Coming together from 3 corners of the globe, Ascending Dawn has arrived with their melodic prog-metal design fronted by Greek/Cypriot/British singer Marlain Angelides. A graduate of London’s Royal Academy of Music, previous vocalist of a top-charting Greek pop band, Hi-5, and background vocalist for world-touring acts, central figure, Angelides (vocals/songwriter in Ascending Dawn) brought her cosmopolitan experience from Greece by way of London to New York in 2013.
Check out “Inside the Silence” from Ascending Dawn below:
Girl Gang Music got to do an exclusive Q&A with Marlain Angelides from Ascending Dawn. Read it in full below…
GGM: Can you humble brag for me for a sec? Who are you? What do you do? Tell me all the things.
“Is bragging humble lol? As a half Brit, I learned to curtail my achievements…as a half Greek I learned to make the most of them. Therein, i became confused! SO here is a little blurb…I am a professional actor /singer / voice actor. I have been involved in musicals (including performing in the West End), Shakespeare, voice overs (I have dubbed for Reba McIntyre and Loreena McKennitt in Greek for Disney and have clients in VO which include United Nations, Airwick, BP, Citi, Pantone, Bloomberg plus many more) and I currently am the front-woman of the All Girls All Led Zeppelin band, Lez Zeppelin, as well as provide the wide range of vocals and melodies that drive the heavy yet melodic sound of Ascending Dawn. My life is confusing, and I have many homes.”
GGM: What does this song (or project) mean to you?
“Ascending Dawn is my baby. It is the work I proudly put out there without any qualms or regrets! I had many projects along the way including solo ones, but my best work came out in this one where I got to combine my best self with musicians I admire.”
GGM: What was the creative/production process behind the song?
‘Inside The Silence’ is a convoluted, complex and layered way of describing internal turmoil. The confusion that reigns, the guilt and the unknown feelings that take you over. Being female can be hard and misunderstood. A lot of the almost nonsensical use of words is deliberate. Because those varied feelings can make no sense. The video heavily features footage from a couple of short films in which I was an an actor.. and the mood was ideal for the tone of the song. Things break, fall, blend and transform, with minimal colour. ‘Inside The Silence’ is our most prog song, and the use of low end vocal with high harmonies was a way of showing both the dark and light side in its extremities. As with all our songs, I never wanted to leave hope out of the equation. So it is there; hidden, but there.
GGM: What’s something most people don’t know about you?
“I was really good at science and math at school and I have a BSc in Biochemistry with Management form Imperial College of Science Technology and Medicine. But that is also where I discovered performing arts…”
GGM: How do you think being a woman in music affected your career?
“I hadn’t really thought about it until recently, given the recent environment. I realised I considered it normal to juggle men’s egos and their sexual advances as all part of the routine of my life in music. I also realised that many things didn’t move forward because I was sometimes forced to make a choice and I always went with the one I could live with. I didnt really know what I was doing, it was all so jumbled in my head and the messages blurred, but I hope that by making the right choice for me and standing up, I at least made my mark on those who chose to use preying tactics. I hope that what is happening now will change this for women in all industries.”
GGM: What’s the most beautiful song on earth?
“Ode to the most difficult question to answer…Bohemian Rhapsody, probably.”
Ascending Dawn’s Girl Gang Music Picks
“When I finally discovered music I chose to listen to artists such as Ella Fitzgerald, Aretha Franklin, Annie Lennox, Stevie Nicks, Heart, Alanis Morisette, Loreena McKennitt, as well as a multitude of male artists. I feel like many of those first discoveries in female artists moulded my vocal choices and technique.”
Follow Ascending Dawn
https://www.facebook.com/ascendingdawnband/