“Edge of Paradise” Interview by Keith Clements
Greetings from MHF Magazine, We are really happy to have you with us on this Interview, how are you doing?
I am well, Thank you for having me! Kindly welcome, it’s our pleasure.
“Alive” has come out just weeks back, how are you feeling about the outcome of the album?
“Alive” is doing well, We hit 58 in Hard rock and 94 on “top 100” at Billboard for the first week (of the release). I am extremely proud of this CD, I think as a band this represents our best songwriting to date (by far) Margarita and I have reached a new level of collaboration, I am really excited to continue writing in this heavy industrial vein. The production team on this one was also phenomenal, and we couldn’t ask for a better team.
Can you please walk us through the writing process and how it’s different from its predecessor “Immortal Waltz”?
Well, on this one we used a much more relaxed approach. Myself and Margarita just started experimenting with sounds. In my mind, The vision was wrapped around a futuristic “Blade runner” type of theme, So the sounds or music if you will to what this future would sound like. We also brought in Chuck Johnson on this one (Slipknot, Korn, Machine head) to produce, And this added excitement and his musical vision as well. Having Michael Wagener, Mike Plotnicoff and Jay Ruston mix the album also helped us to realize the full potential (sonically) of each track. We really enjoyed the process on “Alive”.
Could you tell us how “Edge of Paradise” began, as far as I Know Margarita met Dave Bates on a Freelance Project, but how this evolved into a band?
Sure, Well since I am Dave, I can give you my perspective- I was playing some GNR at a music store showcase with some guitar students I had at the time, Margarita came in with a local music producer she had been working with, And they offered to hire me to add guitar for a song they were working on. I heard the word “hire” and I was sold. Once we started recording that song, I thought it might be fun to re-track some of the previous songs that Robin McAuley and I had written (this is what you hear on “Mask”) We just continued forward from there. Although it served as a good starting point, “Mask” is not my best songwriting.
The songwriting skills of yours is phenomenal, You are bringing some news for the people through your songs, Is it planned or did you really wanted to spread the message through the songs?
Thank you! Margarita is sitting here, I’ll let her answer this: I always want our music to touch people in a positive way. It’s important that the music delivers the meaning and the message of the songs. For example, on our new release ALIVE, the overall message is to hold on to our humanity, and not get lost in the virtual reality that we create with all the technology. I also let the melodies influence the words, so everything is intertwined.
From my standpoint (Dave) I focus on the music. I love finessing the rhythm, And having a theatrical vision for what our music should sound like. This release is about the “machines” The only thing left that we have to fight for is our humanity. Make no mistake, Most of us will see a future that we let happen (through our collective greed) and although it might sound good, It will not be all that pleasant. We are in the process of replacing ourselves with machines and computers and soon we will have no purpose. OK, so now I have given away the theatrical back drop for our next release.
We are not in an age where we go to a record store where we see Led Zepp, Black Sabbath, Deep purple on the racks, right now every single day numerous bands are evolving and some are highly talented, how do you become recognized in the global scene with such tough competition?
Ahh, the age old question, well you get a reality show of course. I would agree there are a lot of talented bands coming out every day, However, Most of them sound the same. (to me) Today is no different from any other day, You persevere, you work hard, you show up every time- you “break through”, I mean you BREAK the obstacles in your way, you leave these obstacles broken by the wayside so they don’t appear again. Of course the sad reality is that you have to get financed, The music business is really expensive. The free downloading of music these days obviously doesn’t help.
The band’s music is made of Heavy guitar riffs with a complement of Classical and Symphonic, so how did this theory work out? Is it because of Margarita’s past as a Classical Pianist and you guys wanted to put it together?
Yes, we definitely wanted to add Margarita’s piano ability to the mix, She is a very accomplished pianist so it makes good sense for us to bring that in. The theory is essentially the same, I have spent a fair amount of time studying music theory, So the musical language is something we share. We approach every song differently, some songs are definitely more piano oriented (such as Mystery) Other songs feature the keyboard as accompaniment in more of a support role. It always in there.
Does Edge of Paradise plan for any International concerts this year, If so could you tell us your plan? What other plans do you have for 2017?
This is our current schedule, More shows are being added daily! best place to keep up to date is: www.edgeofparadiseband.com or facebook.com/EdgeOfParadiseBand
June:
7 – Viper Room – West Hollywood, CA
TBA- Maricopa fest – Bakersfield, CA
July:
28 – Funhouse – Seattle, WA
29 – Rock Hard DPX – Portland, OR
August:
8 – DiPiazza’s – Long Beach, CA
9 – Brick By Brick – San Diego, CA
19 – Jub Jub’s – Reno NV
September:
23 – Female Metal Event – Eindhoven, Netherlands
It’s really a pleasure to have this Interview and thanks for your time, do you have a message for the fans and readers around the world?
Thank you for having me! Message: Keep the faith! live to rock!!!
Keith Clements/MHF Magazine
