After ditching her moniker ‘Sirena’, Elsa Carmona is venturing into new, deeper and darker territories.

Her first release, “Ritual”, instantly had heads turning due to it’s big breakaway from the releases under her former moniker. Her debut helped to build up the hype around her latest offering “Run Baby Run”. With a gothic-pop vibe and dark undertones, themes than manifest in sharp synths and haunting vocals, it feels like this is the music that Elsa was born to make – it’s no wonder she’s decided to put her real name to this new direction.

We grabbed a minute with the artist to find find about more about her latest musical venture.

Tell us a bit about how you first got involved with music.

I can’t remember a day without music. I don’t really like talking that much and have always been drawn to singing.  I dropped out of school and studied music in Barcelona.

You recently started performing under your real name Elsa Carmona & have adopted a new, darker sound, why the change of direction?

I’ve always liked that kind of music: mysterious soundscapes and heavy beats.I see it as kind of silver and black … This music feels very true to me.
 
What or who are you inspired by? 

Musically, I’m inspired by Radiohead, Eminem, Björk. When it comes to visuals, I’m a huge fan of T.A.T.U. music videos, as well as Underworld, goth and minimal grunge fashion. I also love early 90’s photo shoots of my favorite bands—the artwork for “Ritual” is inspired by a picture of Alanis Morissette from that era.

How do you go about the songwriting process? 

I usually start with a set of chords or a word that inspires me, then I build a demo with my producer. Afterwards, I experiment with melodies for hours or sometimes days until it feels right. A lot of my melodies come to me in the bathtub. There’s a connection between water and sound.

Tell us about the Stockholm music scene. 

Beneath the city lies a whole network of basement studios—it seems like you can find one in every apartment building. It’s kind of a small town too, so you get to know everyone. Swedes have a melancholic, hard-working mentality, and the winter helps you stay in the studio longer instead of going out.

If you could work with anyone in the music industry [writer/artist/producer], who would it be and why?

Chris Martin, or maybe The Weeknd, Tove Lo, or Grimes? If he could be brought back to life, then Jeff Buckley.

Looking forward, what can people expect from you in 2017?

I’m releasing another single early next year, and then a longer EP later in 2017. I will also start playing shows around Scandinavia starting February.