Interview | Edge Of Paradise singer Margarita Monet speaks

The Impact Of Artificial Intelligence

A while ago I did an interview with the talented singer, musician, artist Margarita Monet of American rock band Edge Of Paradise. Their latest album is called ‘Prophecy’ and is all about Artificial Intelligence or AI. After the interview I had the idea to work on the article with a little help of an AI program to see if it would come out different compared to normal. Also because the role of AI is becoming bigger and bigger, to the point were it can totally take over. Well, the proof is in the pudding so here we go.

THE START OF EDGE OF PARADISE

Margarita, Edge Of Paradise started in 2011 by you and guitarist Dave Bates. What brought you two together?

,,Dave had a project before me with Robin McAuley, Gregg Bissonette and Tony Franklin. [the project was called Bleed,-RW] At one point everybody went on tour with other people. So Dave wanted to create something that he could dedicate everything to. I come from a completely different background, but I also wanted to create something of my own. That’s where we matched. It took us some time to figure out what kind of sound we were going for. But we had the passion that we wanted to give everything and take it as far as we could. So that brought us together.’’

,,I think that the biggest danger is to really lose our human spirit’’ -Margarita Monet

‘Prophecy’ is the sixth album. Do you see ‘Prophecy’ as a warning to the world?

,,Maybe in a way. I want it to be both a thought provoking warning and also very inspiring and empowering. I started talking about this with our album ‘Universe’ in 2019. Just the idea of what it would be like if we were to really merge it with artificial intelligence.

These days, it’s such a big part of everybody’s daily life. But I feel the warning aspect of it since I see how it can be discouraging, especially to artists. And if we rely too much on technology, then we’re not evolving spiritually and intellectually, we don’t ask each other questions anymore.

My biggest fear is to lose the inspiration and will to keep creating because with the press of a button, you can make so much. So I think that the biggest danger is to really lose our human spirit and that fire to want to evolve and interact and create.’’

SUPER POWER

Technical developments are going so fast. Is it even possible for humans to still understand it?

,,Well, I don’t know if it’s understandable, but I think what’s going to be important, like on the album, the title track ,,Prophecy’’ merges our heart and mind. I think that’s our super power. We do have the instinct, we have the feeling we have, you know, our kind of human soul, whatever you want to call it, behind our intellect. Right now, artificial intelligence just draws upon what’s already there.

Humans are able to create something out of nothing. So I think that’s a really important thing to remember. I don’t know what it’s like down the line because it evolves so fast and it is not so intelligent. So I guess we’ll have to wait and see.’’

Artificial intelligence is learning and the only thing they don’t have at the moment is emotion, or feelings. But because they’re learning so fast, that will only be a matter of time.

,,Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.’’

What will the place of humans be at that point?

,,Well, I mean, maybe it’s going to be like another race and we just have to find a way to coexist. So it will become an interesting world, won’t it.’’

Will we be of any use then?

,,I think that’s up to us to decide. It’s really up to us. Yeah.’’

PROPHECY – THE LATEST ALBUM

How long did it take you to work on this concept, this whole idea of ‘Prophecy’?

,,It started a long time ago. I’ve always had an interest in this and my dad is a scientist, so I always had a very inquisitive mind. It really started since 2018 or 2019, the release of ‘Universe’. Because that’s where we really got on the path to our music evolving into what it is today. I always painted the very grand scenarios and songs, but all the songs are still deeply personal. They’re just set in these larger than life scenarios. With each album, for example, ‘The Unknown’, we have a digital paradise. I painted the picture that maybe our paradise is through this digital existence. We’re going to find our forever, you know, but I left it up to the listener to decide how they feel about it.

With ‘Hologram’, I painted a bunch of different stories with implications, but still, it’s up to the listener. ‘Prophecy’ is the first time where I take a stance and really talk about my views and how I feel about it. My fight for humanity, to some degree you know, take my hand, we are the defiance. So, I am kind of taking a stance for the first time and just talking about it.’’

SWITCHING LABELS

Which song started this album? What was the first completed song that gave direction to this album?

,,Well, that has to be ,,Rogue (Aim For The Kill)’’ because we were going through a bit of a rough time switching labels. We are very happy to be on Napalm Records, but after we fulfilled our contract with Frontiers, we had a moment to figure out what’s next. We had some things happening. It was like we either give up or we go full force. So, ,,Rogue’’ was that song that kind of ignited it.

I have the graphic novel and it follows the story of the leader of the faceless civilisation, which kind of mirrors what we’re going through. They are the most advanced civilisation in the universe emerging with AI and look what happened. So anyway, he went rogue and now he stands with humanity. There’s a lot that goes into the story. It’s  a very philosophical story there, but yeah, that song is the foundation of the album. We solidified our position with Napalm, went on tour, wrote the rest of the album and then toured again.’’

THE MISSING SONG

So you had hardly any time to record the album?

,,Right, that was a challenge this time.’’

Last year you released the last song of the previous album, shortly after that the first song of the new album. So there was no rest, no rest at all?

,,No rest for the wicked, they say.’’

Were you still working on ‘Prophecy’ at that time or was it already finished?

,,We were still working on it the last minute before we went on tour. I always tell this story because it’s just so funny to me. We had three days before we were leaving on the European tour with Symphony X and we were in the studio counting all the songs and there were nine and every single one of us was convinced we had 10 songs. So, maybe we switched realities at that point, but we only had nine.

Our producer Mike Plotnikoff was like: just go home and write one on the piano. That’s how the song ,,Hear Me’’ came about because we never had a song that’s just me and the piano. It was kind of a happy accident. My roots are in classical music and I played the piano my whole life, so, it was a cool way for me to bring it together and it’s like my soul is on the song right there.’’

The piano ballad is a great song and in a way it’s a resting point because the rest of the album is pretty overwhelming musically as well as busy arrangements and this is very quiet, very subtle in a way.

,,Yeah, I like that because I’ve always been drawn to music or just when you’re listening to the album. It’s dynamic and it takes you on the journey. There are going to be moments where it’s very intense, then very mellow, then inspiring, then very nice. That means it’s a journey.’’

,, I think it’s important to stay true to what you believe in, how it fulfils you.’’ – Margarita Monet

You’ve never been out of the spotlight with the previous album and the new album right away, the first song of the new album right after that. Is it necessary nowadays to stay in the spotlight because everything is going so fast?

,,Yeah, well, I think part of it was just our situation with the labels because when you’re with a new one, it’s important to release new material. But you are right, it’s kind of overwhelming because everything is just release, release, release. And for me, it’s still very important that it’s quality, it’s epic. But sometimes, people look more at videos of just someone at home doing whatever. And then we really go out of our way to film these massive videos. So, sometimes you think about it.

But at the core, you have to remember what’s important to you. For me, it’s very fulfilling to create these worlds that I imagine in my head. And it’s very cool to see the creation and share it with the world. And no matter what’s happening in the world, there’s always going to be something, there’s always going to be trends. I think it’s important to stay true to what you believe in, how it fulfils you. We do this because we really love to do this. So, it’s important to remember.’’

You don’t feel any pressure to come up with something new very fast. You just take your time?

,,I do feel pressure, but I just have to tell myself I’m going to do it when I have inspiration, when I want to. Yeah, otherwise I think I would drive myself insane.’’

Do you need a special mindset when you sit down and write new songs? Can you write on tour, for instance? Or do you need to sit quiet in a room and start thinking?

,,Yeah, I do. I have a keyboard on which I write everything. On tour it’s so busy all the time and there is always something to do to keep everything running smoothly, so I can’t write on tour at all. I do have to kind of sit down and think about what’s going to be next, I would say.’’

DIFFERENT INTERESTS

You’re very busy in different sorts of arts, like painting, writing, singing, playing the piano, all these different things. Could you do without one of them? Or do you need all of this to really function the way you do?

,,Yeah, I think I do. I never thought I would be in a band or a rock band. So I come from a lot of different backgrounds. I love theatre, love playing the piano, love painting. I love doing all of that. So it’s a way for me where I can really combine everything that fulfils me. So I like music videos, really love creating that, you know, the art, the story. That’s another thing I can probably write on tour, like I’m thinking about writing the next graphic novel on tour. That’s possible.’’

The graphic novel that comes with this album as well. Do you come up with the idea for that novel first or for the album?

,,Well, so I have it right here. This is a graphic novel for a previous album, ‘Hologram’, but it kind of ends on a cliffhanger where this album picks up. It’s illustrated. But I do that when I make the songs, I kind of think about the story behind it. And this gives me a chance to really go deeper into the story and how it relates to the next song, because I didn’t do it on purpose.

Somehow, with every album, each song always inspired the next. And in my head, the story kept continuing. That’s what made me write this in the first place. I really want a more in-depth view about what’s behind the songs. And then it came together in this concept of a story. So yeah, the one for the ‘Prophecy’ album, I’m going to write and it’s going to come out probably in the summer.’’

So you need to get everything done connected with this album, before you can start thinking about another thing?

,,Yeah. Yeah.’’

EDGE OF PARADISE HAS NO BOUNDARIES

Edge of Paradise is industrial meets metal meets symphonic meets hard rock even meets dance. There are no limitations or no boundaries musically for the band?

,,I think so. Because when we first started, I had no idea about anything. So I just wanted to do what I liked, what I thought sounded cool. We always had a mindset that we’re just going to do what we feel is good and merger our styles like Dave, he’s more a classic metal rock guy. Now David [Ruiz, RW], who is our newest member who contributed a lot to this album, because he brought in eight string guitars and some other elements, is a metal guy, but he also loves fusion and different styles. So I think it’s just about doing what we love and figuring out how to make it all compliment each other. I think that’s the key; to make sure that we don’t go too crazy.’’

Who has the general vision about music?

,,If you don’t want something to happen, it simply doesn’t happen. Just secretly delete it, haha. No, we’re all very collaborative so no clashes.’’

CINEMATIC ROCK

Originally you’re from Europe. Do you bring something into the music that’s typical European, you think, or did you move to America at such a young age that there are hardly any European influences?

,,I was born in Russia and grew up in Moscow. And I think that really sets the culture and what I love. I think it came from there because I was immersed in it from such an early age.

My mom would take me to every show, every ballet, every museum. So that ingrained into me. And then I also played classical music for so long, I think subconsciously, it’s always ingrained in me. It’s something that I really cherish because I have very good memories. It’s a cool thing to experience a lot of creative parts of humanity at a really early age.’’

Edge of Paradise is called a cinematic rock band. Visuals are very important. It’s about paintings and the graphic novels as well. The videos are very interesting. How important is it for Edge of Paradise to be so multimedia?

,,For me, it’s very important just because we already went into this direction and I really love that. I always wanted to be able to bring forth everything I love about music, film, art and everything. Plus I’ve always loved those epic sounding songs that really make you feel something and teleports you somewhere else. So, to me, it just makes sense that the visuals match that. It’s very important to me how everything is presented on stage. Through the art, through the videos, that everything works together because it’s all one thing. It’s to be fully immersive. It’s like building a world. You’re not going to go to a starless planet and wear, you know, sneakers or jeans. So, it’s the whole package. Yeah.’’

Is the fun moment the first time you play all these songs live or is it nerve-wrecking?

,,Oh, my God. It’s all at the same time. It’s fun but also nerve-wrecking and hoping nothing blows up, you know. There’s so much with technology these days, we rely one. I always think, okay, I hope something doesn’t get unplugged or whatever.’’

Is it possible for you to perform these songs acoustic if the worst thing happens? No electricity, for instance?

,,Yes, it is possible and it happened to us. I don’t know which tour it was, but something went out and it was just us. And then one of the guitars went out as well. So it was mainly bass, drums, one guitar and me. And yeah, nobody even noticed. Some people tell us that there is raw energy when we play these songs live. So it kind of works. When you listen to the album, there are many keyboards layers. But you strip all that away. It’s very important to me that I can sing the song and there are some beats and some chords, but the core, the heart of the song is there.’’

EACH SONG CAN STAND ON ITS OWN

Is there a song that stands out on ‘Prophecy’?

,,You need to listen to the whole album and there’s not one song that stands out. One is as good as the other. I am the wrong person to ask that. It means a lot to me. But I think each song can stand on its own. If people want to experience it as I imagined, then yeah, the full album, of course, would be great. But I don’t know, I really love the song ,,Falling Light’’. That one, for me, kind of encompasses everything as a band for us, both musically and lyrically.

,,The Other Side of Fear’’ is a very fun song. It really pumps you up. And then ,,Hear Me’’. I feel like every song is a little different from the others. People have different favourite songs and so far, every song on the album has been someone’s favourite, which is very cool for me. There’s something for everyone, I guess.’’

DOING EVERYTHING BACKWARDS

Is there a song on the album that was the most difficult to write or record?

,,You know, I can’t pick one, because with each one I get really excited when the song starts. So I’m like, go in and okay, we have a song, super excited. We do have challenges sometimes to figure out the right guitar parts and just to make sure everything works together. With ,,Hear Me’’, we had two days to make everything work. So there was some pressure and it was a challenge, but it’s rewarding at the end.’’

The writing process, is it a band thing or is it mainly you?

,,Usually I start the song, and I have it all laid out. David contributed a lot of cool riffs as did Dave, and that inspires. Thematically, because David knows our themes now, he has some ideas too. I usually write the song on the keyboard and then I go to the studio and lay down the final vocals. So we do everything backwards. We match the vocals and the bass with some rough guitars. And then we start rebuilding it. That’s a challenge sometimes, because it’s all set. Sometimes we change parts a little and I have to shift the vocals. But usually we just rebuild it from the ground up, but backwards. In a way, it’s adding things instead of taking away things.’’