Edge of Paradise has been working hard to make a name for themselves in the scene for over a decade now. They’ve toured with some big names, utilized unique strategies with art and merch, and recently made the jump to Napalm Records for their latest album Prophecy. Continuing their unique industrial/electronic approach to metal, it is poised to give them their next big push. We spoke with vocalist Margarita Monet, who discussed all of those topics above with us, as well as a look back at Immortal Waltz, creating art and graphic novels, and even some thoughts for her ideal headlining tour set designs.
Dead Rhetoric: What were your goals in writing Prophecy? Were there any ideas that you were eager to try or things you specifically wanted to avoid?
Margarita Monet: From the past albums, I actually had the story already going, so I was actually pretty excited to make this one because I released the graphic novel for the last album, Hologram. It ended on a cliffhanger so I had to continue it. What’s funny is that I have been thinking about this because I have been talking about the album a lot lately. I realized that with Universe, which we released in 2019, we started talking about artificial intelligence and putting the world into these futuristic settings. It was kind of there, but it’s not like how everyone is talking about AI now. It’s such a big part of our lives now and it’s just going to keep expanding.
So it’s kind of interesting to see how it mirrored what was going on in real life. We have Universe, and then The Unknown, we have the song “Digital Paradise,” where we brought up the idea of living forever through digital existence. I left it up to the listener to decide whether it’s good or bad. Then with Hologram, we painted all of these implications about what could go wrong, but still, the technology could be so cool. In Prophecy, I kind of take a stance that’s the ultimate standoff between consciousness and artificial intelligence, which is kind of where we are right now.
Dead Rhetoric: As you have seen your songwriting come to light, do you ever pull any ideas from where we are at now, as a society?
Monet: I think just living in the world and experiencing and going through stuff, it kind of seeps through the music. I think I’ve always been a bit removed from reality. I love to really just make songs and create my own world. But still, I’m here so I am experiencing. I’m creating another version of myself, for people to be a part of if they would like. I think naturally, I do draw inspiration from what is going on and how I feel about it, but in my head, I’m creating this thing. Consciously, I’m not talking about things because they are going on right now, I have my own storyline going.
Dead Rhetoric: This far into the band’s history, what do you feel are the elements that make up the sound of Edge of Paradise?
Monet: I think the cinematic elements, the songs start with strings and keyboards, so they sound a lot more cinematic. Then we start adding guitars and bass and drums and the rock/metal elements. I think it’s the merger of the two. When we started the band and I met Dave [Bates], it took a number of years to figure out how we could merge our backgrounds. I am from a classical world, he’s from a metal world. It took a lot of time to really evolve our collaboration. Over the years, the music just evolved naturally. On this album, we have a new member, who played an 8-string guitar which added a lot of dimension to our sound. I would say that what it feels like is a mix of cinematic and the dynamic elements in the music. It takes you on a ride. It’s very epic, but then it’s soft, then it goes like crazy. It’s an experience!
Dead Rhetoric: That’s kind of what you want nowadays. You can’t just make music, you have to make it something more…
Monet: I have always liked that. I have always radiated to that. I didn’t really listen to much rock, as I wasn’t exposed to it. But I heard an orchestra do a rendition of Led Zeppelin’s “Kashmir,” and it was so epic. It was a huge orchestra doing all of those melodies and riffs, and I loved it. I love music that really makes you feel and experience something. One of my favorite soundtracks is from Requiem from a Dream. There’s such a simple melody but it just tears your heart out. That’s what I gravitate towards and the music that I would like to make.
Dead Rhetoric: You mentioned him already, but could you discuss your continued collaboration with Dave Bates over the years with the band?
Monet: I think it’s just making music. What I can say is that every time we have to make an album, we never say, “we need to make it sound like this.” I think we had to follow where the ideas were leading us, then I started exploring more sounds on the keyboard and going towards putting more of those cinematic, industrial, and electronic elements in just because it sounded cool. So I explored that aspect more, and the music naturally evolved. We have a really good system now. We know how to work together. Before, we would take it more personally. Like, “your guitar solo sucks,” and we would argue. But I think it comes from creating a lot together.
Dead Rhetoric: Your outfits for the videos have had a very futuristic vibe. What sort of considerations do you give to clothing when it comes to videos and stage. Does that aesthetic have an importance to you?
Monet: For me, yes, because first off I really love any chance I get to play dress up. I like that, and I have always wanted to not just be larger than life in anything, but just kind of step outside of reality in whatever I am doing. For me, it’s dressing up a bit extra for the stage that fits the music. It seems natural to me and it’s exciting to figure out what I can wear. Some outfits I create myself or customize them, or I find other really cool brands/designers that make unique clothes. To me, the band isn’t just music. It’s everything. The art, the videos, the live shows, the outfits, I think it all goes together and creates a whole world. For example, in Star Wars, you have to wear what those people wear on that planet, because what else are you going to do [laughs].
Dead Rhetoric: You’ve got journals this time around as a merch item, as well as a statue. Edge of Paradise has always had outside the box ideas when it comes to merch. What have you found to be some of your best ideas, in terms of fan-directed merch?
Monet: I really like to create with my hands. I think any chance I get to be creative, I try to take it. So it started with Universe, when we started to do limited edition packages. I made these boxes. Someone gave me…if you know Fabio, the model from the ‘80s, he was at a show and all of a sudden he was like, “I bought a bunch of gold coins, and I don’t need the cases anymore,” so he gave me a bunch of really cool wooden boxes. Of course without the gold coins. So I painted the top and then put the cd inside with some necklaces and whatever else I could stuff in there. People loved it because it was something unique. That’s how I started to incorporate more art. I started paintings for each song, I released an art book, and it started to go into that direction. I think anything with art, people really like. I tried to just evolve and incorporate art but also change it up a bit.
For me, lyrics are so important and I put so much thought into every word, so if I can make something that has lyrics in it, that will make people read into them a little more. That was the idea with the journal. Also, I want to inspire people to write more. We are so reliant on technology. It feels really good to just pick up a pen and write. I gravitate towards anything that looks ancient [shows journal]. The pages are so thick. It’s broken in half. The first half is all of the lyrics to the songs, and the second half is for the people to write their own stuff. I put different notes for people that might inspire them throughout. It’s interesting.
Dead Rhetoric: It’s a really cool idea, and I had no clue it was that big! You don’t see that level of connection to the music and merch everyday. It’s something that you have been able to really do a nice job with. Speaking of that connection, where did the idea come from to do the graphic novel?
Monet: I wanted to expand more to the story. I’ve always been interested in science and the futuristic elements of things. I feel like these days we are on the brink of science fiction almost. With the story, I wanted to almost write a possible reality, years into the future and just dive deeper into each song. The way it’s structured in the graphic novel is that each chapter is a song from Hologram. When I make songs, I have such a deep storyline inside my head. With the lyrics, you can only say so much. So I wanted to write a story that really tells people what goes on and the concept behind it. The graphic novel story itself is sci fi, it’s not like I’m telling my personal life story. But within the chapters, it’s inspired…people could get hints about what I went through or what I think, all of that stuff. It has a lot of me in it.
Dead Rhetoric: So there is another graphic novel that has a pre-order for April. Are you going to continue along with graphic novels as you write music?
Monet: I really want to! I love the story I have in my head. I think on tour, I’m going to write, or hopefully try to. I want to keep the story going. I’m excited. This album, honestly, I still can’t believe that we finished it and it’s coming out. I’m still in the mindset that we have to finish the album [laughs]. We were so rushed with everything that was happening, we made the transition between labels and we are super happy to be on Napalm now. But we had the tours and we had to make a record, and then more tours and videos.
Dead Rhetoric: The last album just came out in 2023…
Monet: Yeah, that’s true. It’s partly due to the label switch. We have always tried to release albums consistently, but this time we nudged more by having a new home. But it’s good. I’m glad that we have a reason to keep pushing. I think we kind of thrive on that, honestly. The challenge and the obstacles.
Dead Rhetoric: So you have the graphic novels. Would it be a passion project or something to put it into another form of media, like anime or movies or something like that? To go to the next step with it?
Monet: I would love that! It would be really cool. I have a lot of vision and dreams. It’s really important to me that all of our videos have that cinematic element to them. I want to keep expanding and keep growing the band so that we could go into different media.
Dead Rhetoric: Discuss your creativity in terms of art. A lot of it is interconnected with the art. Do you find it to be an extension of songwriting/lyricwriting?
Monet: Definitely. I think it helps me write songs when I am working on them. I have always been more visual. I imagine these scenarios and worlds and colors and stories. It helps me to grow the song into what it becomes. For me, everything infects each other in the process. I get really excited when we make a song, and think about how we would make a video for it or the art for it. I get pretty wired about it!
Dead Rhetoric: Have you ever tried it the other way, where you make a drawing and write a song from it?
Monet: Not yet, but that’s a good idea. I’ll try that next.
Dead Rhetoric: You have been on a number of bigger tours in more recent years and will be back out on the road again soon with Delain and Xandria. What have you learned from continuing to tour at this level?
Monet: It’s been very inspiring to tour with bands like that. We toured with Amaranthe and Dragonforce. When we started Amaranthe was already on the forefront, sort of paving the way that it was possible for me to make the band into what I wanted it to. It’s very inspiring to now share stages with those bands.
Also, Symphony X. That was the first metal band that I heard, back when I was in college. I played piano, and Symphony X has those crazy keyboard solos. I’ve never heard anything like them. I was obsessed with that stuff! I remember taking walks and listening to Symphony X and wondering what it would be like to tour with them. It was a full circle moment to tour with them. I told them it was all their fault that we are doing this [laughs]. It is inspiring that we are in the same world now. Music makes me feel so good, because it’s a bridge between people. No matter where you are in the world, it connects us. I think it’s very important, music and art, it helps us evolve as humans. We express ourselves, and I think it should be nurtured more with kids, especially these days. Kids rely so much on technology.
Dead Rhetoric: Immortal Waltz turns 10 this year. What do you recall about that point in the band’s life?
Monet: That was the very beginning. We are such a different band now. We got to work with Michael Wagner on that album. He was so kind to us. We went to his studio in Nashville. He worked with Metallica and all of those big ‘80s bands. There was so much inspiration. I never really saw anyone love what they do as much as he does. Working with him and seeing him in that environment, where he was so excited about making noise. He would always say, “We are going to make noise today.” It was very inspiring and it really solidified with me that this was what I wanted to do.
I kind of fell into it meeting Dave, I never thought I would do a band at all. I was just trying to find my way at that point, but working with him and putting out a full album like that…with Mask, our very first album. I didn’t write any of the songs, I just sang on it. So Immortal Waltz was the first cd that Dave and I started working together on. It really solidified with me that I wanted to do this and inspired me to get on this journey. When I think back it just makes me smile. It was the very beginning.
Dead Rhetoric: You’ve done a lot of support tours, what’s your ideal visuals for an Edge of Paradise headline show? If no one was stopping you, financially, what would you want to do?
Monet: We recently got some LED screens so that a lot of the visuals that we have, so we can bring them on stage. But it’s nothing compared to what I want to do. I want to create an aesthetic on stage, creating the world I describe on stage.
For example, in the graphic novel we go through so many worlds, basically. Some are very volatile and there are a lot of colors like red crimson skies and jagged mountain horizons. I want to recreate that on stage. As the set progresses, going to this different planet where it’s like blue crystals and shifting sunsets. That could be accomplished with set designs and the LED screens. We actually use a lot of that in our music videos. It’s not that impossible to bring onto the stage, so it’s definitely in my vision. I would also love to put a grand piano on there, as it descends [laughs].
Dead Rhetoric: I know you sell a lot of your art. How long does it take you to come up with an idea, draw it, and go from there?
Monet: Each piece is different, sometimes I make it pretty fast. If I already have an idea in my head, I can make it in a day or two. If I am making something from scratch, maybe I start with the background, and then think about what might be the focal point. The next day I start doing details, which could take up to a week. Sometimes people commission something, they want me to draw something specific. I have more direction then.
I’ll show you my biggest canvas so far. We are actually doing a giveaway [shows canvas]. We are giving it away on March 6 [enter by PRE-ORDERING the album]. This was inspired by the whole album. It has a lot of elements from things I think about when I make the songs. This has a DNA strand and it kind of has this tree of life look, and the artificial intelligence elements, and AI cyberhumans.I have a lot things going on inside my head. It’s pretty heavy!
Dead Rhetoric: It looks really big! Do you find something like this helps with the album promotion? I know you’ve done things like this in the past too.
Monet: I think it does, maybe it encourages people to check it out if they want to win something. I think these days, it’s hard because there is so much going on at the same time. A lot of people rely on digital media. For me, it’s a way to bring people back to the physical. I find so much value in having something physical. Having a piece of that world in your house. For me, it’s a way to keep offering that physical aspect of art. That’s important for me, I really love it and want people to have it as well. Everyone can have it on your phone and look at it, but it’s a different experience to have a thing that’s physical.
Dead Rhetoric: What are your plans once you finish the Xandria/Delain tour?
Monet: I think we are going to go back to Europe in the summer or fall. I think we are going to Mexico for the first time in July. I really want to reach as many parts of the world as we can. I think this year will be a lot of touring, more videos, and then another graphic novel. It’s going to be a lot of expanding. A lot of playing music live and doing what we are doing!