DOLL SKIN INTERVIEW 2016

DOLL SKIN

When you were between ages of 16 and 19 what were you doing?

 Well for the girlies in DOLL SKIN they are not only being managed by a metal icon in Dave Ellefson (Megadeth) but they are also rubbing elbows with the rock stars and national rock scene as they hit up Shiprocked, getting on national tours and being  nose to nose with the elite rock icons at this year’s NAMM convention.
DOLL SKIN is originally from Phoenix, AZ and consist of Sydney on vocals, Alex on guitar, Nicole on bass and Meghan on drums.  They formed in 2013 and were brought to the attention of Dave Ellefson when he was a guest judge at a local talent show for the high school his kid attended. A bond was formed and now these girls are rocking the adrenaline fueled anthems they create to stages around the country.
The band released their debut album IN YOUR FACE in 2015 through Megaforce Records,  and Ellefson took the producer role to get the ladies gelling songwriting and in the studio.
I had the extreme pleasure of throwing out some questions to the ladies before they hit the road life with OTEP and here is what these young women at to say.
BEING SUCH YOUNG WOMEN IN THE ROCK SCENE WHAT IS THE MOST OVERWHELMING THING FOR YOU GUYS AS A BAND SO FAR?
Nicole: People doubting and not taking us seriously for sure is one of the most overwhelming things we go through. Prior to us going on at shows, there’s a lot of noticeable doubt radiating from the crowd, but it’s really cool because after we always prove them wrong, haha.
Alex: On a more positive note, seeing people’s reactions after the show is one of the best things. People always come up to us, especially girls, and are really impressed with what we’re doing, especially so young. It’s really cool to have girls be inspired by us.
WHAT ADVICE HAS YOUR MANAGER DAVE ELLEFSON, GIVEN YOU THAT YOU WILL HOLD WITH YOU FOR YOUR DURATION AS A BAND?
Alex: Give every opportunity a chance, basically say yes to everything. He’s a really quotable man, almost everything he tells us is amazing advice, it’s obvious he’s been in the music industry for a while and knows what he’s talking about.
FOR SOMEONE NEW TO THE BAND DOLL SKIN HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR SOUND AND YOUR OVERALL SIGNATURE SOUND?
Nicole: We consider ourselves hard rock with punk and metal influences. We take a lot from basically everything; you can find hints of a wide variety of genres in all our music. We used to call ourselves Glitter Punk because we felt like we didn’t fit into anything else.
I WAS CURIOUS TO KNOW ON YOUR EP IN YOUR FACE, YOU COVER THE DEAD SARA TRACK WEATHERMAN, WHAT IN THAT SONG SPOKE TO YOU TO MAKE YOU WANT TO COVER THE SONG?
Meghan: The song is really dynamic and powerful enough to speak to everyone. We’ve found a way to make it our own and really incorporate into what we are, we feel like it fits us very well.
WHERE DO YOU FIND INSPIRATION TO WRITE MUSIC?
Nicole: Other musicians. I vibe off a lot of what Alex brings to songs and then find inspiration to do my own stuff.
Alex: Different theory techniques and I try to write around that. Putting my own twist on other musician’s styles is a big thing for me.
 
 
 
I HEARD YOU HAVE A LP IN THE WORKS, CAN YOU SHED SOME LIGHT ON THE ALBUM AS A WHOLE AND DOES THE MUSIC TAKE OFF WHERE YOUR EP LEFT OFF? ARE THESE ALL NEWER SONGS ON ARCHIVED SONGS YOUR BRINGING BACK TO LIFE?
Nicole: It reestablishes more of the sound we’re going for. We’ve developed our sound a lot more since we released our EP and we’re really excited for people to hear what we’ve been working on.
YOU HAD YOUR FIRST EXPERIENCE AT NAMM, HOW WAS IT AND WHO WAS THE MOST AMAZING PERSON OR PEOPLE YOU MET THERE?
Alex: It was really surreal and hectic for me in the best way possible. I met Synyster  Gates of Avenged Sevenfold who is my biggest inspiration as a guitarist. We also met Zacky and Johnny of the band as well at the Schecter set up. Nikki Stringfield of Iron Maidens was there too and I had a really good time talking with her again.
Nicole: It was such a crazy fun time, there was so much to see and do. Got to hang out at the Hartke/Samson booth and the guys working there were awesome, got to see a lot of cool new products. Meeting Avenged Sevenfold was really cool because I know they inspire Meghan and Alex a lot, there were just so many amazing musicians we got to run into, it was a great first experience.
I ALSO SAW YOU WERE ON THE 2015 CHRISTMAS ALBUM ENTITLED “ALICE COOPER, TASTE OF CHRISTMAS PUDDING” AND YOU COVERED ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS, HOW DID GETTING ON THE ALBUM HAPPEN AND HOW DID YOU FEEL PUTTING YOUR OWN SIGNATURE ON A CLASSIC SONG?
Nicole: We competed in Alice Cooper’s Proof Is In The Pudding competition and made it to the final round! Because we were finalists we got to be on the album, which was a really neat experience. We chose the song because one of Meghan and I’s favorite bands, My Chemical Romance, covered the song, so we got the idea from them. We were still able to put our own little twist on it, and hearing it recorded on the album sounded great.
ANY OTHER BAND FROM YOUR HOMETOWN PHOENIX, AZ YOU WANNA GIVE A SHOUT OUT SO YOUR FANS AND ROCK FANS CAN CHECK OUT?
Alex: We have some awesome friends in the bands The Sink or Swim, Paranova, and Analog Outlaws. We’ve known all of them for quite some time, and Analog Outlaws competed in the Proof competition with us! Anyone reading this should check out their facebook pages, they’re all awesome bands and awesome people!
 
 
 
 
 
ILL BE SEEING YOU ON THE OTEP SHOW WHEN YOU HIT MA, HOW DO YOU FEEL BEING ASKED ON THAT FULL PACKAGE TOUR AND WHAT DO YOU HOPE TO LEARN BEING ON A TOUR LIKE THIS?
Nicole: This is our first tour with a national act! We know we’re going to gain a lot of valuable experience and learn a lot from the other bands we’re playing with. We’re especially excited for it because OTEP is female fronted, along with September Mourning, and Lacey Sturm will be joining in on a few dates! We love working with other gals so it’s really cool that our first national tour is with so many!
Alex: We’re ready to expand our fanbase and it’ll be fun to see other parts of the country. We’re hoping to gain lots of new fans!
WHAT DID IT MEAN TO YOU GUYS OPENING FOR DEAD KENNEDY’S?
Alex: It was really cool to see such an amazing response from a well-established and respected punk band and their fans! The feedback we got from both the Mesa and Tucson show really blew us away, there was such an overwhelming positive response. Nicole: We were really grateful for the opportunity to play with them, it was something of a milestone for us I guess, being asked to play for them. It definitely meant a lot to us that we were asked to play, and also that the crowd really enjoyed us.
 
I KNOW IT’S ONLY THE BEGINNING OF YOUR CAREER BUT WHAT DO YOU HOPE PEOPLE WALK AWAY FROM AFTER A LIVE SHOW, LISTENING TO YOU MUSIC OR MEETING YOU IN PERSON?
 Alex: We really want people to walk away with a connection to our music and also us as individuals. As a band we've always wanted to reach out to people and connect and when people are able to, it means a lot to us.
Nicole: For me especially, I really want to inspire other girls to do what we’re doing. I started playing music because I saw Lyn-Z Way of Mindless Self Indulgence playing bass, and I wanted to be exactly like her, kicking ass and playing music. We know girls are underrepresented in the music scene, so we want to help empower fellow ladies to play music too! We just hope to inspire people with our music.