Interview with SEA OF SIN (2/2)

Sea of Sin ‘s new album is entitled “The Shape of a Lonely Soul”. We talk to Frank Zwicker and Klaus Schill in two parts. You can read the first part here .

Orkus: You also made a great video for “Bang Bang Bang”. Why was this song particularly important to you?
Frank Zwicker: Of course, this song really gets your head spinning. Together with Daniel Vossen, who shot and produced the video, we were able to let off steam creatively in the best possible way. What’s particularly important to us with this song is that we don’t want to glorify or justify violence in any way. It’s more about showing the inner demons that haunt us. Another plus of the song is certainly the dynamics and the rather rocking up-tempo style, which fits very well with the imagery of the video.

O: “Renegades” seems particularly hopeful. Is there a story behind it?
Klaus Schill: As “creatures of habit”, we all occasionally find ourselves blocking certain things or decisions in our minds or refusing to allow them to happen. In view of our “environment”, which is practically constantly changing, we have to learn time and again to allow new influences and changes and to be prepared for them. A good example of this is the topic of AI, which on the one hand often causes uncertainty and fears about the future, but on the other hand can also open up an incredible number of new opportunities and possibilities if we embrace it and use it with a sense of proportion.

O: “Dark Revelations” is particularly surprising. How did this piece come about?
FZ: “Dark Revelations” was born out of a relatively new song idea that we both really liked. In realizing it, we wanted to go a little beyond our previous limits, both in terms of production and vocals, in order to give this dark, powerful song the necessary impact with a slowly building arc of tension. During the vocal recordings in the studio, we intuitively incorporated a spoken-word bridge for the first time, which was not originally planned. Instrumentally, the song is characterized by driving rhythms and synth lines that meet dark, haunting soundscapes with almost cinematic references, reflecting the confrontation with inner emptiness, the story of struggle and defiance in the face of dark revelations that lie ahead.

O: The album ends wonderfully, but also melancholically, with “Neverending”. Saying goodbye is always difficult. What inspired you to write this song?
KS: We are all familiar with situations or periods of life that are characterized by deep, seemingly never-ending or recurring pain, for example after the loss of a loved one or serious illness. Mentally, you find yourself in a continuous downward spiral from which you cannot easily free yourself. This is exactly what “Neverending” is about, finally shaking off this seemingly endless pain and saying goodbye – “Time to say goodbye”.

O: The album will also be released on limited vinyl. What do you particularly like about this format?
FZ: It was a long-standing wish of ours to produce vinyl as well as CDs. For reasons of time and budget, this didn’t work out for the previous albums. But this time we really wanted to do it. Vinyl has its own special charm, from the warm sound character to the haptic experience and the touch of the needle when playing. We finally wanted to experience and stage our songs in this way, after fans had repeatedly asked for it in recent years. We wanted to fulfill this wish. However, the effort and costs of a vinyl production are immense, especially if you do everything yourself – as we do – without a label or distributor. In the end, however, all the effort was totally worth it for us when you can hold the finished product in your hands and enjoy it.

O:… And the artwork looks much better in this format! How did you come up with the atmospheric but also somehow mystical album cover?
KS: The cover art was intended to set the scene for the content of the album in an abstract and atmospheric way; the color scheme and aesthetics were clear beforehand, so it was ultimately about finding a suitable key visual that would work best here. We came across the cloth motif even before the release of the first single “Faith!” and ultimately used it for all subsequent releases.

O: What are your plans for the near future?
FZ: We are totally happy that our new album has finally seen the light of day. We’ve put all our energy and resources into its production over the past year. We want to celebrate and enjoy this moment, which we have been working towards for so long, with an incredible amount of passion and numerous “extra shifts”, with our fans! The upcoming festivals Kielectric on April 04, 2026 in Kiel and the Electronic Westbound Night 2026 on May 02, 2026 in Krefeld will certainly provide enough space for this … (wink)
KS: At the same time, we’re excited to see what the second half of 2026 might bring for us as 100% independent artists in an increasingly competitive live sector. Of course, we’re really keen to present our new album live in a high-quality setting and look forward to receiving serious inquiries from promoters and bookers.
FZ: Finally, we would like to say a huge thank you to all our loyal fans out there, without whose support none of this would be possible!!!

Claudia Zinn-Zinnenburg

Line-up:
Frank Zwicker – vocals, lyrics
Klaus Schill – synths, guitars, production

Watch the video for “Bang Bang Bang”: