Simon Phillips signs up for the new Karmakanic album

(Image credit: Francesco Desmaele)

Former The Who and Toto drummer Simon Phillips will drum on the upcoming Karmakanic album, currently going by the working title of Transmutation, band leader Jonas Reingold has announced. The new album will be released through Reingold's own label, Reingold Records, in February or Mach next year.

Reingold has been working on the new record, which will be the band's first since 2016's Dot, since March, when he posted on social media that he had been recording in Nashville with fellow Steve Hackett band member Craig Blundell, who will feature on four of the album's tracks, saying at the time, "There will be one more monster drummer on the album that I will reveal very soon. You will not be disappointed, I can tell you that."

Now Reingold has announced, "It is with a happy heart that I announce one of my favorite drummers of all time, Simon Phillips, has recorded drums for the new Karmakanic album, with the working title Transmutation. The drum recording is out of this world, and the performance absolutely matches his reputation as one of the finest on this planet. Together with the mastery of Craig Blundell we have the best possible start.

"Diana and I went to his gig with his own band, Protocol, in Heinsberg, DE, yesterday and had a good sit-down with him, discussing everything from his years with Toto and The Who to how he records his drums and his philosophy on how to serve the song. Such a lovely and generous guy.

"I’m so excited to continue the recordings and now have a plan to release this new album in Feb/March 2025 on Reingold Records. I will do my utmost to create the best record I possibly can and will not sell myself short to achieve that.

The rest of the lineup will slowly unfold during the recording process, and I have already recorded some stellar vocals with..."

Karmakanic were also recently announced as one of the acts for next year's Cruise To The Edge.

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Writer and broadcaster Jerry Ewing is the Editor of Prog Magazine which he founded for Future Publishing in 2009. He grew up in Sydney and began his writing career in London for Metal Forces magazine in 1989. He has since written for Metal Hammer, Maxim, Vox, Stuff and Bizarre magazines, among others. He created and edited Classic Rock Magazine for Dennis Publishing in 1998 and is the author of a variety of books on both music and sport, including Wonderous Stories; A Journey Through The Landscape Of Progressive Rock.