EP 374: Parisian Rock Star Emily Palen

KnightressM1, brainchild of violinist, vocalist, pianist & composer Emily Palen fuses dark metal, crushing violin tones, intimately raw vocals and a relentless rhythm section, redefining metal as a genre inclusive of beauty. KM1, based in Paris, FR is completed by native French musicians Waldo Losada on bass, Leo Caviglioli on guitar and Paul Gaget on drums. They recorded their full album entitled "The Sentient Condition" with  renowned French metal producer Francis Caste at Studio Sainte Marthe.

Emily originally founded KnightressM1 in CA in 2012, proving through a critically acclaimed debut album, Dreams & Devastation, and consistently fiery live performances, that violin was a powerful lead instrument in the field of metal. Her fearless stage presence became the band's hallmark, reminiscent of the mythology of female galactic knights, from which the band's name was born. After struck with an undeniable pull to Paris, she realized that KM1 would only be fully actualized once on French soil. Within 6 months of relocation, the lineup was reformed and the core sound of KnightressM1 was solidified. 

Their music is born out of an incessant need to express vast spectrums of emotion, conscious states, and unbreakable human potential. Lyrically, Emily bears witness to life’s cruelties and our innate capacity for transformation. Sonically, the band lays an undeniably heavy foundation from which, their passion for fresh musical intuition drives their sound over the edge of the impossible.

Emily, born in Midland, MI to cellist Lois Palen and poet John Palen, began her studies of classical violin at the age of 4 and piano at 5. Her violin teachers were her mother, Lyman Bodman, Michael Avsharian, and Paul Kantor,  violin professor at the University of Michigan School of Music.  She studied piano with Dottie Canfield and Patricia Willwerth at Central Michigan University.  

She released her first solo violin improv album “Glass ~ Live at Grace Cathedral” in 2012 and her second improv album “Creation” a year later. Emily founded her own musical group, KnightressM1 in 2012 with the debut album "Dreams & Devastion" released to international acclaim in 2020.  

Human nature, raw and pure, prismed into music, becomes a transmutational force as humanity teeters on the precipice between ultimate destruction and radical evolution. KnightressM1 strives to be a voice for those oppressed, either by country or lover. Freedom is our birthright. https://www.knightressm1.com

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