AS Media Work

1. Artist Profile:
Karl Noir
By Isabel Lawther

2. Career beginnings
• Born Karl Smith, he joined his first band as a guitarist when he was 15, a punk band by the
name of Chipped Tooth.
• He left the band after their first gig, due to disagreements within the group. He loved the
energy and abrasiveness of the punk scene, but feel the lyrical poeticism was lacking.
• At age 16 he got a job at a local record store where he met 19 year old Paul Fletcher. The
two became friends and formed a duo, with Paul on drums and Karl as the singer and
guitarist. They named themselves Coffee Can and began to play local pubs.
• At one of their gigs, one of Karl’s former classmates Karen Miller came up to them and
asked to join their band as a bassist. They allowed her and the duo became a three piece.
• The name of the band changed when Karl’s grandmother told them the name was stupid
and they came up with the name Moonshoes For Monday. Karl also began to use the
stage name of Karl Noir after his love of neo-noir films. The band was signed to Bystander
Records by the time Karl turned 18 in 2010.
• Moonshoes For Monday announced their breakup in early 2015, on the same day that Karl
announced he was working on a solo project.

3. Moonshoes For Monday
• The band released their first album, Dream Smasher, in 2010. The album
received mostly favourable reviews and they soon became a hit on the indie
and alternative rock scene, but were ignored by the mainstream media.
• Their second album, Freedom is a Dirty Word, was released in 2012. The band
gained public attention after their song Lady Killer was used on a trailer for a
popular video game. They then began to make appearances on talk shows,
where Karl became notorious for being blunt in interviews.
• Their third album and final album, Tell me the Truth and I’ll Tell You a Lie, was
released in 2014. This album was their most successful and is credited as their
best work.
• The band were in the process of making a fourth album when they announced
their breakup. The cause of the breakup was said to be “artistic disagreement”
and Karl Noir announced his plans for a solo project only hours after the band
posted their breakup message on their website.

4. Fans
• Contrary to the image he puts out to the mainstream media, Karl has
always shown a great deal of appreciation for his fans, taking time
to meet as many of them as he can after shows.
• His fans admire his boldness when it comes to expressing himself and
his views.
• They also admire his carefree attitude to gender stereotypes as he
will happily strut about on stage wearing a woman’s blouse or
eyeliner.
• The fans like write things on their bodies when coming to gigs as this
is something that Karl often does on stage.

5. Views
• Karl has not explicitly stated which political party he supports, but has
expressed many left wing views.
• He supports the LGBT community and believes equality is a basic
human right- “It’s the 21st century, men marry men, get over it.”
• He is a feminist- “Most people think that feminism is a dirty word.
Most people are idiots.”
• Karl seems to have an opinion on most things and does not hold back
on expressing it. Some find his candid attitude off putting, but
others find it amusing.

6. Quotes
“My grandma came to our first show with Karen
and her only comment was ‘Coffee Can is a
stupid name for a band’, so of course we had to
change it.”
“I’d only sell out if I believed it was
worthwhile, I’m not going to put
my face on a f***ing dog food
can.”
“I’d rather die than have to hold
a conversation with Simon
Cowell.”
“I don’t care if people call me a
poof, women’s shirts are comfier
than men’s.”“I don’t say controversial things to be
edgy or cool, I say them because I mean
them.”
“The fans always hold a place in my heart
because I was once a teenager who went
to gigs hoping for a picture or an
autograph.”
“This is not the end of Moonshoes For Monday. Everything the
band once stood for will live on in my solo work. You’d be happy
the band broke up if you heard the demos the other two made for
the new album.”

7. Quotes
“My grandma came to our first show with Karen
and her only comment was ‘Coffee Can is a
stupid name for a band’, so of course we had to
change it.”
“I’d only sell out if I believed it was
worthwhile, I’m not going to put
my face on a f***ing dog food
can.”
“I’d rather die than have to hold
a conversation with Simon
Cowell.”
“I don’t care if people call me a
poof, women’s shirts are comfier
than men’s.”“I don’t say controversial things to be
edgy or cool, I say them because I mean
them.”
“The fans always hold a place in my heart
because I was once a teenager who went
to gigs hoping for a picture or an
autograph.”
“This is not the end of Moonshoes For Monday. Everything the
band once stood for will live on in my solo work. You’d be happy
the band broke up if you heard the demos the other two made for
the new album.”