IN Greek Mythology, Sirens were creatures that lured sailors to their death through the beauty of their enchanting music and singing voices.

Abbe Martin and Hannah Wood’s voices are definitely enchanting, so the name of their duo is certainly fitting – Sound of the Sirens.

Abbe and Hannah met while working at Timepiece in Exeter, and then became part of a function band, The Loose Cannons.

Abbe said: “We’ve both got quite different backgrounds. I started with performance and drama and got into musicals at college.”

Hannah added: “At the age of 15 I fell into music. I was in a girl band called Trinity, but then we broke up. My dad asked if I wanted to be in a band and we worked together – now he manages Sound of the Sirens for us.”

Sound of the Sirens began 13 years ago as a trio who sang cover songs. They knew that they had to make their voices known by singing covers that people knew. But soon, Abbe and Hannah started to add in originals and eventually had more originals than covers during their gigs.

Hannah said: “There used to be three of us and the girl who has now left, well her boyfriend came up with the name so we can’t take credit. But we think it suits now.”

“I think it’s from Greek Mythology – the Sirens were mermaid creatures that lured the sailors in and killed them” Abbe said.

“I think to think that is us (not the killing part) but we like to think we have power within our voices.”

The pair love listening to First Aid Kit and their album Ruins, as well as Will Varley and the band Frightened Rabbit. They also love songs that portray emotion, particularly from artists such as Florence and the Machine and even Destiny’s Child.

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Abbe said: “When coming up with a song, we are usually having a conversation about something that sounds interesting and we start recording. Or sometimes we start with the lyrics and sometimes the tune. Sometimes it is a situation in our lives or someone else’s that triggers an idea. We write about a lot of personal truths.

“Our songs start personal and become about other people. The pronoun changes to ‘we’ so that people can find their own hope, their own struggle within the song.”

Hannah added: “A lot of people have said that although there is pain, our songs have a message of hope.”

When they first started to write songs, many of them were given to radio pluggers who decided what they thought would be the hit. Each time, Hannah and Abbe were surprised at the songs they chose – they are never sure of which one’s people will love.

Abbe said: “We are really passionate about Sound of the Sirens, but it is important to find a balance. We both teach – I teach drama and Hannah is a vocal coach, so we never want to overdo the music with our jobs because we don’t want to jeopardize our love of Sound of the Sirens.”

The pair also have other passions to break up their time and are thinking about writing a book. Abbe writes poetry and Hannah paints, so they were thinking of including these alongside lyrics and pictures.

The Sound of the Sirens are embarking on their tour on January 25 and will be at The Brewhouse Theatre in Taunton on January 30.

Hannah said: “We have had a lot of messages from people coming to the Taunton gig – everyone seems to be talking about it.”

Abbe added: “This time of year is usually quiet for bands as they usually tour in the summer. So we are really grateful to have the opportunity to kickstart our year with gigs.

“It is independent venue week when we are in Taunton, and Frank Turner is performing at the Cavern Club in Exeter the same night, so we are going to do our sound checks at the Brewhouse early, then drive to Exeter to play a 20-minute gig to support Frank Turner and drive back to perform at the Brewhouse.

“We have a mixed age range of fans and some people prefer seated gigs. I love that more and more theatres are putting on music events.”

To book visit thebrewhouse.net or call 01823 283 244.