Hi Charlotte, Great to hear from you. I've been quite a busy little bee. Lots happening.

For those who don't know me, my name is Gina Bafile, better known by my stage name which is also the name of my current music project, 'Darkyra Black'. (Dark Lady in Black). The music is of a very cinematic and symphonic style. Both myself and the musicians involved in this project, have a lot of music influences both within Symphonic Metal / Gothic / Prog and Classic Rock genres. I could name them but there is way too many to mention and although we draw on these influences, the music of Darkyra Black reflects its own unique sound.

Well actually it's only been six months since the official album release. It's been an incredible journey so far and I've been overwhelmed with the media response and reviews, mostly positive.

So far there haven't been any shows, being such a new and unique project that no one had ever heard of before it was hard to say how it was going to be perceived, so it really needed time to circulate and build some exposure. A lot of hard work, time and money had gone into the production of 'Dragon Tears' all of which was self-funded. Strategies are in place now for shows here in Australia and if all goes well the possibility of some European / UK shows might be an option for next year.

Yes, album 2 'Fool' is in production now. This album has a much heavier vibe but still keeps within the tradition of the first album with the cinema type concept and gothic sound. I really don't want to give too much away just yet.

Yes, demolition man, Tony Dolan (E-MPIRE OF EVIL and Venom) plays bass on the track titled 'Truth or Dare'.

No, there won't be any single releases prior to the album release.

Yes, Garry King (Achillea, Exorcism), came up with this idea for the Bio to keep the cinema like momentum going and also keeping within the flow that album 2 has an underlying concept or story.

I think there's a lot of segregation between Female Fronted Metal and Metal in General. There's a lot of talk or speculation that suggests that Females aren't taken seriously compared to Male Fronted bands. Personally I think music as a whole is purely subjective and there is segregation between most genre's and subgenres within the metal scene as a whole. Regardless of whether the music has a Male or Female Vocalist, opinions will always be there and overall a thick skin is required it you want to survive this field.

I think there is a market for everything. There is a lot of interest in female fronted music and also a lot of pressure on women regarding their overall visual appearance. As I mentioned previously, it's purely a subjective matter.

Well I would hope to think that there'd be less sexism now considering there are a lot more Female Vocalists around in the metal scene; however I think that perhaps the labeling of Female Fronted Metal is confusing people into believing that it is an entirely separate Genre.

Illegal downloads aren't doing our industry any justice. The artist can't afford to keep producing music if people are ripping it off for free. Although there have been some advantages in regards to the public being better exposed to new artists, there is a small minority of those listeners that would do the right thing and pay for the music if they liked it after they've downloaded it for free. I think eventually things will crash. When you look at the increase of well-known artists that are starting pledges to crowd fund their next album then I think it's saying something in regards to how illegal downloads have effected their sales.

Thank You Charlotte, It's always a pleasure to be interviewed by Metal Temple.

To the readers, keep checking the website for Darkyra Black updates.

www.darkyra.com