TEMPERANCE released their latest instalment Hermitage – Daruma’s Eyes Pt 2 over a month ago and it’s understandably receiving high praise from fans and critics alike. Before the album release, Rock Out Stand Out’s Lotty Whittingham spoke to the band’s newest vocalist Kristin Starkey about her joining the band, the album, mental health and who would be in her dream opera.
You’ve recently joined the Temperance clan, how soon was this? I knew they were releasing a new album but didn’t think it was quite that soon.
It was even more soon than you think. I met Marco [Pastorino] a few years ago, we didn’t really keep in touch but we followed each other on social media and I post covers on my YouTube channel. He messaged me to ask if I would be interested in covering for this tour because we’re loosing Alessia [Scolletti]. This was in December 2022, I think they announced it in March and he asked if I can the tour. I was already going on tour with Twilight Force in the first two weeks of their tour, he asked if I could join them after that. I accepted, I thought he would ask someone else but he asked me. The very next day, I flew to their tour.
Two days after that tour had finished, he calls me to asked me if I wanted to join the band. I was very surprised as I didn’t know them that well and that was super nerve wracking. I asked if I could make the decision after the tour so it would give me time to get to know the band, I didn’t want to say yes for then to realise I didn’t get along with them as that would have been super weird. He said that was fine but the only problem was that we need to have the album done before you go on tour. So everything was written and I agreed to it; he had to change the vocal lines that were originally written for Alessia to fit my voice better so he had a lot of work to do. I got these with not so much time to spare and everything you hear on the album, I recorded in one session in my house in a few hours.
You have a very versatile vocal range. I was going to ask how you decide on what vocal style you want to use for each song, was it a case of singing it out and seeing what works?
I guess each voice provokes a certain sort of emotion I think. The operatic stuff, I do that more with Twilight Force than Temperance. Though I do think in the future Marco is going to write more operatic vocal tracks, there is some stuff on the new album but it’s not like with Twilight Force where I do backing vocals apart from on Twilight Horizon. It has a different feeling; when you sing operatic or more light head voice, it doesn’t give the same impact and I feel like when singing metal, you need to give it the Brittney Slayes, the Nora style. I want to sing that way when I am singing metal because that’s the most impactful to the listener but then you think about the lyrics and what they mean because I’m not just singing gritty hard stuff the whole time.
What was so hard is that I was the first person to record so I had no idea what the story was about or what I am singing about, I was just singing the line. There was one round Marco had me re-do, he gave me some suggestions on what to do. It was mainly around the emotion so he would advise to sing softer on a certain part and another part, it was to be more breathy. It was interesting and he gave me great vocal tracks on how to sing the stuff. He recorded everything first and he sang it in the way he wanted me to sing it so I mimicked that whilst putting my own spin on it.
Were those suggestions for different multiple songs or was it one song in particular?
It was a couple. I think for most of them it was fine, it was just a couple of songs that needed those revisions. That was one of the things that made me feel really good about Temperance; sometimes I work with people who want a million different takes and revisions. I would never send them something I wasn’t proud of; so take wise with Temperance, it was that he [Marco] was looking for a different emotion for the song and now in the context of the album, I don’t remember what was revised but everything pretty much fits, there are some things that I would have liked to have done a bit differently but for the most part, I am proud of everything I sent over.
I listened to the album and it’s fantastic. I noticed more symphonic elements in this one.
Yes and more progressive elements too. I sense a lot of Seventh Wonder, which is one of mine and Marco’s favourite bands. I got that vibe, for me this is my favourite iteration of Temperance. I followed Temperance before but this is more of my favourite genre.
There was one particular track I made a note of, it’s called Into The Void.
That’s my favourite track.
What came to mind for that was either if Kamelot wrote Ghost Love Score or if Ghost Love Score appeared in a horror film.
I get that vibe totally, that’s an interesting take. It’s one of my favourite songs on the album and I really fought for it to be a single, Marco said it was a bit too different from Temperance. I’m at least pushing for it to be performed live. I hate it when the singles are the best songs but my favourite songs aren’t the singles. As well as Into The Void, I also love Reborn as that has an epic chorus.
One of our readers wanted to know how you got Ayreon as a guest on the album.
I have no idea [laughs] You would have to ask Marco, I think Marco messaged him which is crazy. Ayreon is one of Marco’s favourite artists and Ayreon said yes to doing it which was shocking. I mean it’s great for us, we’re shocked that we got all these cool guests. Allyon [Alessandro Conti] is a great friend of both of ours, I think he also did his song in one take. Like Fabienne Erni and Laura Falun, it’s so cool we got all these guests. It felt so cool they wanted to be a part of the album.
On this album, what was the most challenging song to record?
Darkness Is Just A Drawing as there is a vocal line that goes right over my break; meaning vocal break and he wanted me to do grit throughout that. It was difficult as it hits a particular part of my voice that I need to think a lot about technique wise so it took a while to warm up in that place. I did twenty different takes of that line but once I got it I could get it. That was one of the hardest to record but everything else fit well and it was hard because I had to learn it and record it at the same time.
Reading your website, you started singing metal quite recently. What inspired you to start singing metal?
I’ve been a metal head my whole life and I never recorded metal. I’ve been singing metal forever but in classical and opera world, I had no outlet to do it. There’s also a stigma in the classical world that if you sing metal, you ruin your voice. During the pandemic, I lost all my jobs that I had coming up with opera and I thought ‘you know what? I am going to record metal covers’. I got a way better response than what I was expecting, I was so surprised. I got a lot of offers for work and to record. That’s how Marco found me, we knew each and then he heard my covers. Particularly my cover of Beast In Black’s Cry Out For A Hero; from that he decided that was the voice he wanted on the album and that was that. I been a metal head since I was 10 or 11 years old and I wanted to show the world I could do this as well.
What was the first metal album you bought or heard?
First album I bought was System Of A Down’s Toxicity but the album that changed my life and helped me realise my dream was Avenged Sevenfold’s Waking The Fallen. I saw them play in a bar in my hometown, I was thirteen and somehow I was allowed to go. Now I think about it, there is something serendipitous about that but I was at the front for that show and it was the show where I realised I needed to dedicate my life to music. I thank Avenged Sevenfold for my career, they were the catalyst for me pursuing music as a career. It’s so cool to see them huge now, they played with Metallica recently; it’s incredible. I still love them and look to them for inspiration for my career, so they are like my invisible mentor [laughs]
One of the things at Rock Out Stand Out we like to address is mental health, particularly keeping the conversation going. How does awareness in Sweden compare to of that in the States?
I have a love hate relationship with Sweden, I’ve been living there about four years and I am still mentally getting through it. I came from New York where for the most part, you could be seen for help much more easily and I have heard for example the NHS, there’s lots of problems and getting help is really difficult. Sweden is similar in that regard, I’ve been burnout and I have been trying to get in touch with someone in Sweden to talk to. That’s been very difficult and I don’t really know what else to do. It’s really complicated.
I feel like in the States you can go to a walk in doctor and they will direct you to someone, yes it will cost extra money but you will get that help. Depending on your insurance, it can be free as well. I am finding it quite difficult in Sweden to get some help, especially since there is a higher prevalence of depression because of the darkness. I really noticed that in the first few years, it was also COVID and the darkness didn’t help. I found myself having lots of low periods. I’m also extraverted and I feed off people’s energy. Very recently I managed to get in touch with someone to put me in touch with someone else only because I had an issue with my ear.
I think we all struggle, I am a very happy person but I have a lot of OCD problems including germophobia and a lot of anxiety. It’s been hard that I haven’t been able to get help.
I am happy I can maintain it and that I have great friends, I try to talk to them all the time. A lot of people don’t have the option to talk to their friends or hang out, since I started touring and working again, that’s helped a lot. So the difference is that whilst the USA may not be perfect, you can get help.
Is there anything you think we can do more of as loved ones so people feel comfortable reaching out when they are struggling?
I think tell your friends and family that you love them more often, I think we take that for granted. I notice when I visit my friends in the States who I haven’t seen for a long time, I see them differently. We always say we love you before we depart. You take for granted when you see your friends a lot so when your life changes and we’re in different parts of the world, so when you come together it’s important to say you love them and that you always will. I think it’s important to not take people for granted.
Is there anything you like to do to unwind?
It depends, I like to watch something on Netflix or go to a nice restaurant. On tour, going onto the bunk and scrolling through my phone, I mean I am extraverted but there are times I need to pull back. I don’t drink alcohol and not a partyer, it’s a little different for me as I don’t want to partake in the stupid stuff that could possibly happen. Temperance is amazing in that sense as they don’t drink apart from the odd beer but everyone is healthy, I feel very comfortable with them as I am very straight edged [laughs]
I had another question from a reader; would you rather fight fifty duck sized bears or one bear sized duck?
Probably the bear sized duck, even though ducks are pretty scary. I feel like duck sized bears are like baby bears, that’s way too much.
Which five singers would be in your ideal metal opera?
Olga Peretyatko, Denise Graves, Brittney Slayes, Philippe Jaroussky and Hansi Kirsch. It would be super random but it would be epic.
Which people would you take on a quest with you?
It depends on the quest; it would probably be the Fellowship Of The Ring. It would be all of them, I would trust them to get you where you need to be.
Do you have message for Temperance fans, our readers and your followers?
Thank you so much for your support, it’s been so overwhelming. I understand it’s hard to replace singers as it’s a nervous spot to be in, I have to say thank you welcoming me into this family and for all the support I have had for my YouTube over the years. I hope you keep following my journey.
Thank for you talking to Rock Out Stand Out today and best of luck with the album release.
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