BY Nick Balazs

Moscow, Russia-based symphonic band REVONTULET was one of the many talented acts to enter the ReverbNation contest to be featured on BraveWords recently that attracted nearly 2000 entries! The operatic, attention-grabbing voice of lead singer and writer Alexandra Revontulet were a standout and they are poised to become a force in the metal scene.

Their debut album, Hear Me, was released this past January by Arcus Records, but in the meantime the band unfortunately lost a couple members after the release, with Alexandra and drummer Sergey Gorshkov the lone members remaining. Revontulet are looking forward to making new music and finding the right replacements. Alexandra recently took some time to answer some questions pertaining to the band's background and the future.

Bravewords: How did the band form and what influenced you to play symphonic based metal?

Alexandra: “Well, I've been studying and writing my own music since I was a kid. I started listening to rock and metal (especially gothic and symphonic) when I was about 12 years old and I had dreamed to gather a band ever since. In 2008 I decided that the time has come and posted an ad on one of the most popular musical websites in Russia. That is how I found the very first line-up of the band. Though it has changed many times since then (even during the recording of Hear Me), and the only original members are Sergey Zorg and I.”

Bravewords: Are you a classically trained singer? When did you start singing and how did you develop your technique?

Alexandra: “I started taking classical singing lessons at the age of 16. My teacher is Emma Sarkisyan, a Russian opera singer, who performs in Novaya Opera and Bolshoi Theater. Also I went to musical college, but I left it after the first year, because I felt my rebel metal soul had been put to bounds there. Actually now I don't sing in a pure classical style, I like to add some elements of rock singing to my vocals.”

Bravewords: A good portion of the lyrics on Hear Me seem to deal with longing for a love or a relationship of sorts. How do you develop lyrics for the songs? Do you write music around the lyrics or lyrics around the music?

Alexandra: “Basically, only love, (life), and death are worth writing about. But I believe that the most important idea in every piece of art is veiled, and only the ones who seek it can reveal it. As to the writing process, it's very complicated, sometimes lyrics come first, sometimes music, of course its best when both are created at the same time.”

Bravewords: What do you think separates Revontulet from other bands?

Alexandra: “I guess we have a very specific melodic style, a composer's ‘handwriting’, along with an original sound and diverse orchestrations.”

Bravewords: What are your future plans? Touring? Already writing new music?

Alexandra: “As a matter of fact, we don't have any touring plans, because now the line-up is incomplete, but I already have started to work on new songs. So stay tuned!”

For more on Revontulet visit Facebook.