Q: How do you feel about the recent death of friend Rozz Williams?  Many people didn’t believe it at first until they read your email. 

William: I can only view that email as a mistake; I had intended it for people who knew him and cared to be apprised of the terrible tragedy -- not for the ensuing circus of postings and such. I miss Rozz in a way I simply can't explain; he was an amazing artist, but ultimately a good friend. I am as rich for having known him as I am empty for his loss. 

Monica: We thank all of those who wrote us, and sent their thoughts, poetry, and condolences. 

Q: How was the UK tour?  What are the audiences there like? 

William: The tour was amazing; the Whitby Gothic Weekend stands out as the single coolest event in memory -- we had such a brilliant time, and that is ultimately down to Jo Hampshire, who made it all possible for us. The audiences were wonderful -- it was kind of neat to watch them as we performed, because you could really tell that the UK really wasn’t used to a band like us -- a live drummer, a varied set consisting of ethereal, celtic, world music and straight-up Goth rock -- it definitely threw them a curve, I think, but then I think that is the healthiest thing we could have done; love us or hate us, it is hard to forget us, and I'll take extreme opinions of ANY kind over indifference any day of the week. Fortunately for us, I think we won over a fair portion of the UK goths, and I’m quite chuffed that it all went down as it did. 

Q: How do you feel being known as a Celtic/Pagan Band?  What do you view to be Celtic?  What does Celtic mean to you? 

Monica: Celtic is a culture, misunderstood as 'Barbarian' for centuries.  Celtic music is the type of music indigenous to the Celtic culture.  Its ideas, musical tempos, and basis is not unlike Native American, or even Hindu, but it definitely has its own style. We do indeed have Celtic roots, and like all Americans, we tend to search a bit harder than those born in their own element.  We are, in a sense, orphans, thus it is important for us to find our beginnings.  Having said this, we do not view ourselves as 'Celtic' first and foremost. The idea of Annwyn encircles our research in the very basis of Celtic Mythology (the Welsh Pantheon) but more as to how it relates to human history.  I was a bit taken aback to see that we were billed as a 'Celtic' and 'Pagan' band in the UK, and was actually  told that my singing on our recent UK tour was not believably Celtic.  (Ay!  Tha' Celtic singin' I do on Sparks, eh?)  We have Celtic influences, certainly, but we are not to be viewed simply as  'Celtic (tm)' as it were... I hope people will realize, as they get to know our past and future music, that  Annwyn is simply an album.  There will be many more Faith and the Muse albums with different ideas and concepts.  With Annwyn, we are not saying This is what we are,  but more This is what we are exploring at this time... Each work of music we release will be quite different in theme and design... Sorry to get a bit long-winded, but it seems we need to explain ourselves a touch! 

Q: If you where given the opportunity to become a mainstream\top 40 band would you do it or not?

William: Not a chance.   

Monica: I've been given that opportunity already, a few times, throughout my years singing.  I recently had a talk with another singer who wants just to 'make it' in the music business, which is not a smart thing to do, for once you sign the contract, you are trapped into the music "business", forced to make a 'hit' with every album, or given songs by producers you label has contracted you to work with, and you get called weekly by your record label to be told that your album isn't selling well enough. It's a nightmare, and I've known a few horror stories from friends who went this way. One must do what they love in order to truly find happiness. 

Q: What has been the most memorable fan letter you've gotten? What did it say and/or have enclosed along with it? 

Monica: William just received a rather interesting letter that included a made-up interview between him and a serial killer.  In our Mercyground Newsletters, William usually likes to do interviews, and we suppose that the fan thought we'd print this one.  He had William saying things like: 'Wow, why are you so crazy?  Hahaha!'  It's quite funny, actually... 

Q: Do you think you will still be in a band when you are old and wrinkly? 

Monica: We have a shared joke of me being an old torch-singer in Paris when I'm 70...   

William: No, not in a band. Certain other of my former bandmates have been content to do just that, but I’d rather approach it with a quiet dignity; perhaps composing. Performing at that point would have to be suited to my manner -- string quartets, perhaps? Chamber ensembles? Or, I could be the old alcoholic jazz pianist for Monica's lounge act... 

Q: Monica, why and how did you move from the 80's harDCore punk scene of DC into the current Goth scene?  Can you explain your motives?  Did you have any role models? 

Monica:  It’s an ongoing process, and explaining it as a move from one scene to another is simplifying it.  I never woke up and thought, "Wow, I'll wear black now!".  Anyone who sees old photos of me can see that I always had a dark tone to my look, and even while fronting Madhouse, I used to go out in top hats and costumes; I've always loved to dress up....  When I was into harDCore, I was in my early teens, and searching very much for identity, like all teenagers.  My problems with that scene, and with the ideas behind the music began to manifest when the scene exploded, and meatheads from the suburbs began to show up with spiked bracelets on, thinking that the whole punk scene was some sort of male Rite of Initiation.  I did not enjoy the kids who screamed 'Bitch!' and 'Take off your shirt!' at me while we performed at harDCore shows, and thus I realized it was no longer what I wanted to do.  This was years before the Riot Grrrl contingent came about, and I had no female support-base back then; I stood all alone on stage in front of a male-dominated and growingly aggressive audience!  So, I had no real role models to help me, but at the time, there were some wonderful bands around: Xmal Deutschland, UK Decay, The Damned, etc.  Rest assured, my years in Madhouse and early Strange Boutique were floundering and not very successful; we were between a rock and a hardplace, not hard enough and not melodic enough, not pop enough, etc etc...  I continued to follow my own instincts, and just did what I wanted to do.  Not until the end of the 80’s and early 90’s did I click with a scene, and began to find the kind of audience that appreciated who and what I was.  I am respected in retrospect, it seems... 

Q: What are your thoughts on christianity and paganism ? 

Monica: They are both facets of one and the same thing: people in search of answers to the mystery of birth and death.  I do not have a side on the matter, but respect anyone and everyone’s beliefs, as long as it gives them the peace that we all need...  I completely understand the motions towards Paganism; even my book researches the early Goddess beliefs that fueled Agriculture, and women today are feeling empowerment from it... But I myself come from a very religious family, and the extremes of their different religions have given me the insight of stepping back and viewing it all for what it is: need for connection, need for identity. I am a scholar, it’s as simple as that..