Manchester City Forums

Hey everyone

This week sees the third anniversary of The Kara Sea's first ever gig. It seems like a lot longer ago - as you might already know, The Kara Sea has not been active for nearly two years now due to my ill-health. I suffer from ME, on the moderate to severe end of the spectrum and am now 90% housebound and largely bedridden. This has meant I have been unable to write and record songs, or play gigs, for a long time.

So, the inevitable time has come when I feel I have to make it official and draw a line under The Kara Sea. My illness has been progressive over these last few years, and it's unlikely I'll be able to return to the musician's lifestyle for another few years at least, if ever. Many kind people have been getting in touch with me to offer gigs, slots on compilation albums, and other kinds of support. Although touched by the attention, I have been politely declining these offers, and I now feel it's probably time to let you all know to cross The Kara Sea off your list of potential artists/collaborators!

I had a blast being The Kara Sea. I only recorded a handful of songs but they were received so well it blew my mind, and opened doors for me to work with some people I have admired for years. I travelled the country with my omnichord smothered in bubble wrap under my arm, and my music was always warmly received, for which I am incredibly grateful to all of you and glad I had the chance to do what little I did.

It would be too cheesy to do a roll-call of thank yous, but no doubt if you deserve one you know who you are. Being The Kara Sea allowed me to meet some great people and some very talented bands, and I'm very grateful to all of you who went out of your way to help me get along.

I may record and gig again if my health improves enough, but in the meantime I'm going to be concentrating the little energies I have on the political side of things. I will be campaigning against the Welfare Reform Bill, on behalf of sick and disabled people like myself who now face the prospect of sanctions against our income, and bullying into taking jobs we are not fit for and are unsafe for us to do. If you are interested in this campaign work, please contact me and I will fill you in - the more people we have on board, the merrier!

Otherwise, thank you for your support these last three years (and an extra-special thank you to those whose support stretches back into the Valentine/Megarider days), and I hope you've enjoyed the few songs that make up the fruits of The Kara Sea's labours. You can download all my recorded material for free from MySpace or from last.fm; if you like the songs, please consider making a donation to one of these two charities who are working to help people with M.E.

The 25% ME Group - http://www.25megroup.org - campaigns on behalf of the 25% of M.E. sufferers in the UK who are severely affected, housebound and bedridden.

Invest In ME - http://www.investinme.org - fundraises for biomedical research into the causes and effects of M.E.

Thanks again, everyone, and happy travels!

Sarah / The Kara Sea. xx


http://www.adventuresinthekarasea.net/cgi-bin/dada/mail.cgi/u/karasea/