September 23rd, 2013 
Brian Leak 
European pop duo MonaLisa Twins have a very literal moniker. They are twin sisters named Mona and Lisa Wagner and much like a particular pair of genetically enhanced laboratory mice, they aim to take over the world — but with their music, as opposed to feeble-minded schemes.
We recently had the chance to speak with the lovely siblings as they went in depth about the idea behind their recent music video, their musical background stemming from their childhood, and their elaborate future plans. Read through the jump and get acquainted with MonaLisa Twins.
How did music play a role in your childhoods growing up that led you to want to be musicians yourselves?
L: Our dad was running a recording studio in our home, so we were always surrounded by musicians and instruments ever since we were little kids. Music always felt very natural, we were singing harmonies on car rides and tried to imitate songs by singing the guitar and vocal parts at the same time while drumming along on the backseats.
M: There was always music in the house. The radio was always on, a concert was running on TV or someone was singing or playing the guitar. We were listening to music similar to what we now like and get inspired by, mainly music from the 60s and 70s. Though we went through all kinds of crazy stages regarding our likings in music, we definitely found our way back to the 60s music!
When did you two originally come to the realization that you wanted to learn instruments and start making music together?
M: Like Lisa said, we were always surrounded by music and musicians and we could never keep our fingers off the instruments, but we were about 9 when we seriously wanted to learn how to play one. For me it was the drums, for Lisa the guitar. It was quite obvious for us that we should be making music together since we did everything together anyway.
L: Though we did make music all throughout our childhood, I’d say we were about 13 when we started pursuing our dream to make this more than just a hobby. We played our first real concert as a family band, covering our favorite songs from the 60s to 2007. That way we got a good feeling for different genres and styles and finally found what we enjoyed the most.
Having taken to the 60s pop sound that you did, have you had any desire to branch further out into new realms of music or do you plan to stick to your current sound?
L: Our music changes with every song we write and we will constantly keep developing our style and skills. I think, that actually was something that defined the 60s, too – variety. We don’t want to lose track of what was important to us when we started writing our own music. That was to write songs that we ourselves would like to listen to. It should always have a certain depth in it but we never want to lose the fun that we try to incorporate in our songs as well.
M: Of course being a musician often is about trying out new and different things, but we are never going to compromise when it comes to writing music. My biggest horror would be to become successful or even famous for something that I don’t truly stand behind and can be proud of.
We’ll definitely keep using the elements of 60s music, since that is something that speaks to us. Harmonies and bright guitar riffs are things that can be developed in all kinds of directions. With the last album we already tried to give each song a different twist while keeping the overall sound consistent. But it would be quite boring to do the same things twice so we can’t wait to put all our new ideas and concepts into our next projects!
Do you feel that being sisters gives you any kind of advantage with how you work together or are there a lot of hang-ups in your process of writing and recording because of it?
M: It’s definitely a bonus. We’ve been making music together since we were little kids, so we know each other better than anybody else, not only personally but also musically. Singing harmonies comes very natural and our voices blend better than with most other people. Of course, we argue from time to time.
L: Not in a serious way, but simply the way sisters do. We get on each other’s nerves sometimes but on the other hand always get over it quickly. We can tell each other straightforward if we don’t like an idea or song part and we complement each other well in our skills. The same goes for our dad, as we write and record as a team of three. Then to have our stepmom Michaela helping us with all the booking, website and marketing stuff…I don’t mean to sound cheesy but we couldn’t wish for better people to go with on this musical journey.
You just recently released the video for “When We’re Together” which contained a very cool concept that brought people together. Can you explain how you came up with the idea for the video?
L: We were thinking about a creative way to get lots of people involved in a connecting, artistic project, all in the spirit of the song title. The craziest idea we came up with was putting up a huge canvas in the busiest street of London’s art district Camden and inviting passengers to paint with us. We were pretty sure that after a while police would come and put us all in jail. But nothing like that happened. We were overwhelmed by the dedication of bypassing strangers, joining in to create a collective, beautiful piece of art together. It was really touching to see how people wholeheartedly started painting, being thankful for a short break in their daily routine. Businessmen, cyclists, musicians, little children and elderly people alike were painting side by side, laughing and sharing their thoughts and even very personal stories.
M: Only later we realized that painting also goes well with the name “MonaLisa.”
The painting that was featured in the video sold on eBay shortly after as well. Why did you decide to sell it rather than keep it for yourselves? Is that money going to go towards your next album?
M: The painting is beautiful and we would have loved to keep it for ourselves. But we don’t have a place to put it up as it is really big. So we thought we’d give our fans the chance to bid for it on eBay, and we could use the money to cover some of our expenses for our video productions. Somebody in the USA was the highest bidder at the auction, but unfortunately he didn’t take a look at the shipping costs. So he finally declined to take the painting after he couldn’t find a cheaper way to send the painting to America. That means it is still in our possession and we’ll take good care of it until somebody shows real interest.
It’s been well over a year since your last effort was released, so do you have new material in the works? Can you give us any details on when we can expect new stuff to surface?
L: First we will finish the videos for all our songs of our last album. Then we can’t wait to get back into the studio and record some new tunes. We’ve got many ideas and half-finished songs in our head that we are looking forward to develop and polish.
M: We hate talking about time frames but I hope I am right, when I say you can expect some new material by the end of this year.
This is off track, but, you both have very distinct hair colors and styles that kind of distract from the fact that you’re twins. Is that your intention? Unlike, say, Tegan and Sara who still look very similar.
L: As kids and teens we’ve never wanted to dress or look similar, and thankfully our parents never forced that on us. We always had a bit of a different style and haircuts so it wouldn’t feel natural for us to look alike just for the sake of having more of the “twin-bonus.”
M: We don’t even know whether or not we’re identical anyway. Unfortunately the doctor failed to check that right after birth. When we were little it was harder to tell us apart, but the older we get the less people mix us up. We have very similar features but yeah, since we’re both individuals with different characters, we’d feel quite stupid to try and look alike. Having said that however, for stage performances we recently decided to dress uniformly and only let our hairdos be the visually distinguishing feature.
Do you have any upcoming touring plans in the works or are you primarily going to be working on new things off the road?
M: We’ll use the rest of 2013 to make videos and write new music while playing only a few shows in our area. We are planning to do some touring in 2014 but we’ll make more specific plans in the next months.
Have there been any notable influences or changes that have come into your lives since the last release that you could see playing a big role in how the next album turns out?
L: We’ve definitely seen and experienced a lot personally and musically within the last one and a half years, more than we ever did before. During that time, of course, some people have tried to put their influences in our music and band, told us how much better this or that would be or how much more successful we’d become if we wrote songs like so and so. Paying too much attention to “advice” like this, we feel would distract from our original intention in making music. But being out on the road, meeting other musicians and people and traveling has definitely given us new inspiration. We gain a lot out of studying people that are better at certain things than we are. All in all, there have been many situations and experiences that made us even more certain to continue with our style of music and viewpoint on things.
M: Our voices and guitar playing have developed a lot since the last recordings, so I think that will be noticeable on the next songs. We also discovered more 60s and present time music that we like, so that might influence us in a way as well.
Outside of music, what do the two of you do in your daily routine?
M: Unfortunately “making music” in not just about standing on stage or writing songs and answering fan mail all the time. There’s an awful lot of behind-the-scenes work in all kinds of creative and administrative fields. We love our “job” and we want to become known on a broader international scale, so there’s not much leisure time left. But we’re lucky to be able to combine most of our hobbies with our profession, for we love traveling, meeting new people, hanging out with friends or driving around with our motorbike!
L: When we’re not working on our musical projects we like to spend time with friends and family, watch good movies, listen to music, spend time on the internet and do the things most other people would enjoy. Only lately we’ve started working out a little, since we learned that sitting in front of the computer, practicing guitar and occasionally standing on a stage ain’t the best way to keep our bodies healthy. Well, well, I’m already getting close to my first proper push up!
Do you have any plans or desires to venture out here to the United States in the future?
L: That is definitely the goal, and it will happen sooner or later. Since a lot of our work is focused on putting content on YouTube and internet platforms in general, you can’t help but having fans spread all over the world. We got some of the best feedback and most passionate listeners from the States. Visiting California in 2008 and 2009 was such an adventurous and friendly experience that we felt very at home and welcome there, also music-wise.
L: Right now it seems like it’ll be the UK that we tackle first and we’ll elaborate our plans for 2014 in the next months. We love both countries and our music appears to be popular in each! We’ll start off with England since it is closer to our home country, but soon we will take over the world, right, Pinky?
M: Exactly, Brain! … Wait, how come I am Pinky?! We both know I’m more of a Brain than you!
L: Alright, Pinky!
All in all, what can the world expect from MonaLisa Twins in the next year or so?
M: First of all lots of new videos, then live shows and new songs – the whole package! We currently have four more music videos in the making, which will be released throughout the next few weeks and months. Then we will start recording new singles and planning a proper tour. All in all we’re trying to bring back a spirit that we know many people have been waiting for a long time.
Written and conducted by: Brian Lion – Follow him on Twitter
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