Karnataka began life as a project by Ian Jones and Rachel Cohen to record a selection of songs written during their spells with previous bands.

The band was named after the Indian state of Karnataka where Ian had recently visited.

The debut album ‘Karnataka’, was released in 1998 and featured Jonathan Edwards on Keyboards, Gavin Griffiths on drums and Paul Davies on guitars.

Following the release of the CD the same line-up continued as a band writing new material which would form the follow up album The Storm released in 2000. The Storm was recorded in Ian and Rachel’s home studio and was mixed by Phil Ault at Rockfield Studios in Monmouth. At the 2000 Classic Rock Society Awards in Rotherham, Karnataka won awards for Best New Band and Best Female Vocalist.

In 2001 the band supported Porcupine Tree on a selection of their European dates and filmed a live DVD at The London Astoria 2 which was released by Classic Rock Legends. In 2002 the band filmed another DVD with Classic Rock Legends ‘Live in the USA;.

In 2003 the band released their third album Delicate Flame of Desire. The album was produced by Steve Evans and mixed by Joe Gibb at Mighty Atom Studios in Swansea. The album was mastered at Abbey Road Studios. The album featured Anne-Marie Helder who had previously performed with the band as a guest backing vocalist. In 2004 the line-up released their final album Strange Behaviour, a double live CD recorded at The Limelight in Crewe.

In 2005 Ian announced the band would  continue with a new line-up featuring Lisa Fury on vocals, Gonzalo Carrera on keyboards and Enrico Pinna on guitars. In 2010 a new Karnataka album The Gathering Light was released, recorded and produced by Ian Jones, mixed by Enrico Pinna and mastered in London’s Metropolis Studios. The album won Best Album at the Prog Awards.

Following Lisa and Gonzalo’s departure in 2011 new members Hayley Griffiths (vocals), Cagri Tozluoglu (keyboards) were announced. In 2012 the band released a new live album and DVD ‘New Light’. In 2013 the line-up was augmented by drummer Jimmy Pallagrosi and in 2015 new studio album Secrets of Angels was released. The album won Best Album at the Classic Rock Society Awards. In 2017 the band released Secrets of angels Live on CD/DVD and Blu-Ray.

In 2018 Sertari was announced as the band’s new vocalist. They have been writing new material for a new studio album set for release in 2022. The line-up were joined by special guests Luke Machin on guitars and Chris Allan on drums. In 2020 they announced their New Dawn Rising Tour which was postponed to 2022 following the global Covid pandemic.

In June 2023 the band released their new album Requiem For A Dream to critical acclaim.