Photo courtesy White Empress
Making Halloween plans? Then why not check out local metal group White Empress, who dropped their new album, Rise of the Empress, on Sept. 30 and will be playing at The Cabooze on Oct. 30. Founder and ex-Cradle of Filth guitarist Paul Allender said he moved to Minneapolis from the U.K. in 2011, and shortly afterward, decided to start a heavy metal band with vocalist Mary Zimmer, keyboardist Will Graney, guitarist Jeremy Kohnmann, bassist Chela Harper and drummer Zac Morris. Allender explained that they hope to revitalize the heavy metal scene with their latest album.

“We didn’t really want to sound like anyone else. We have our own identity. [The album’s] really groovy and really heavy; we’re taking the best parts of the scene in the past 15 years and giving it a more modern twist,” Allender said.

Outside of music, Allender has a passion for artwork and decided to incorporate that into White Empress by focusing on the image as much as the music.

“I’m into the visual side of music; I like to say there has to be 50-50: fifty percent visual and the rest music. I wanted to come up with almost an Avatar or Amazonian type theme with this strong powerful image behind it—the Empress portrayed as a warrior. We’re also coming out with a comic book that has a backstory on the Empress,” Allender explained.

Although he’s known for his former metal band, Cradle of Filth (to give an idea of their popularity, the band’s page has nearly 2.5 million likes on Facebook), Allender said that he wanted a change. He did note that many Cradle of Filth fans weren’t too happy that he decided to leave but said they need to get over it and move on.

“Cradle needed a break. I want to tour. All I want is to go and play live, and I have no expectations about it because I’ve been there before—I’ve been onstage and played in front of tens of thousands of people. Playing live is a lot more atmospheric, more energetic and it’s where the magic is,” Allender said. He added that the two bands are both metal but have a very different vibe. “[In White Empress] we’ve done more orchestral stuff and we’ve done some industrial stuff. There’s really no comparison; they’re completely different.”

In an industry that seems to value pop or alt-rock, Allender admitted that trying to break out as a metal band can be challenging but said he wanted to bring back the spirit of metal in its heyday while still having their own unique sound.

“I’m old school. I like music with an old school feel to it: the good stuff from the 70s and 80s. Obviously Maiden and Judas Priest , Motorhead, Sabbath.”

Compared to most other genres, heavy metal has been on the decline in recent years, and Allender doesn’t try to sugarcoat how he feels about the metal scene today.

“Don’t like it,” he said without hesitation. “It’s all too mumble-jumbled and they’re trying to sell as many albums as possible instead of focusing on making music. It seems like they want to copy everybody else, and there’s a lot of ripping off of other bands just because they think it’s going to sell. No one has the balls to stand up and say, ‘I think I’m going to do something different.’”

Allender feels similarly about the music industry as a whole, noting that it’s difficult for any band to find success, whether they’re metal or pop.

“It’s crap. Record labels are trying to screw bands over. Bands have no say in their merch or their music. It’s all about making money as quick as possible.”

With that said, Allender does feel that metal will “totally” make a comeback in the near future.

“Almost every ten years music comes around and it always recycles itself. The scene’s slowly changing again. I’d say in 5 years it’ll be completely different from what it is now.”

Even though they’re relatively new, Allender said that the response to White Empress has been positive, and said that they have big plans for the future, like a European tour.

“[The response has been] awesome. People who’ve reviewed it understood where it’s coming from and where it’s going…[for future material] I want to do something darker, faster, more sinister.”

Allender has some last advice for those who want to have some Halloween fun.

“Come out and have a hell of a time!”Photo courtesy White Empress

White Empress music and merchandise can be purchased at their shows or online at whiteempress.com. They also have upcoming shows in Madison, WI on Oct. 31 and Nov. 1.