Tsunami Bomb, and the Vandals paved the way for their slot on the 2004 Warped Tour, an appearance that aligned with the June arrival of the more developed and widely praised Lady Melody, produced by Bill Stevenson of Descendents and ALL. Additional road work followed until the members declared at the close of that year they would step away for an unspecified period. The band reemerged in spring 2006 to announce both a new album and their contributions to the score and soundtrack—material notably distinct from prior work—for the independent Spanish-language film Maquillaje. Around the same time Jason Camacho launched his own recording facility, Lady Melody, titled after the band’s 2004 release.