Leaving TRISTANIA in 2000, Morten Veland forged forward to form SIRENIA and carry on his artistic vision in 2001. Since then SIRENIA has released five albums and an EP on both Napalm Records and Nuclear Blast and toured throughout Europe numerous times. Will they tour North America with the release of The Enigma of Life this year? One can only wait and see.

Phil: First off, please give us a brief overview of you new album, The Enigma of Life.

Morten: The Enigma of Life is an album consisting of twelve songs plus some bonus material. The album is not a concept album; we are looking at twelve individual tracks. It is our fifth studio album and it represents SIRENIA in a mature and improved version. I always thought it was somewhat difficult to label or describe our sound, but to give the readers an idea of what we are about I would say that SIRENIA is a female fronted Metal band. Our musical concept is all about blending musical styles into a bigger concept. Most important is the classical and gothic elements combined with a powerful Metal sound. Our music is melodic, dark and full of dynamics and atmosphere. In addition to the female vocals we also use choirs, growls and clean male vocals. We pretty much staked out our path and musical concept with The 13th Floor and with this new album we have tried to perfect the concept and take it a level higher. I do not think that there is any huge differences musically speaking between the two albums, so the listeners can’t really expect any huge surprises, but I think that we have been able to make great improvements this time and with vocal performances and melodies especially, this is for me the biggest change between this and the previous album. Personally I feel that we have been able to make a big step with this album, not with reinventing ourselves, but with improving and perfecting the elements in our music along with the performances on the album.

Phil: What was the song writing process like this time around?

Morten: It was like it always has been - me writing alone in my studio. It has always been the only way for me, as I can maintain a high focus on my work in this way. Co-writing never worked to well for me, all the results were based on compromises and felt half way done to me.

Phil: How was the production process? Was there anything markedly different than what you've done it the past?

Morten: Most of the recordings were done in Audio Avenue Studio, which is my own studio here in the Stavanger area. We did some additional recordings in Sound Suite Studios in Marseille, France. Here we recorded the choir, violins and acoustic guitars. Furthermore I mixed the album in my own studios as well and then it was mastered in Finnvox studios in Finland. I spent most of the time in the studio alone as I have done for the last albums, and I played all the instruments on the album except the violins which were done by Stephanie Valentin. When we do the recordings of Ailyn’s vocals, the two of us work closely together to achieve a best possible result. It is important that both the composer and the singer are happy with all final recordings.

Phil: What are your favorite songs off the album?

Morten: I like all the songs on the album, the twelve tracks on the album were chosen out of about 35 songs, so I think all of them has earned its right to be on the album.  If I have to mention some songs I’d like to mention the title track and the song called “All My Dreams.”

Phil: Can we expect SIRENIA to finally do a North American tour for The Enigma of Life and how much touring do you plan on doing for the album overall?

Morten: We have been trying to get over to North America for touring for many years without any luck so far. We really hope that this will change with this album, and we are looking into touring possibilities for this territory. We will tour Europe and South America for sure. If it was up to us we would tour all over the world, but this is not possible unfortunately.

Phil: What are some lyrical themes that you would like to use in the future?

Morten: It is always hard to predict the future, but I assume that I will continue to focus on the darker aspects of life in my music. From album to album (I am) always trying to improve my writing.

Phil: Have you had any serious thoughts about putting together some sort of DVD release?

Morten: Absolutely. This is one of the projects that we really hope to realize this year, at least the recordings of the DVD, and then hopefully release it early next year or so.

Phil: What has been the most rewarding moment for you as a musician thus far?

Morten: I thought it was a great honour to perform at festivals in Europe on the same billing as bands like OZZY OSBOURNE, IRON MAIDEN and AEROSMITH amongst others, bands I’ve admired since I was a kid.

Phil: And what has been the most disappointing?

Morten: The most disappointing aspect is meeting the assholes in the business that constantly tries to rip you off. I have met most of my friends through my music, but I’ve also met a shitload of rip-offs that stabs you in the back for some pennies.

Phil: Recommend a book for our readers and then explain why you recommend that particular work.

Morten: The poetry from Edgar Allen Poe is great reading and it has also inspired me a lot. Especially in the beginning of my career.

Phil: If there's anything else you'd like to add, please feel free to do so and thank you for taking your time with this interview!

Morten: Cheers to all the readers of Metal Psalter, I hope to see you on tour soon.

Sirenia's Morten Veland

Interviewer: Philip A. Wickstrand

February 12, 2011

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(Click on Photo to Enlarge)

Formed: 2001
Stavanger, NORWAY
Label: Nuclear Blast Records
Genre: Symph. Power/Gothic Metal

CURRENT LINE-UP:

Ailyn (Pilar Giménez García):  Vocals
Morten Veland:  Harsh/Clean Vocals,
                     Guitar,  Keyboards, Bass,
                       Drums & Programming
Michael S. Krumins:  Guitar &
                                       Harsh Vocals 
Jonathan A. Perez:  Drums, Percussion

DISCOGRAPHY:

At Sixes And Sevens (2002)
An Elixir for Existence (2004)
Sirenian Shores EP (2004)
Nine Destinies and a Downfall (2007)
The 13th Floor (2009)
The Enigma of Life (2011)