EXCLUSIVE: 5 Minutes with Scandinavian Ice Queen Elsa Carmona

Barcelona born, Stockholm based gothic singer Elsa Carmona, has just unveiled her brand new single by the name of ‘Ritual’ after taking a long hiatus to work towards a new creative direction. ‘Ritual’ is a icy cool pop track, much in the vein of Tove Lo and Lykee Li with the same allure. However veering towards the grittier, noir-eqsue end of the spectrum, Elsa Carmona has a mystery about her, which intrigues us. Here we find out more about her obsession with horoscopes and her hatred for LA, and solve the puzzle of why she changed her name from her previous pseudonym Sirena…

1. You mentioned that you had evolved from your previous radio-friendly, dream-pop aesthetic… to a more darker and rawer sound. What created this change in direction?
Last year I was kind of lost, so I left Stockholm for LA when the sun started vanishing from the north. I guess I hoped it would make things better, but I was wrong. LA actually made me spiral into an even darker place, and the songs I was writing over there became some of the darkest, most introspective records I’ve made. When I returned to Sweden there was no going back to the sound of my previous releases – I’d just changed too much.

Also why did you decide to change your moniker from Sirena to Elsa (after receiving a significant amount of success under this name)?

The sound I’m doing now is just so different, it wouldn’t make sense to associate it with the EP I released as Sirena. Writing these new songs has been a very emotional and private experience, so it feels right to use my birth name.

What was it like growing up in Barcelona, and moving to Stockholm (where you are now settled). It must have been a big shock right?

I was actually just in Barcelona a couple weeks ago and it got me feeling so nostalgic. That city really resonates with me visually – the gothic look and the dimness of the street lights. there’s a poetic energy there. To be honest I don’t feel like I belong to any culture. Being in Stockholm now is mechanical and efficient: everyone plugs and lives so grid-like, but it’s a good energy to harness for studio months.

Do you have many live performances lined up in the new year?

I’m still working with Fredrik and some other producers on new material. Once I’m satisfied with the songs I’m excited to get a tour drawn up. I’m in the creative stages of designing what that would look like.

For your most recent single ‘Rituals’, you’ve worked with Fredrik Okazaki. What was this experience like?

Fredrik and I are both extremely Scorpio, almost textbook. Its a natural creative flow, we get deep into similar worlds.

When can we expect to hear the full album, is there a date for this yet?

First I’m releasing an EP (the next single is out in December), and then I’m not sure about the album’s release date, but I imagine it will be toward the end of next year.

Elsa Carmona – Ritual