INTERVIEW. SCAREIFINA (WICKED LITTLE DOLLS)

Scareifina is the lead singer for Wicked Little Dolls (the other band members are MarrCello, MiZari and LuCi).  Classic Rock described them as "a loony, possibly Satanic cross between Alice Cooper and Daisy Chainsaw" and dubbed them New York City's darkest, dirtiest secret.  Their self-titled debut album is out now and they're currently working on the follow-up.


You got your start writing songs for black metal band, Ancient.  What's your favourite memory about your time with that band?
My favourite memories are seeing Europe on tour and being in the Lillith's Embrace video.  We shot it in Norway and we were freezing.  I remember for one shot we thought it would be a killer idea to go inside a cave and make a fire.  We all nearly died in the friggen cave.  There we are, a bunch of badass black metal members scrambling to get out of a cave in Norway, that was filling up with black smoke because of your brilliant make-a-fire-in-a-cave idea.  We did get the shot, but yeah, not the best plan, lol.

Do you have any other side projects now or are you just concentrating on Wicked Little Dolls?
WLD is my one and only baby.  It's more than a band to us, it's a way of life, a family, it's an enchanted empire.

What's your favourite song on the album and why?
Rotten Candy.  It feels good to be the predator.  I need that feeling on stage, unrelenting rage.  It takes a certain type of monster to rape a child or beat an innocent creature and it takes an equal amount of anger to slay the slayer.

In your CD notes you thank Eminem and Oprah Winfrey.  What is it about these particular people that inspires you?
Eminem speaks his mind with no filter.  I admire that about him, and he's got a ton of talent and came up from nothing.
Oprah Winfrey uses her life to speak out and put focus on topics that need to be discussed.  My music is often inspired by something she brought to my attention through her show.  I do not believe in accidents, so if I see something I ask myself why did I see this and how can I help.  I first learned about baby rape on her show.  Men with AIDS in Africa were raping babies because they were told that having sex with a virgin will cure them.  I thought that babies were so young and innocent that they would not know what had happened to them until I saw this six month old little girl's eyes.  She had been raped at five months old, her body had to be put back together, and in her eyes I saw a sadness that brings me to tears even as I write this.  If Oprah had not followed her path to the top I never would have seen that little girl.  It's important to use your life.

You use a lot of doll imagery in your songs (as well as the name of the band itself) --- what is that fascinates you about dolls?
Secrets were as normal as the sun rising in my house growing up.  There is something about the way a porcelain dolls' eyes look that make me think they keep secrets.  Many people have a fear of dolls because they always look like they are looking at you.  I have many, many dolls all over my home.  I love them obsessively.   My first doll Emily was on the WLD album.  She has a music box inside her, I wound her up and you can hear her song on the end of our record.

I first came across your band when you donated a CD to Ladyfest Newcastle (which was given to me by the organisers as a thank you present) and you sent this amazing package where you customised a box to look like an antique book and put dried flowers in with the CD.  Do you have any craft-type hobbies?  What's the favourite thing you've ever made?
I do enjoy painting and drawing and making things inside boxes.  My favourite thing I made was "Scareifina's Box".  It was a box with a broken porcelain doll from Italy inside it.  Inside the box I decorated it to reflect my life and I took string and bound another doll to the box.  We all have a box we live in, things that make us feel stuck.  That was my favourite and it was stolen at a show.  I hope whoever stole it loves the dolls the way I do.

The video to Rotten Candy shows you as a vampire and your CD has quite a strong horror vibe to it.  What's your favourite horror movie and why?
I have so many favourite horror movies, "The Blood Splattered Bride" is one and another one I really love is "Alice Sweet Alice".   I love "The Blood Splattered Bride" because it turns me on.  I don't like porn, but this movie is like porn to me.  It's a haunting story, beautifully shot, and so rich with romance, obsession and horror.
"Alice Sweet Alice" I love because it's such a twisted tale with two sisters, two little girls, one is good the other is bad.   I love duality, and little girls that kill is always a good time.

If you could cover any song what would it be and why?
I really don't know, I wish I could cover something crazy like a Devil Doll song.  That is some insane music that I love.

Do you and the rest of the band all come from New York?  What do you like best about living in the city?
LuCi and I grew up in Northern Virginia, MarrCello and MiZari grew up in Argentina.  We all love the city because you can find anything you want at any time.  MarrCello told me yesterday, "It's crazy man, I went downtown to get some coffee and found this place that sells coffee, tea and shoes!  The tables in the place were made out of old drum sets, I fucking love NYC!"  His statement sums up how I feel too, it's a magic box that moves and doors change and open and close and open all the time.

What are your live shows like?
I never really remember much after I hit the stage, I stop thinking and just sing and by the end of the set I have two bloody knees and I feel like I cried for three days.  It's the best feeling in the world.  We do each show differently, sometimes we hand out candy, lollipops are a must at any show.  Other times we bring out hot WLD's with us to sing back up vocals.  Our last show, one of my closest friends, Andrea, did the show with us.  She had a fantastic voice.  I love to give other women the experience of being on stage.

Do you have any plans to play Europe/the UK?
We don't have formal plans but we are going to London at some point in time.  I plan to stay there for a few months.

What are your future plans for WLD?
We have almost finished our new album.  It will have 13 songs.  One song is called "Angel in Darkness" and it is about a NYC girl from our scene that goes by the name of Dark Angel and she killed and castrated her father in July.  He raped her from age 3 till a teen and her sisters too.  We will sell this track online and donate the money to her.  (EDITORS NOTE:   The website address that Scareifina gave me isn't working but if you Google Brigitte Harris + Dark Angel you can read more about this case.)   The money is going to get her a good lawyer.  She slayed a monster and saved another little girl from the horror she went through.  I hope she gets help and goes on to live a good life.  If every little girl who raped killed we wouldn't have a million perverts all over the world.  A word to all the WLD's out there, I'm not saying to go kill who ever wronged you, it's better to not fuck yourself over, find a way to use your life instead, and always use the dirty secret parts --- that makes for very rich soil.
Bloody Kisses,
Scareifina, MarrCello, MiZari and LuCi.
WLD4LIFE.

THIS E-MAIL INTERVIEW WAS DONE IN MARCH 2008.
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.
PHOTOS OF WICKED LITTLE DOLLS FROM THEIR MYSPACE.