Introducing Seren Emyr
- Helen Rosa
- Jun 4
- 4 min read
In this interview, I catch up with Rhys Toms, professionally known as Seren Emyr, an emerging artist based out of Australia.
Firstly, thank you for taking the time to speak with me, it means so much. I thoroughly enjoy listening to this project and look forward to what’s to come
I feel it’s only fair to start off with touching on your roots - you got your start in electronic dance music, how has that foundation shaped your approach to songwriting, and production in the alternative music scene?
Starting out with EDM has definitely impacted the way that iIproduce anything I make. I pay a lot of attention to the sonics and small details in my beats which I think can be heard a lot in my older music, so I made it a challenge for myself to make something that was a lot more simple and built around the lyrics and vocals, rather than doing it the other way around which i normally do because of my history in producing around vocals for singers.
Was there a defining moment that inspired you to transition from edm to alternative, if so what was that like?
I’ve always loved alternative music. I grew up with a parents that played music like TOOL, Björk, and The Smiths on roadtrips and would go to live shows wearing corpse paint when they were my age. I had released a few songs on my SoundCloud in the past where I experimented with punk/shoegaze music, and every time I did it, it resonated with me and people that listened to my music a lot so it felt natural to expand on it more.
With your latest body of work, Confessions, touches on topics of dissatisfaction, betrayal, and growth, what inspired you to talk about these topics?
I’m not the type to open up to anyone so this year I started journaling my thoughts and this project is a reflection of every significant thing I wrote about. a lot of this album is about yearning for someone I romanticized in my mind & feeling like every time I grew attached to someone, I'd have my trust broken and get reminded why I stay so closed off. I got cheated on in my most recent relationship this year too and before that I hadn’t dated in 3 years, so having this paranoia of betrayal and a distaste for romantic feelings, along with a growing obsession of understanding myself and self improvement played a big role in most of the songs.
What songs and influences inspired this body of work? Also are there any non-musical influences that inspired the creative direction and execution of this album?
There’s been a lot of music that’s inspired me but songs in particular that come to mind were definitely Mojo Pin by Jeff Buckley (1994), Good Night Mantra by Otto Benson (2022), and It Could Be Sweet by Portishead (1994). I also really like coming across music with Vinyl crackle in it and lower quality cassette audio because of how it felt like I was listening to a time capsule and stepping into an old memory, so i wanted to do something like that for this album.
With songs like “I will betray you” and its alternative, as well as “don’t try to be sincere, it’s disgusting,” what was the creative dynamic like collaborating with Lyfelxss and Michael Harrison?
Working with everyone involved in this album was an amazing experience. Everyone is so talented and open to experimenting which made this project come together very quickly and naturally. Lyfelxss did a beautiful job with the alternate version of “I will betray you”. Working with Horizon was a lot of fun too. He’s incredible on piano player and composer as a whole, and he really helped bring the song “safe space” to life. Vavi drew an amazing cover art for the album which i’m very grateful to have and did some crazy scream vocals for the song “more and more and more” as well. I stumbled across Michael Harrison’s production on YouTube when starting this project and was blown away too so i knew i had to work with his production immediately.
Which artists within the alternative and indie scenes have had the most significant influence on your sound and creative direction?
I would say Björk, Portishead & Jeff Buckley play a Björk massive role, along with my music collective i’m in called Juno. they all inspire me constantly. Visually, I’ve always been drawn to uncanny visuals like old animations from the '70s & Adult Swim commercials so the direction for the cover art definitely had that in mind.
Lastly, within this body of work, what impression or message do you hope your listeners take away from Confessions?
Don’t get stuck in your mind trying to understand yourself. Just exist and enjoy the present moment, reflecting every week. take every day as a learning experience and keep a positive mindset no matter what the circumstances are, your perception of a situation will determine how it effects you and your life.
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