‘’Be authentic to who you are’’

    Kobra Paige - Kobra and the Lotus

    Back in May I submitted some questions to Kobra about the new album Prevail I, tour life and other details we thought you might find interesting. After some months of delays (because Kobra and the Lotus were on tour a lot) we got the answers back and thought we should share them with everybody!

     

    First I asked how the band is after the release of Prevail I and being on tour so much. ‘’The band’s moral is very high right now. We have been very fortunate to release our most well received album to date and the first tour of the year was wonderful. Xandria and Once Human are great people and great musicians. It was an absolute pleasure to be on the road together. So much so, we are doing the second half of a North American tour this October again in direct support of Xandria! This time around we will be joined by ‘September Mourning’. We look forward to new friends and adventures!’’ Although the band seems to have been all over the world, there are still some countries they haven’t performed in. ‘’We absolutely want to tour Japan, South America, Mexico, and Australia. This fall we will be playing in Russia for the first time….first are always welcomed experiences and are very exciting.’’

    I asked what Kobra’s favorite song to play live is, ‘’That is an impossible question to answer but right now I’m having a ton of fun playing ‘Hell On Earth’ off the new album. The guitars are exciting and the energy is ferocious, we have a great time playing together.’’ The new headlining set list contain most of ‘Prevail I’ as well as favorites from ‘High Priestess’ and the self-titled. The festivals contain a healthy balance of old and new. Kobra does have a routine before every show, ‘’I warm up my voice a couple hours before the show so that there is time for the larynx to relax back down into place before performing. I always include minimum of 15 minutes of cardio that day to open up the lungs.’’

    Getting back to Prevail I, ‘’This name was picked by our bass player Brad Kennedy and it couldn’t have been a better choice! For us ‘Prevail’ represents true grit and perseverance through even the toughest of challenges. It’s strength and hope all wrapped into one and this music is meant to empower people.’’ Prevail II is set to be released later in 2017. ‘’‘Prevail II’ was initially supposed to be released alongside ‘Prevail I’ to prove an ambitious statement of how much we don’t want to give up. These albums speak of the prevailing and pushing through, something we want to encourage in everybody! ‘’

     

    The sound on Prevail I is different from the previous albums. Kobra said it was both a wanted change and a natural evolution of the band’s sound. ‘’We have all grown as musicians and individuals over the years which means our taste has also shifted. There was still a need for an added freshness within our music that separated us more as our own entity. There also was a goal for this music to be enjoyable for more people. We want the messages to carry farther than in the did in the past. Doing a double album provided a great platform for us to finally express the band’s musical virtuosity.’’


    One of the songs of Prevail I, ‘’You Don’t Know’’ has touched so many people because it talks about situations that are very relatable. ‘’You Don’t Know’ is an anthem for the human being. No person can ever know the history and reasons that shape a person. We are such a consciously and subconsciously judgmental species in a cruel way. ‘You Don’t know’ is written to be a very clear, straightforward, relatable message to people. No one knows what it’s like to be another person and many of us will experience feelings of frustration from feeling misunderstood during our lifetime, probably several times. As you said, when this song came out, people began writing about how they personally related to it. These songs are intentionally supposed to expose and provoke that. By writing their comments and seeing what other’s have written, it exposes the extent of people’s relatability to each other and perhaps this will bring more awareness.’’

     

    Of course we had to ask about the give-away with the beautiful guitar with KATL logo and Prevail I artwork too. ‘’This was actually the idea of our manager! We are a small band but we really appreciate all that our supporters do for us because without them we really can’t do what we do!! The guitar was a Caparison C2 Series Angelus from Japan. Our guitarist Jasio Kulakowski is proudly endorsed by Caparison and they truly make beautiful guitars.’’

    We went back to a bit more personal questions. What is the coolest gift Kobra has ever gotten from a fan? ‘’Welllll, every gift is cool haha because it came from the person with good intentions. We have seen some very cool things where the effort is mind blowing. We have a very dedicated couple from the USA that fly to a couple of our shows every year and hand paint a giant banner for each and every album art we release. I have received an unbelievably detailed knit doll from a woman in the Netherlands!’’

     

    For many people music is a form of therapy, something that gives them strength to move on through. ‘’I believe music does have the capability to have that impact. It can be that friend and support when there is nothing else for us but loneliness. It depends on the messengers behind the music though and what the purpose is in terms of what that music is trying to invoke. There is a lot of music out there that can influence people in different ways whether this be sexuality, for example, in some pop music or anger/aggression in others. For example, if I’m trying to drive fast then you can be sure I’m listening to Megadeth. There really is something for everything.’’

    One of the last questions we asked is what inspires Kobra to pursue a career in music. ‘’I can’t say the goal was to be a rockstar haha but I did want to pursue a career in music that was authentic to myself and provided a platform for lifting people’s spirits up. The reason I picked metal was ‘Judas Priest’. My father took me to a concert in high school and I saw a place for my voice.’’ She is inspired everyday her bandmates and anyone chasing their dream. ‘’It takes serious balls to live a life of passion and devote yourself to it. I commend everyone in my industry for going for it because it’s not easy.’’

    Do you have any kind of advice for our readers?

    ‘’Depends what they want advice for! I’m still a human trying to navigate my way through this life the best I can. All I can suggest is try your best to live a life of good intentions and passion. Be authentic to who you are.’’

     

     

    Questions by Andrea

    Edit/story by Tamar

    12-8-2017