Sirenia is a Norwegian gothic metal band from Stavanger, founded in 2001 by Morten Veland. The band uses melodic instrumentals, synthesizers, and distorted guitars with female vocals, male death vocals, clean male vocals, a choir, and violins. The lyrics are concerned with human existence, emotion, and mental states. History 2001–2003: At Sixes and Sevens In January 2001, Veland, a founding member of Tristania left the band, within a few weeks Veland had a new band along with three other members. He had written material for Tristania's next release but because of the split, he used it towards Sirenia's debut album At Sixes and Sevens with other new material written for it as well. The band entered the studio by November or December 2001. The band failed to find a suitable singer prior to recording in France, so they hired a session female singer named Fabienne Gondamin. 2004–2006: An Elixir for Existence On the subsequent tour Fabienne Gondamin was replaced by Henriette Bordvik, with whom the band recorded the album An Elixir for Existence and the EP Sirenian Shores. The band signed with Nuclear Blast in May 2005. In November 2005, Henriette Bordvik left the band, citing personal reasons. 2006–2007: Nine Destinies and a Downfall In 2007 they released a third album – Nine Destinies and a Downfall. The album features new singer, Monika Pedersen from Denmark, who joined the band in April 2006, and new guitarist Bjørnar Landa (from Artifact), who joined the band during the recording. On 5 November 2007 Monika Pedersen quit the band over musical disagreements. Her departure caused Sirenia to pull out of a planned European tour with Therion. 2008–2009: The 13th Floor Sirenia began looking for a new singer in November 2007. The process in finding their newest member took about six months. About 500 applied, at the end they wanted to find someone from the EU region for practical reasons. On 9 April 2008 Sirenia announced Spanish X Factor contestant Ailyn as their new female vocalist. On 19 May 2008 it was announced that Bjørnar Landa left the band in order to have more time for his family and studies. He was replaced by Michael S. Krumins (Green Carnation). On 12 June 2008 Sirenia announced that for the first time in their career, they had decided to work with a bass player for their live shows. The session bass player will be Kristian Olav