Creating something that people can connect with

To start with, when and how did you get involved with music? Have you always known you wanted to be in a band or perform from an early age, or is it a more recent development?

Music has definitely been my biggest passion since I can remember, the first thing I remember wanting to play was the violin, I started that when I was 8, then went onto piano, guitar and cello. I didn’t start singing until I was 19, I always wanted to, just never had the confidence. I started with classical opera training and from the first lesson I was hooked and there was no looking back, I pretty much stopped playing instruments and focused all my energy on singing. I definitely wanted to be in a band, so I started looking and it was a pretty long hunt before Horizons Edge started, but well worth the time it took.

Your band Horizons Edge just put out its second album last year, correct? How does it compare to your first? Is there any new music or projects in the works for the future?

Yes we did. I feel it was quite a step up from our first album, in every aspect, we spent a lot more time and money haha…the songs off the first album were written before I was in the band, so they weren’t written with my voice in mind. With our second album, there was a lot more collaborating and we had more of an idea of the sound we wanted to achieve. We are currently writing our third album, which is going really so far, hopefully recording will be starting fairly soon. 

I admittedly haven’t ventured much into power metal and tend to lean more towards death metal or other forms of extreme metal. What would you say sets power metal apart from other subgenres? Would it be safe to say it’s a more accessible version of metal that more people are likely to enjoy?

I think it is more accessible, I find that when non metal heads find out that I sing in a metal band, they kind of laugh and ask me about how much I growl, they’re always quite surprised when I play them an example of what power metal sounds like, they often respond with ‘oh, that’s not what I expected at all.’ So I think if definitely can reach a broader audience. I think the melodies and sing along choruses really helps to set it apart and makes it something anyone can enjoy.

As an up-and-coming band, what are you focusing the most on right now? Is it writing music, performing, creating a fanbase, or something else?

We’re always kind of focused on doing everything, promotion, playing, writing, finding new ways to get our music out there. It is a lot of work, but it’s also a fun challenge!

I was intrigued to see you are based in Australia. How is the metal scene down there? How does it compare to the United States or other parts of the world?

The metal scene here is great, there is a lot of support for many different genres of metal. I’d say that for power metal, it probably has the least followers, so it is a bit more difficult for a band like us than others, but it’s still good. Melbourne is probably the best city for power metal, so we’re lucky to be based here.

I liked to see that keyboards are included as a part of your sound. What brought that about? Would you say the keys are a necessary component of your music or just something extra? Do keyboards still have a place in heavy metal today and how are they best integrated?

I think keyboards help for making a more epic sound, which is what you want in power metal. It helps really create that bigger sound and adds another dimension to the music. It also helps with writing, you can be more creative having access to different sounds. For live, we don’t use any backing tracks, so it definitely adds to the live experience. I think there is a solid place for keyboards in metal, especially with a lot of the symphonic bands that are out there today. You hear a lot of people saying that metal is kind of the classical music of today, so being able to incorporate those classical sounds so easily is a great thing.

Obviously, you happen to be a woman. What’s it like to be a female metal musician and female metalhead generally? Would you say metal as a genre is inclusive or receptive to women?

The only time being a female metal head has ever been a problem for me, was in school, I think I was one of very few, so I did get made fun of a fair bit for listening to bands like Iron Maiden, but now, I never have any problems. I think the scene is very accepting and supportive of female metalheads.

Have you toured or have plans to tour in the future? If you have, what was that experience like?

We did our first tour at the start of the year, we went to about seven Australian cities. It was the best fun and it was a great way to make new fans and connect with people that have been following the band for a while but had never seen us play before. Once we have released our third album, we’ll be looking to tour again.

Does music take up all your time or do you do anything else professionally or recreationally on the side?

I have a day job to support myself, but music definitely takes up most of my time. I also have a passion for cars, I love driving and working on them, I’ve done up a Bedford Van and Ma61 Supra, my dream cars are Lamborghini Countach and Diablo and a C4 Corvette.  

When it comes to writing music, how does the process work for you? Does one band member handle it, or is it a group effort? For example, do lyrics or vocals come first or do the instrumentals?

Ed and myself do most of the writing. He usually comes up with ideas and I start putting vocals to them, and then the song kind of grows from there, usually goes through a few changes back and forth between the two of us until we’re eventually happy with it. I have written all the lyrics so far, but I am always open to ideas. I think though as a singer, you really need to believe and feel the lyrics you’re singing, otherwise you may not sing them in a way that people will connect with.

I noticed the awesome music video you recently posted. Was that your first time shooting a video? Was it a positive experience?

We have two video clips out at the moment. Both clips were a lot of fun to shoot, it’s quite a different experience to other aspects of being in a band, so I think it helps bring the band closer together. It’s fun to get really creative and try new things, like sword fighting. I’ve never done that before and that was a lot of fun!

Who would you cite as your primary influences musically?

I listen to a lot of different kinds of music, I have many influences from different genres. From a metal perspective I would say that Helloween, Dragonforce, Kamelot, Sonata Arctica, and Stratovarius are some of the main ones. I would also say that Queen and Pink Floyd have a big impact on my writing as well, maybe not so much on our last album, but definitely on the album we are writing now. As far as my singing influences go, I would say my favorites are Freddie Mercury, Rob Halford, Ralf Scheepers, John Farnham and Tina Turner.

What are the best and more challenging things about being in a band?

The best would be creating something that people can connect with and enjoy. I have also met a lot of really great people through being in a band. I love singing, so any time I get to sing and people want to listen is always great! The more challenging things about being in a band I think are finding the right people to play with and learning to work together. Also learning to not take on board too much of the negative things people say about you, not everyone is going to like you and you kind of have to just not listen too much to the bad stuff. Sometimes people will have a good point and you learn from it, but some people like to just say bad things and you have to not let it affect your confidence.

Is there anything else you would like to add or tell our readers about you or Horizons Edge?
 
Thanks for having a read and if you’re interested in checking us out, you can find us at
www.facebook.com/horizonsedgeofficial. You can purchase our album from bandcamp, iTunes and cdbaby. Thanks for your support!