Sioux: Greetings, it is good to see the triumphant return of SINISTER to the fans of Death Metal. It’s been several years since your last release. What was going on during this time period?
Aad: Hello! Aad here nice to talk with you. Between The Silent Howling and the new record we did so many live shows all around the world. When I tell you that we played over 30 different countries without any real tour, you know how much we were on the road with SINISTER. Don’t understand me wrong, we love to do this and like to do it again for Legacy Of Ashes. We also can not spend all our free time to SINISTER because most of us have families with children to take care of.

Sioux: I want to congratulate you on the fine release of Legacy Of Ashes. Personally I think it ranks right up there with the album Hate. What factors do you contribute to getting this sound once again? Are you satisfied with the way the album sounds?
Aad: Thank you very much for the good words about Legacy Of Ashes. We are really happy with the end result. It turned out completely the way we had in mind. We had in mind to make this time again a brutal, fast and aggressive record after The Silent Howling. Believe me when I say that we were not looking back to our old records, but it sounds complete again like the old SINISTER and I am really happy with this and I think we will go on with this sound again.

Sioux: Was it easy to write Legacy Of Ashes? Where did you draw the inspiration for this album?
Aad: No man, it’s never easy to write a new SINISTER record. People and fans like to get the best from us also when you know that you not can make everybody happy with your new record. We start writing new tracks when we booked the studio, so there is some pressure for us, but we like that, then we always come with the best ideas. We don’t need to listen to other bands or what ever to come to inspiration, we always have ideas for new tracks and this time it was not different. Everything we make sounds like SINISTER, a sound that no other band has on this planet I think and we are proud of this.

Sioux: Aad you are currently the only original member of SINISTER, with all the line up changes through the years, how did that affect the band and the music? Were you ever afraid that the original sound that SINISTER was known for would be lost with all the different members coming and going from the band?
Aad: As you can hear on our records, it had no effect on our sound. Of course you are a bit afraid in the beginning that this will happen but with Alex on guitar everything is ok. Alex is already over 12 years in SINISTER so he picked up on SINISTER in a perfect way. You don’t have to say anything to him how it has to sound... he knows!!!!

Sioux: SINISTER has also had a number of vocalists over the years, which can also effect the sound of the band. Aad, you were originally the drummer, what made you step up to the front and take control of the vocals?
Aad: The first reason was that I had no fun anymore in playing drums after so many years; it was time for something else. Also it was easier to find a new drummer than a singer. For us it was always the singer who gave problems (and some guitar players) in the band. For some reason they always started to be big headed and I hate this!!!

Sioux: Bart was a long time member in the band, when you heard a song, you could identify SINISTER immediately because he had such a unique style of guitar playing, Was it hard after he left to find someone to write guitar riffs the way he did?
Aad: Bart was a great guitar player and had killer ideas for making new songs. But as you can see we are still around with still the unique SINISTER sound, so than you can see that more people are able to play this (not to many)!!!! Because to play the guitar stuff from SINISTER I can say that you have to be really good.

Sioux: SINISTER was in with the first wave of Death Metal bands in the early 1990s. New death metal bands of today can’t seem to capture this certain sound from that time period. Have you noticed this and what do you think of these newer bands who call themselves death metal?
Aad: Some of this newer death metal bands I really like a lot, bands like Ichor and As They Sleep are absolute killer for me. And I think it’s normal that these newer bands can not capture the sound from this time. The most of the members are really young they have nothing with bands like Autopsy or name them; they think complete different about music and how this has to sound.

Sioux: What keeps SINISTER going after all these years? What are your plans for the coming year? Any tours to support the album?
Aad: That we still have fun to do this, which is the most important, when we have no fun anymore it’s over.

Sioux: Is anyone in the band currently involved with any side projects?
Aad: Yes, I am also in a band called Supreme Pain, we just signed to Massacre Records and we recorded already the new CD for them. It will be called Divine Incarnation... expect a death metal inferno. I do also Absurd Universe, which is old school death-thrash; we are signed by Punishement 18 records from Italy, record to come in the late summer. I also did a record with some old members of SINISTER; the band is called Weapons To Hunt. So as you can see I do a lot but SINISTER will be always on the first place of course.

Sioux: Thank you for your time; it was truly an honor to interview a band that I have been a fan of since the beginning. Do you have any final words you’d like to say?
Aad: Like to thank you for the interview. And all extreme metal heads have to check out Legacy Of Ashes... you never know maybe you like to buy it and not take it from internet haha. Hail the beast!