Composed for Z-I-v Freestyle Showcase 2022

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Karl Kim is a man of many musical hats (perhaps too many for his own good, but that's a discussion for another time). 

​​His musical journey started off with piano lessons at age six, and from there he has picked up many other instruments over the years, including but not limited to: violin, guitar, trombone, and various percussion instruments. Karl was also just as quick to branch out to styles of music other than classical; most significant of these styles is rock and metal (especially of the progressive variety), but jazz, EDM, experimental music, and folk music from various parts of the world have also played a role in shaping him as a musician. 

As a concert music composer, these musical experiences, especially those as a metal guitarist, are what make up the voice that he projects into his compositions, especially in recent times. Pieces like "The Jury is Sleepless", "Without a Minute to Spare", and "So Cold, So Dark, So Chaotic" exist at a crossroads between music for the concert hall and music for the mosh pit. His music has been performed by ensembles such as the Rhythm Method, S.E.M., and Bearthoven, and he holds a B.M. in Music Theory and Composition from New York University. 

"Karl with a K" is an alter ego of Karl Kim. Karl with a K, while having the same musical background as Karl Kim, draws upon a fascination for rhythm game music that started with Dance Dance Revolution at the age of eight, and grew considerably to encompass games including, but not limited to, Sound Voltex, In the Groove, beatmania IIDX, Voez, and Arcaea. Karl with a K brings his background in metal and 20th century classical music into rhythm game original tracks such as "!CAUTION! small but deadly", "BELLUM", and "rudimentary methods of overkill", which can be characterized by plenty of guitars, unusual rhythms, and sometimes non-instruments being used as instruments. Much of his output as Karl with a K is written for the purposes of Stepmania simfile creation (though as of BMS of Fighters: EighTeen's "0verfl0w_err0r" this is no longer exclusively the case).

Karl Kim currently resides in Bloomington, Indiana where he is pursuing an M.M. in Music Scoring for Visual Media at the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University. Karl with a K can be seen lurking around the internet (especially specific Discord servers), occasionally not being above a good meme from time to time. In addition, Karl with a K is working on his first project as a game developer, a typing meets rhythm gaming fusion titled "glyph;".