Hammer spoke to fast rising female fronted Canadian metal crew, Kobra And The Lotus’ very fine singer Brittany Paige.

http://www.metalhammer.co.uk/news/kobra-and-the-lotus-north-america-is-b...

Classical singers have often fronted metal bands in Europe but it never seemed to catch on in North America: why do you think that is?
Brittany Paige: “Maybe since metal has always been an extremely male dominated genre, people expect to see a certain iconography representing the music. North American audiences may also bias down female fronted metal because they don’t see females fitting the aggressive model of the genre. It seems Europe is open to all kinds of metal expression and has a deep appreciation of the artistry in every form of metal as female fronts are a strong part of this. Europe also embraces classical music much more vigorously than North America, so it makes sense they have a wider and deeper container for Metal. Apocalyptica is one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen in metal!”

Check out the band here

And what was your first exposure to classical singers fronting metal bands?
Brittany Paige: “My first exposure was probably ‘Powerslave’ in high school. I’d also commend ‘Painkiller’ and I thought if there was ever any ‘one’ way to describe heavy metal, it would be to play ‘Night Crawler’.”

How come Canada has become the coolest country for heavy music in the last 5 years? Cancer Bats, Protest The Hero, Alexisonfire, Billy Talent, Mastery, 3 Inches Of Blood etc.
Brittany Paige: “I think its straight up because Canadians love to rock. Period. Canadians have been rockers since the beginning of time. Even though Canada is not densely populated there’s a ton of music and musicians and a large alternative scene. People aren’t followers here. We aren’t afraid to try because we are musical in our culture and tolerant to all people. There is an openness to try and appreciate it all. Canada is a land of opportunity. But seriously… we are a nation of straight up rockers!”