Carmeria are a symphonic metal band from Australia as they are a very fascinating band who have merged power metal and symphonic metal together to make their sound as original as they can do. They first formed way back in 2012 as a five piece band, then straight away the following year in 2013 they released their own EP titled Awakening which contained five tracks so this certainly gave a good introduction to the band. Then from 2016 onwards, the band would release a couple of singles including; Morningstar, Carpe Noctem, Solaris, Celestia, Relinquished and Leading The Blind which were all to become part of what was to be the band’s sophomore album Advanae. Their sophomore album was released in 2021 and I too had the pleasure of reviewing this album, so to look back at this album as it was just supreme, the combination of symphonic metal and gothic rock really got my attention.

The band themselves have changed in terms of the lineup, but the current line up is now led by vocalist Jordan Von Grae, as well as Jerry Zahija on guitars as he has been in the band since the very start so on bass guitar/backing vocals is Emma Louise Nagy, on keyboards is Mishka Bobrov and on drums is Lachlan Blackwood. So in saying all of that, they have been busy enough since I reviewed their album Advenae, as they now have a new album titled Tragedie D’Amour which was released last year in 2024. So with that in mind I am going to be chatting to the vocalist Jordan Von Grae all about the band, how they started out as well as their releases including their new album and the touring they have done in the past.

Hello, Andrew. Thank you for the opportunity for Carmeria to be featured on Metal Temple Magazine.

I grew up listening to my parent's Meat Loaf, Queen and Whitesnake records, which I believe is where my love for rock'n'roll theatrics began. I remember seeing the movie Rock Star when I was about 9 or 10, and it seared the desire to be a vocalist into my brain. In my teens I discovered metal and fell in love with the variety the genre afforded. Bands like Children of Bodom, Opeth, Kamelot and HIM opened my eyes to the possibilities within the genre and I'd spend hours on forums searching for new bands to listen to. I took to learning the guitar and played in a few bands before deciding to pursue my role as a front-man. The singers that inspired me the most when I decided to become a vocalist would be Roy Khan, Ville Valo, Miljenko Matijevic and David Coverdale.

It was around mid-2014 when I saw a Facebook post from Jerry (guitarist) asking if any singers wanted to audition for Carmeria. The post included a link to an instrumental demo, and a statement that the band's new direction would be in the symphonic metal vein. I had been performing the live circuit for a few years at this point, and I'd met Jerry at a show a few months previously. Symphonic metal was all I was listening to at this time and I was excited at the prospect of auditioning for the group. I downloaded the instrumental track, wrote some lyrics and melodies, and recorded it using the microphone of a dying laptop before sending it back to Jerry. Despite the atrocious audio quality, Jerry and the rest of the members at the time ended up liking what I'd written, and I was announced as the band's vocalist a few months later. Fun Fact: the song I auditioned with is on our debut album, Advenae. It is titled En Rapture, and despite a few changes, the melodies are largely the same as what was on that 2014 audition demo.

2014 was the genesis of what Carmeria is today. The first iteration of the band identified themselves as female-fronted prog-rock, and only 2 of the original members stayed on to rebuild Carmeria as a symphonic metal outfit. As such, I'd say the band's direction completely changed from 2014 onwards.

Very different. The time between Awakening and Advenae saw a nearly entire line-up change, with Jerry being the only remaining member from the band prior to 2014. The creative direction, overarching aesthetic, writing and production team completely shifted between those two records, resulting in a distinct change in the bands identity and music.

Whilst those are very much the staples of what we do, we've occasionally added prog metal to the mix - mainly on our first album. Over the last few years I've also taken to writing material that, whilst remaining in the gothic rock/symphonic metal realm, could also be identified as including elements of melodic rock and AOR.

Whilst I cannot take credit for any of the material on the first EP, I do feel there was something unique about it. The evolution in sound can be attributed to the change in personnel after 2014. Something else to consider would be the time difference between the records. Awakening would've been written when Jerry and the previous members were around 19-20 years old, and it was put together relatively quickly in comparison to the album. Advenae was written over a period of 6 years, and released when we were all in our late-20s, so there was a lot more time to develop ourselves as songwriters and tweak the material prior to releasing the album.

We love performing in general, but there is always something special about performing in front of a home crowd.

Unfortunately, symphonic metal and gothic rock are not popular genres in Australia. Compounded with the fact that the arts are often overlooked and under-supported in our country, it can be quite challenging as an Australian band. Digital and social media has helped to bridge the gap in terms of allowing our music to be promoted and accessed in parts of the world where our genres are popular, and despite none of us being particularly enthusiastic about having to be 'content creators', we are grateful for that. I'm not sure what could be done to provide the genre with more popularity in Australia, but I think greater support for the arts overall would be a good start.

We had the privilege of playing with some great local bands on the Advenae album tour. Victoria K were the support act for the tour, and in addition to being a great band, they've become good friends of ours in the years since that run of shows.

Thank you for the kind words. We embarked on an album tour in November 2024 with our good friends in Orpheus Omega, who had released their album Emberglow around the same time we released Tragedie D'amour. It was a lot of fun, and we ended up shooting a live video clip for our song The Hoping Heart at our hometown show in Sydney, which was an exciting experience.

Emma joined the band shortly after the release of Advenae, back in 2021. She had met Jerry a few years prior, and we reached out to her to see if she was willing to audition after we parted ways with our former bass player. We had a few rehearsals together and got along great, and she joined shortly afterwards. It has been great having her on board. She's a great bass player and a wonderful singer.

Jerry and I have spoken about covering A Sailorman's Hymn since I joined the band back in 2014. When I started developing the concept for Trinity: Volume I, it seemed like the perfect time to make that a reality. It was a lot of fun to put together, and I enjoyed working on it as both an arranger and producer.

Absolutely. I am quite deep into the writing and arranging process for our third album. The album title and theme have been locked in, and at the time of this interview, I can say that it is roughly 50% written. The plan is to have it completed, mixed and mastered by the end of this year, and we are currently eyeing an early to mid 2026 release date. In the next month we will be announcing a tour that will close the chapter of Tragedie D'amour, and introduce some of the new material from album 3. I'm also in the early stages of developing a template for Trinity: Volume II, which will likely follow in the months after the release of the new record. So yes, there are certainly plans for new releases.

Thanks again for having me. I have enjoyed talking to you, and look forward to hearing what you think of our next release.