Since 2002 this powerful female fronted metal band from Sweden has garnered quite a following. With fans now from all over the world ramen noodles seem like a thing of the past.  Currently signed to Victory Records and sharing the stage with huge acts such as Arch Enemy, Ill Nino, Otep, Motorhead, Straight Line Stitch, In This Moment and so many more you can see why they deserve your metal attention if they don’t have it yet.

 

They’re currently about to wrap up touring in support of their fourth studio album released about a year agp, “Now and Forever” mixed by Cameron Webb of Motorhead, Social Distortion and Danzig fame.  Currently, the fifth one is being contemplated and we’re going to get some info on this always energetic Gothinburg band!

 

THE INTERVIEW

Daniel/HRM: Thank you for being part of Hip Rock Magazine! To start things off let's ask something fun. Please introduce yourself and tell me what style of television you'd prefer to be trapped inside of if you were cursed to do so.

 

 

Sister Sin: Alright, I’m Liv, singer of heavy metal band Sister Sin. And I guess if I was trapped in television I’d like to be trapped in a sitcom like Big Bang or Cougar Town. They seem to have such a pleasant life with sun and fun and good friends, and no worries. I’d like that, seems so easy peasy.

 

Daniel/HRM: For odd questions, that may be tough to beat. But I think I already got a smile and maybe a wink for that one. (smiles)  Do you get much time to watch TV?

 

Sister Sin: No (laughs) not that much. When on tour we never have time for any TV, but if we are lucky and have a bus once and a while, we might have a TV and some music DVDs. When not on tour I have Netflix at home so I watch movies when I have time, and Breaking Bad right now.

 

Daniel/HRM: What have been some of your favorite shows of all time?

 

Sister Sin: I LOVE WEEDS!! But unfortunately its over. I’m crying a bit. I also like the british Shameless very much. And Mad Men of course!

 

Daniel/HRM: Did you ever once dream of being an actor or was it always music that got your fancy?

 

Amanda/HRM: Yes! You've been playing music since you were 15. What made you deicide to start playing music in the first place?

 

Sister Sin: Well I did some acting when I was younger and I like that very much too, but to be honest, that wasn’t my talent. And when I found music I knew that this was my place. I was 14 when I first started. I found Hole and Courtney Love and I thought that she was the coolest person on earth and I wanted to be like her.

 

Amanda/HRM: If you weren't in a band, what would you be doing with your time? Any skills other than rockng out in a hard rock band?

 

Sister Sin: I honestly dont know. I’ve formed myself so much to be one with the music. But I love animals, so I think I would do something that involves being with animals every day. That or something else creative. I need to be able to be creative.

 

Amanda/HRM: You have some great inspirations you site for music. What were your parents or siblings listening to around the house as you grew up and did their musical interests play a role in your influences?

 

Sister Sin: My father liked the 70s music very much and we always had a lot of music around when I grew up. He also played the guitar and that got me into playing in music in the first place. I dont have any sibling so I think I got most of my music interest from my dad and friends around me.

 

 

Amanda/HRM: What age were you when you starting writing your first songs?

 

Sister Sin: I think I was 14. I’d sit in my girl room with my acoustic guitar far into the night and wrote depressing teenage songs. (laughs)

 

 

Amanda/HRM: (laughs)You're from Gothenburg, Sweden. Is there a large local music scene there? Anyone in that area you admire enough to give a shout out to?

 

Sister Sin: I’m actually from the very south of Sweden, and now I live in Stockholm. Where I was born it was a pretty good music scene in the beginning , then it just disappeared for some reason. But in Stockholm the music scene is very good, and to give you some names I think the band Sister is a good swedish band and from my home town we have Arch Enemy which is one of my favorite bands ever!

 

Amanda/HRM: I read on your Facebook page that you're touring Europe through the rest of 2013 and early 2014, including shows in your home country. Do you have a favorite city in Sweden other than Gothenburg for a tour stop? What about it makes it a favorite? 

 

Sister Sin: It’s hard to say. Gothenburg is the best town for us but I’d say up north also is very into our kind of music.

 

Amanda/HRM: What else do you have going on other than touring?

 

Sister Sin: We are planning for the new album which we hope to release next fall.

 

Amanda/HRM: You have a large fan-base in the US. Coast to coast and throughout the Midwest. You've toured the United States a couple times. Is there a favorite city of yours in the States to play live? What is it about that city that you like?

 

Sister Sin: I really like playing in New Mexico and Arizona. People tend to be very crazy there and that is always fun! Also LA was super last time we played there with Doro.

 

Daniel/LLM:  Have you ever been to Louisville, KY? Home of the Louisville Slugger bat and the Kentucky Derby Horse races?

 

Sister Sin: Sorry I can’t give you an answer on that, I mean I think we have played there but it’s easy to forget when you tour a lot. Cities sort of blend together sometimes.

 

Daniel/LLM:  I understand completely. Do you plan on hitting Louisville up on the next U.S. tour?

 

Sister Sin: Well now I hope so ,so you can take me out to the Derby horse race!

 

Daniel/LLM: Why Liv, is that a date? Afterwards maybe we can karaoke! 9laughs) Although you're from Sweden are you familiar with the Louisville Cardinals Sports programs or Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurants?  Were you ever a fan of Muhamid Ali, the legendary boxer from around here?

 

Sister Sin: Muhamed Ali I know of course! The other things I’m sorry I dont know, I’m a vegetarian so I wouldn’t put my foot in a KFC. (laughs)

 

Daniel/LLM: We'll get back to non Louisville questions now.

 

Amanda/HRM: From your experience of touring different countries, do you see a difference in the crowds, like between European fans and American fans?

 

Sister Sin: Well yes, but its different in the European countries too, and its different between the US states also. Some states are crazy and wild and some people are a bit uptight. The same with countries in Europe. We have Germany and Spain which is really good and then we have Poland and Denmark and Norway where people tend to be more quiet and still. Other than that I feel Europeans are a bit more loyal to their bands. They stay fans forever, where in the US there are so many bands so people change their favorite bands a lot.

 

 

Amanda/HRM: When I was a youngster, we had a television show on Saturday nights called The Headbanger's Ball. It was two glorious hours of metal music videos. (I remember my first time seeing Doro's band Warlock on The Headbanger's  Ball, the video for "All We Are". I thought that the coolest thing ever!) Did you have anything similar in Sweden for the rock fans?

 

Sister Sin: We also had Headbangers Ball! I heard Pantera for the first time there and got totally hooked.

 

Amanda/HRM: Some of us have a "guilty pleasure" in music. Maybe a band or song you jam to when no one else is around! What is your guilty musical pleasure?

 

Sister Sin: I like Lana Del Ray a lot and Eva Cassidy. I also enjoy some Lady Gaga from time to time.

 

Amanda/HRM: Speaking also of guily pleasures, the last album you came out with had some pretty signature sounding stuff! For people who haven't picked it up yet, in what ways would you tell them that it's different? What would be your pitch to convince them to go and get it?

 

Daniel/HRM: Yes! Pitch the last album as if it was a tricked out RV!

 

Sister Sin: I d say it has that catchy but still rough metal to it, like the old school metal but with a bit of newer melodies and twist. And for sure it’s angry as f#ck!

 

Amanda/HRM: I just wanted you to know that I love your lyric "show no mercy, slay them all". Do you have a favorite lyric from your own stock? How about your favorite albums that you've purchased as a fan? Who's lyrics have stuck out to you over the years?

 

Sister Sin: I like both “Fight Song” and “Chosen Few” very much when it comes to lyrics. As a fan I love Lana Del Ray’s lyrics and Amy Winehouse, very dark, very sad in so many ways. And there is a song with a Swedish band The Haunted called ”The Skull”, check out that song and that lyric!

 

Amanda/HRM: Like I mentioned earlier, I'm a fan of Doro, so when I first heard your music, I said "Man, on the Doro-scale, Liv is a 9 out 10!" (Doro being the 10!) I really admire that! Was Doro an early influence for the Sister Sin vocal style?

 

Sister Sin: No, not really, I listen very much to Sebastian Bach and wanted to be a female version of him. A mix between Sebastan Bach and Dee Snider. Dee is the best frontman ever in my opinion!

 

Amanda/HRM: Where can the fans find the most up to date information on Sister Sin?

 

Sister Sin: On our Facebookpage, Twitter and Sistersin.com

 

Amanda/HRM: Anyhting else you'd like the readers of Hip Rock Magazine to know about Sister Sin?

 

Sister Sin: We love our fans! They are what keep us going all these years.

 

Daniel/HRM: It's been a couple years since I interviewed you (back when I co-founded Alternative Revolt Magazine). You might recall that I love ending interviews with a very unique last signature question. So here we go!

 

Let's say that you were on a boat taking a vacation away from it all.  It wasn't so much where you were at the moment but what the boat was made out of. You had personally crafted a boat out of your favorite gemstone. The way it looked gliding over the water sent spiritual chills down your spine and it reflected your best concert memory. What gemstone is this boat made out of, what was the memory and which song of yours best represents this situation?

 

Sister Sin: I’d make it out of bernstein. I’m not sure of the English word, it’s the yellow thing coming out of trees and then it turns to stone after thousands and thousands of years. The best concert memory would be this year’s Sweden Rock Festival, which was so f#cking great!! And for a song I’d say “Fight Song”!

 

Daniel/HRM: Maybe petrified wood is what you’re thinking of? Avid readers can Google that and also your raw music! Thank you Liv! We hope you found this interview to be one of the best ever.

 

Amanda/HRM: As a music fan, I'd like you to know that I enjoy your music very much! I've been telling my friends to check out Sister Sin! We will keep an eye out for the next American tour dates! HipRock Magazine greatly appreciates your kindness and time answering our questions!          

 

Sister Sin: Thank you so much too!

 

Story and interview by

Daniel C. Morrison and Amanda Taylor - Louisville Limelight Magazine