Both of your parents had careers in music while you were growing up and this undoubtly greatly influenced you. Do you think that if you didn't grow up in such a musically creative environment you would have still pursued singing?

Well it’s hard to say. I was blessed with my mom’s voice so I guess if they didn’t have the talent that they passed on to me, I may not have gone this far. I think I would have always had a love for singing, however, if I didn’t have a voice in which to do it properly, I most likely would have opted for something else like maybe writing a novel or possibly a cartoonist? But there again, I received the skill of drawing from my father. Ah, let’s face it... I want to do it ALL!


Is songwriting a solo effort on your part, or do you collaborate with other writers to create your lyrics?

Lyrics are solely done my me. What usually happens is Keith will play some ideas he has on guitar or even a bass riff and I come up with a melody and then apply existing lyrics that I have or I may write new ones to fit the song. It is very important to me that the right lyrics accompany the mood of the melody and song structure.

What are some of the key elements you need when collaborating with others on a song?

I think everyone has their own idea of what they need in order to collaborate on a song. Personally, I have found that I can collaborate with just about anyone who plays his or her instrument beautifully. I feed off what they play (if it grabs me) and the melodies start flowing in my mind. But, I think one needs to take the time to talk to the person, tell him/her what you like or dislike, where you want to go with the music, and especially the type of mood and what it represents to you. I, for one, like to use a lot of minor chords in my music and not everyone that collaborates with you would automatically use them. I don’t think anyone has the exact same vision at first, it’s like a new couple, you get to know each others likes and dislikes in time. I think of a musical bond differently than a friendship. A musical bond is like your musical soul mate, your friend is your friend, which is good in one way, but sometimes not so good when collaborating because one or the other will most likely start to slack and then nothing gets done. I take what I am doing very seriously and I expect any collaborator to feel the same enthusiasm.

What has been the best form of media you have found to promote your music?

Internet, Word of Mouth, Radio, Print Magazines in that order. Having a website is great, but if no one knows about it, not one will see it. So, what I started doing is promoting it myself by contacting other sites, radio, zines, and so forth. This lasted about 6 months and from then on word of mouth caught on and the tables turned and radio, magazines, and even venues started to contact me to ask for promo material, interviews, or to play in their venue. The power of the Internet is awesome, but you have to do a lot of leg work yourself to get the ball rolling.

What advice can you give to aspiring artists as far as self-promotion goes?

Well, like I mentioned above, “Lots of leg work”. Trust me, unless you have a boatload of money you can fork over to a big publicist, you need to do it all yourself. People are not going to magically come to your shows because they simply don’t know you exist. So, after you have your music ready, make a press kit, some post cards, a web site and start gigging to get your stage legs and to pay your dues. Meanwhile, plug yourself/your band it to anyone who will listen, but be wise, don’t plug your music to a country or pop radio station or zine if you are Goth, Darkwave, or Electronica band. Also, be nice! People are willing to help you and if they are interested they will write you back - if they don’t write back, you got your answer and just go forward... don’t bug people. Before doing a show, go out to your core audience and pass out some CD samplers or place post cards and flyers wherever you can (ask the bar or venue you want to put them in before doing so). What else can I say; it’s all about paying your dues and getting your name out there.

Your music seems to embody the styles of various genres (pop, rock, goth, etc). What type of music did you find yourself listening to most often growing up? How about now?

I’m was a big 80’s fan “new wave”, The Cure, The Furs, Adam Ant, Soft Cell, B-Movie and such. Now, David Bowie, A Perfect Circle, Tool, Smashing Pumpkins, still the Cure, there are so many.

Have you had any formal vocal training? Do you think it is imperative for singers to have formal vocal training?

I believe natural is the best way to go with any musical talent. I expect vocal teachers are good for some, but my preference is to leave things to nature and ones own rhythm - if it works, leave it alone. I haven’t had any training. I did purchase a couple of books on songwriting structure early on, but noticed that most of what it said, I was already doing so I just developed the more I wrote and continue to do so.

How long has your debut album Euphoria been out? Is it getting as much distribution as you would like?

Euphoria was released July 2001 - but wasn’t really promoted at that time. I was still at that stage of promoting myself as an artist at that time so it wasn’t as if there was this huge Euphoria record release party or anything like that. I was still trying to carve my way in the world of music at that time and little by little the CD became more and more popular and continues to do so. I just wish there was a better way for me to distribute the CD internationally, I have so many fans abroad that would love to get the CD in their own country, but that isn’t really possible a this time. Maybe in the future, you never know!

What was the process like putting Euphoria together? Did you have any financial backing or is it a complete DIY effort?

Financial backing would have been a lovely thing, but this was not the case for me. This was strictly DIY! But, let us not forget the friends and supporters who furnished their time and patience to put Euphoria together. First my manager, John, introduced me to producer Spyro Karagiannis. We recorded a few songs, which included “I’m Alive” and “Bring Me Down”. Then, Spyro and I wrote a song together “Without A Trace” but I needed some guitar tracks put down and that is when John introduced me to my current collaborator Keith Pires. After putting the tracks down, he started to jam a bit and just like that I was checking my lyric book and came up with a melody and next thing we new, we had “Find Another”. Writing together went so smoothly we didn’t even realize how quickly this was happening - all I know is that I’m thrilled it did. It’s amazing when you both have the same mind frame when writing a song. His playing is very silky, and it’s a comfortable process, which makes it easy for me to come up with melodies to compliment what he is playing and visa versa.

John has a recording studio and we have done most of the recording for Euphoria there. Basically, we would lay down track by track. Acoustic/electric/bass one day, drums, and whatever else… then my vocals, and finally any backing vocals I need for the song. Then, John mixes, mixes some more, mixes again, arranges, and then masters it. A long process and it requires much patience.

Do you have a regular group of musicians that accompany you on your live shows?

Well, since this is all quite new. We have been in the process of putting a band together, which is no easy job but I am happy to say is done and we begin rehearsals next week. Meanwhile, I have been performing special acoustic shows at various places like CBGB’s Gallery, C-Note, ACME Underground and such in NYC and Keith Pires accompanied me on acoustic and electric guitar. As for the new musicians coming on board, I am very confident we will be out playing very soon, these musicians are all great at their craft so I don’t estimate much downtime at all. Actually, I already have a gig tentatively set up in late June at CBGB’s “Alchemy” Gothic night - which all you locals MUST come to - and another at ACME Underground. I’ll let you know when I confirm with them.

If people come away with one thing after listening to your music, what do you want it to be?

Strength and Hope. I can’t really write about sunshine, rainbows, and fluff. I’m more of a realist and view the world as it is, which is not perfect. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not one of those people that think everything is doomed (my mom thinks so) and I know there is happiness out there, but sometimes sadness and anger outweighs that happiness for some. My songs are about personal experience and what I have done about them as well as observing other’s pain. I just try to find a solution to get out of an ugly place and find that serenity again and hope that some lyrics just might help someone get there.

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Thanks to Sabrina for taking the time out to do this interview.

(Interview conducted by Jessica O.)