Kyle Christensen, CTC's lead guitarist, started playing around the age of thirteen. Living in a small town in MN with few other guitar players, he had to learn to play by ear. He started out playing the heavy stuff he was listening to at the time, which made him a natural fit for his first band with Mike Holtz. Kyle met Mike when he moved to Breckenridge, MN his junior year of high school, and he joined the band immediately.

After a couple other college bands, he moved to Fargo, ND and played in two country/rock bands for about ten years. Learning about gear, the business, and the road, Kyle spent that decade developing a unique approach to lead guitar. This style turned out to be the perfect fit to Mike's current song writing, and Carmen the Cactus was born.