PROVING GROUND
Tell me about your history? How did you get where you are now?
Proving Ground is the nihilistic brainchild of Paulo Kalra. Growing up in the quiet desperation of 1990’s Toronto Canada, Kalra was influenced by the stylistic self-expressions of the Seattle Grunge artists, coupled with Industrial musicians from Germany and the US. He recorded his first song in 1995 with dual cassette decks, a drum machine and guitar chords reminiscent of experimental Nirvana or Pearl Jam tracks. When Kalra was introduced to the possibilities of electronic composition, his ideas reached a new level and his raw energy was encoded into his first album, in 2000.
Paulo Kalra is a multifaceted artist that adapts and blends into a variety of musical collaborations. Since the inception of his career, he has been a part of 12 rock bands, and has showcased his talents in the trendiest concert halls in Toronto, including the Opera House, the Kathedral, Reverb and many others. One of the highlights of his burgeoning career was a gig on the main stage with Treble Charger and another night with Econoline Crush at the Playdium in Mississauga. Following an epiphanic realization of the egos and sellouts running rampant in the industry, Kalra retreated into his subconscious and began producing music in his private studio. After writing over 120 songs, his best work was compiled into the first released Proving Ground album, in 2007, garnering a strong following domestically and overseas. The newest production, entitled “Through the Red Door”, due for release in the first half of 2009, promises to be Proving Ground’s finest achievement to date. Subjective thematic elements and penetrating musical landscapes portray the current age of anxiety, the release of personal repression, and the essential shallowness of the modern world. As an antithesis to the commercialized effervescence found in contemporary rock music, Proving Ground delivers a sharp and acrid perspective on a world devoid of meaning and purpose, consumed by its own over-consumption, and left with nothing more than a drive to maintain the cycle of self-destruction. This is what the album captures, and is certain to turn more than a few heads in the international hard rock/industrial community.
